At the end of the spring 2025 semester, the Robotics & Autonomous Systems Teaching and Innovation Center (RASTIC) did not close for six days straight. “We were open 24/7, [and it was] as nonstop as it gets, because there was just so much energy and excitement and so many things going on,” said Dr. Kenneth Sebesta (ME), a Senior Lecturer and Director of RASTIC.
RASTIC, a 2000-square-foot laboratory on Boston University’s campus, is a “hub for applied robotics innovation.” According to Professor Sebesta, the Center’s “mission is to empower students to create innovative robotics solutions” and to develop “well-rounded, capable engineers who drive progress and deliver lasting value.” RASTIC gives students the opportunity to develop real-world robotics skills through building, designing, and testing robots, ranging from simple consumer devices to “AI-powered marvels.”
The Center was founded in 2022 through an almost $9 million capital investment, receiving $4.4M from the Innovation Institute at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech) and $4.4M matching funds from Boston University. RASTIC is intended to support the educational, research, and workforce development needs of the Massachusetts Robotics industry. Currently, the Center’s two main sponsors are ASML and Amazon Robotics.
Since its opening in March 2024, the Center has quickly transformed into a dynamic hub with students continually coming to work on their projects. In the RASTIC 2024-2025 Annual Report, Dr. Sebesta describes how the Center has become a space where students find “deep, emotional meaning” in their work. “Students don’t just complete assignments and leave— they arrive early, stay late, return again and again,” Dr. Sebesta wrote. “They find camaraderie in collaboration and imagination in immersion. They throw themselves into the real, joyful work of robotics. RASTIC has become their third place, and watching this transformation has filled me with awe.”
For students, the Center not only provides a workspace to design and build robots, but has also become a key community space where engineering students can drop in to do homework or meet new people. Juniors Ada Ucar (ME), Project Development and Management Lead, and Vincent Brunn (ME), Operations Lead, got involved with RASTIC after walking by the Center, which sparked their interest. “I just started showing up,” Ucar said. “With time, I started going to RASTIC-Certified seminars and spending more time there, building my project there.”
Both Ucar and Brunn began as Undergraduate Research Assistants and are now in charge of mentoring students who drop by RASTIC, showing them how to use machinery in the space or guiding them in building robots. Currently, Ucar and Brunn are also working together on building a Chess-Playing Robotic Arm. According to Brunn, the robotic arm plays chess autonomously by perceiving the board, deciding legal moves, and precisely picking and placing pieces. It pairs a lightweight vision pipeline with safe, collision-aware motion planning and a soft-touch end-effector to showcase core robotics — perception, planning, and control — in a polished, interactive demo.
Last year, the Center developed the “RASTIC Certified” program to further engage students and encourage new projects. RASTIC Certified is a microcredentialing program offering a structured pathway for students to develop practical skills and deepen their knowledge of robotics.
There are three tiers of certification: bronze, silver, and gold. A bronze certification shows interest and curiosity about robotics. For a student to earn the bronze certification, they must attend 10 RASTIC Certified seminars on topics, where they will gain a basic theoretical understanding of robotics and become familiar with RASTIC so they can start planning projects efficiently and safely. Last year, RASTIC offered seminars covering topics ranging from artificial intelligence, robotic operating systems, automation, navigation, startup careers, and generative design.
A silver certification includes a portfolio-grade, semester-long project, highlighting their independent problem-solving and analysis skills. A gold certification is an in-depth project, demonstrating the student’s commitment to robotics as a career through a multi-semester project. Between 2024 and 2025, there were 30 bronze, 20 silver, and six gold certifications earned.
In the 2024-2025 academic year, RASTIC produced six award-winning projects, three of which were senior capstone winners. The “Device, Uplifting, and Navigation Group,” a senior capstone project, developed a trio of robots that can autonomously move a model plane around a 2D airport, winning the Engineering Department award for “Best Autonomous Design.” Additionally, the “Automatic Dog Ball Thrower,” another senior capstone project, was a computer vision model that reliably detects the dog within the live camera frame with more than 95% precision. It won the “Best Mechanical Engineering Design of the Year” award.
Currently, RASTIC supports 70+ robotics students and 250 students in total. According to Dr. Sebesta, there are at least 10 students in the Center at any given moment. When students are wrapping up projects towards the end of the semester, there can sometimes be upwards of 30 or 40 students in the Center.
Dr. Sebesta emphasizes that a year and a half in, “this is only the beginning” of RASTIC. “Our goals are clear: further engage students, grow our advisory board, and build ‘RASTIC Certified’ into a robust signature program,” Dr. Sebesta wrote.
One way the Center plans on further engaging students is by creating a “Robotics Facebook,” a pamphlet of robot ideas, the kits of which will be provided by RASTIC’s sponsors. The goal of “Robotics Facebook” is to provide a guide for students who want to become involved in RASTIC, but may not necessarily know where to start. Additionally, the Center plans on hosting an annual showcase where students can share their robotics projects and inspire others, in addition to hosting robotics competitions.
Above all, Dr. Sebesta emphasizes that RASTIC is a “student-forward” center, fostering innovation and collaboration. “Student groups calling this center home have earned recognition and robotics prizes both within Boston University and beyond,” Dr. Sebesta wrote. “Their success testifies to what RASTIC provides: not only a place to learn, but a place for students and ideas to thrive.”
RASTIC is industry-funded and is actively looking for industry partners to join it at the forefront of robotics innovation and education. Reach out to Professor Sebesta, kenn@bu.edu, for more details.