There’s a Robot Rolling Around Evansville, But Why?

You May See This Little Robot Roaming Evansville, Here’s What It’s Doing

Okay, if I was driving through Evansville and saw a little robot making its way down the sidewalk, I would absolutely have some questions.

First of all, where did it come from? Second, where is it going? And probably most importantly, what in the world is it doing?

Well, if you happen to spot one roaming around Evansville, don't worry. It's supposed to be there, and it's actually doing something pretty cool for our community.

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Meet Gizmo

Students at the University of Evansville have built a GPS-equipped robot named Gizmo as part of a project called Sidewalks4All.

And Gizmo isn't just roaming around Evansville for fun.

The little robot was built entirely by UE students and uses artificial intelligence and computer vision to scan our sidewalks and look for things that could make getting around difficult.

Think about how many sidewalks you probably pass every single day without giving them a second thought. Gizmo is paying attention to all of it.

It can identify things like curb ramps, crosswalks, obstacles and the condition of the sidewalk itself.

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Why Is a Robot Scanning Evansville Sidewalks?

This is where the project goes from being a cool robot to something that could actually make a difference.

The information Gizmo collects will eventually be used to create a map showing sidewalk conditions around Evansville.

A cracked or uneven sidewalk might be annoying for some of us, but for someone using a wheelchair, walker or another mobility device, it could be the difference between being able to safely use that route or not.

That's why students are using Gizmo to help identify accessibility barriers that we might otherwise walk or drive right past.

The project is beginning in the Evansville Promise Neighborhood, with the hope of eventually mapping sidewalks throughout the entire city.

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You Can Help Gizmo, Too

Here's another part of this project that I think is pretty cool: you don't have to be a University of Evansville student or have your own sidewalk robot to help.

Sidewalks4All also has a mobile Walk Audit application that allows Evansville residents to report sidewalk problems themselves.

So, if you notice something like a big crack, a missing crosswalk or another sidewalk issue while you're out walking, you can report it. Those community reports can then be used to help train the project's AI models and provide even more information about accessibility around Evansville.

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Evansville Students Using AI for Something Right Here at Home

We hear about artificial intelligence constantly now, and I feel like half the time we're talking about AI doing things that sound like they're straight out of a science-fiction movie.

This one is a little different.

Students are taking AI, robotics and what they're learning in the classroom and using it to solve a very real problem right here in Evansville.

So, if you're out and about and happen to see a little robot named Gizmo cruising down an Evansville sidewalk, now you know.

He's not lost.

He's actually checking out our sidewalks and helping students figure out how we can make getting around Evansville a little easier for everyone.