Autonomous Agents: An Advanced Course on AI Integration and Deployment

Abstract

A majority of the courses on autonomous systems focus on robotics, despite the growing use of autonomous agents in a wide spectrum of applications, from smart homes to intelligent traffic control. Our goal in designing a new senior-level undergraduate course is to teach the integration of a variety of AI techniques in uncertain environments, without the dependence on topics such as robotic control and localization. We chose the application of an autonomous greenhouse to frame our discussions and our student projects because of the greenhouse's self-contained nature and objective metrics for successfully growing plants. We detail our curriculum design, including lecture topics and assignments, and our iterative process for updating the course over the last four years. Finally, we present some student feedback about the course and opportunities for future improvement.