Robin: An Intelligent Bird Observation Application for the Visually Impaired and K‑12 Education
AcceptedIEEE Electro/Information Technology (EIT) Conference 2025
Voice‑first design, accessibility for visually impaired users, classroom integration
Research, Recognition & Real‑World Impact
Robin is more than an app—it's a movement for accessible, nature-based learning, recognized by researchers, educators, and the community.
Senior Design Competition
Robin was awarded Best Senior Design Project in Computer & Information Science, 2025 at the University of Michigan-Dearborn for its innovative development and impact across departments.
Showcase
Award Ceremony
×
![Expanded]()
Launch Event at the Environmental Interpretive Center
Robin's first-ever app launch on campus: tested, demoed, and celebrated by the community.
On April 14, 2025, we hosted Robin's official launch at the EIC. The event brought together over 100 attendees, including Provost Gabriella Scarlatta, Dean Ghassan Kridli, CIS Chair Dr. Jie Shen, and our project supervisor Dr. Zheng Song, along with professors like Dr. Sirja Das and Professor Bruce Maxim. Students, faculty, friends, family, and visitors from across campus joined us to experience Robin firsthand.
Launch Event
Attendees of the Launch
Meet The Team!
The Team Behind Robin
Faculty at the launch
Robin Team with Dean Kridli
Community Engagement
The Robin Team with Donna Posont
Faculty at the launch
Robin Team with Provost Gabriella Scarlatta
Faculty at the launch
With Dr. Sirja Das & Dr. Zheng Song
Faculty at the launch
Robin Team with Dr. Song & Dr. Bruce Maxim
During Launch
The Team Presenting Robin
Attendees
Attendees
Q&A Session
Q&A Session
The launch featured live testing and demos of Robin, with attendees exploring our research, picking up merchandise, and providing valuable feedback. A highlight was the participation of Donna Posont, a visually impaired guest who helped test the app’s accessibility features live. Her feedback was instrumental in shaping Robin’s voice control, spoken descriptions, and overall usability.
Users are discovering nature in new and accessible ways
Real stories from educators, accessibility advocates, and researchers
"For the first time, I felt like I could birdwatch independently. Robin told me the color of the bird, what it looked like, and what it was doing—all from its sound. That's a freedom I've never had before."
"Robin seamlessly combines nature observation with technology in a way that's engaging, accurate, and accessible. It opens up new doors for environmental education, especially in geology and field-based sciences."
Academic Research
Peer-reviewed publications advancing accessible technology and ecological AI
A Spatiotemporal Machine Learning Framework for Ecologically‑Informed Bird Sighting Prediction
Accepted2025 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics (SMC), Vienna, Austria
Forecasting bird sightings with time, location & environmental data
Community & Educational Impact
Educational Partnerships
Piloted nature-based learning with the EIC and local schools.
Accessibility Testing
Collaborated with visually impaired users to refine Robin’s features.
K-12 Integration
Shared Robin with educators to enrich science curricula.
Real Impact, Real Results
Robin was built for real classrooms and real users. The result? Learners don’t just see birds—they hear and understand them in real time.
Get Involved
×
![Expanded image]()
