2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Design and Implementation of an AI Chatbot for a Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Laboratory Course

Presented at Mechanical Engineering (MECH) Session 2: AI and Emerging Technologies in Mechanical Engineering Education

The enrollment growth in undergraduate mechanical engineering programs can be attributed to interest in STEM careers driven by emerging technologies and government-society promotion efforts. At Clemson University, the undergraduate laboratories' three-course sequence provides critical experiential learning opportunities. As the demand for laboratory sections increases, additional trained graduate laboratory assistants (GLAs) are needed to instruct, supervise, grade, and ensure that safety protocols are followed. There is a need to supplement the resources available to students before, during, and after the laboratory experiment to answer questions ranging from simple to complex. The emergence of AI Chatbots, based on natural language processing and machine learning, can respond to student questions 24/7. In this paper, a Chatbot will be created, trained, and deployed to support GLAs in answering student questions for laboratory experiments. A pilot study has been conducted to explore its general utility and potential in a sophomore-level ME 2220 (Mechanical Engineering Laboratory I) course with student survey results and instructor observations. Specifically, the research objective is to assess the potential for AI chatbots to improve student outcomes, improve student engagement with modern tools, and increase student satisfaction. AI chatbots have been known to provide misleading or inaccurate information in some instances, so an important outcome of the project is to validate the chatbot for accuracy specific to the outcomes for the laboratory modules as much as possible and to identify strategies to implement tools that are known to have inaccuracies. The laboratory course introduces fundamental principles of precision, accuracy, and uncertainty associated with measurement instruments, making it a suitable location in the curriculum to introduce students to using AI Chatbots as an assistive tool to improve student learning.

Authors

Shubha Majumder Clemson University [biography]

Shubha Majumder is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University. His research focuses on ultrafast femtosecond laser–assisted micromachining, multifunctional surface structuring, and wettability engineering of metals, polymers, and glass. He is also involved in developing AI-driven educational tools to support undergraduate engineering laboratory instruction. Shubha serves as a Graduate Laboratory Assistant, where he contributes to teaching, curriculum development, and mentoring of undergraduate students.
Dr. Todd Schweisinger P.E. Clemson University [biography]

Dr. Todd Schweisinger is an educator, administrator, and practitioner. He holds the rank of Principal Lecturer at Clemson University, having joined the faculty of Mechanical Engineering in 2008. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of California, Irvine and a MS and
PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Clemson University. He serves as the Director of the ME Undergraduate Degree Program since 2018. Todd developed a student machine shop program to provide students access to machine tools, developed a training program for graduate laboratory assistant instructors in the Mechanical Engineering Department, and serves as the faculty advisor for the Clemson University Makerspace which he co-founded in 2015 to connect makers and support safe making activities across campus. Todd serves on the national Board of Directors of ASEE as the Zone II Chair (2024-2027). He is a patent inventor, and a professional engineer, licensed in South Carolina.
Kevin Andrew Flynn Clemson University [biography]

Kevin Flynn is a Professor of Marketing at Clemson University whose research and teaching examine how organizations and business schools can leverage digital transformation, analytics, and artificial intelligence to improve decision making and human capital outcomes. His work emphasizes practical implications for managers, educators, and institutions seeking to align strategy, technology, and performance.
Douglas Byrd Clemson University
Prof. John Wagner Clemson University [biography]

John Wagner, Ph.D., PE is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University. He is also the Director of the Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Center at Clemson. Dr. Wagner was previously on the engineering staff at Delphi Automotive Systems, Delphi Delco Electronics, and Delco Electronics (subsidiaries of General Motors) designing, testing, and analyzing automotive electronic control systems. Dr. Wagner is a Fellow of the ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) and SAE International (formerly Society of Automotive Engineers). He is a licensed Professional Engineer.

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 21, 2026, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 24, 2026

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