BLOG: What is the MATRIX Lab?

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Let’s start from the start.

The Maryland Autonomous Technologies, Research, Innovation, and eXploration (MATRIX) Lab is the new hub in Southern Maryland for autonomous technologies, uncrewed systems, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, which are many of the central building blocks of future technology.

The MATRIX Lab offers students unprecedented access in the region to cutting-edge and emerging technologies and research opportunities.

The lab spaces inside include open air-land and hydrology. Facilities include an anechoic chamber, outdoor unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) playground, and a project assembly area. There is also a project transport rail, a rooftop antenna farm, and collaboration and post-doctoral spaces. Operating processes are in place to fly unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), supported by the University of Maryland’s UAS Test Site at the adjacent St. Mary’s County Airport.

The MATRIX Lab is a subset of the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering.

It is housed in the 84,000 square foot Southern Maryland Autonomous Research and Technology (SMART) Building on the University System of Maryland at Southern Maryland campus.

The SMART Building, located in St. Mary’s County, includes underwater, air, and land testing facilities open for use by researchers at UMD's Clark School, the Department of Computer Science, the Institute for Systems Research, the Maryland Robotics Center (MRC), and other departments, centers, and units at UMD.

The lab spaces inside include electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and microelectronics. There are also design and production shops for 3-D printing, electronics, and metallic and non-metallic fabrication.

The MATRIX Lab and SMART Building are open for tours and research. If you are interested, contact Matt Scassero, MATRIX Lab Director for Research, Innovation and Outreach, at mscasser@umd.edu.

Published August 30, 2022