🔬 STEMM Labs

A cross-platform mobile app that turns real-world physical experiments into game-based STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Medicine) learning activities for upper-primary and lower-secondary students.

Built with React Native + Expo (SDK 54), TypeScript, Firebase, and SQLite. Ships as a signed Android APK via EAS Build.

📥 Download

Platform	Status	Link
Android - sideload APK	Available now	Latest EAS build
Google Play Store	Coming soon	play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.stemmlabs.app (live after Play Console review)
Apple App Store	Coming soon	`apps.apple.com/app/stemm-labs` (live after App Store review)

Open the EAS link above on an Android phone, tap Install, then allow "Install from unknown sources" if prompted. The Play Store and App Store links are reserved with the bundle identifier com.stemmlabs.app and will go live once the app passes review.

🎯 What's inside

7 sensor-driven activities grouped into two categories:

Engineering	Health & Medical
Parachute Drop Challenge - drop time / drag / g-force	Human Performance Lab - smoothness scoring
Sound Pollution Hunter - live dB meter + GPS zone map	Reaction Board Challenge - 3-phase reflex test
Hand Fan Challenge - accelerometer bend angle + force calc	Breathing Pace Trainer - chest-movement breaths/min
Earthquake-Resistant Structure - vibration amplitude

Each activity captures real device-sensor data, applies physics formulas, and writes results to a team leaderboard.

Device capabilities used: accelerometer, microphone, camera, GPS, battery, push notifications, background tasks (Work Manager equivalent), AdMob banner, local SQLite, Firestore, Firebase Authentication, Firebase Storage.

🛠️ Tech stack

Frontend: Expo Router v6, React Native 0.81, TypeScript, React 19.1
Cloud: Firebase (Email/Password Auth, Firestore, Storage)
Local: SQLite (expo-sqlite), AsyncStorage
Sensors: expo-sensors, expo-audio, expo-location, expo-battery
Background work: expo-task-manager + expo-background-fetch
Maps: react-native-maps with native Google Maps SDK
Ads: react-native-google-mobile-ads (test ad unit IDs)
Testing: Jest + jest-expo + React Native Testing Library (72 tests across unit, integration, and component-level e2e)
Build: EAS Build (managed Android keystore)

📋 Prerequisites

Node.js LTS - install from nodejs.org
Git - install from git-scm.com
An Expo account (free) - sign up at expo.dev/signup if you plan to build an APK
A Firebase project - see the Firebase setup section below

For development:

Android: Android Studio + an emulator, OR a physical Android phone + Expo Go (for partial preview)
iOS: Xcode + Simulator (macOS only)

🚀 Quick start

# 1. Clone the repository
git clone <your-repository-url>
cd STEMM-Labs

# 2. Install dependencies (legacy peer deps required for jest/react alignment)
npm install --legacy-peer-deps

# 3. Configure your Firebase credentials (see next section)
cp .env.example .env
# … then edit .env and paste your real Firebase values

# 4. Start Metro
npx expo start --clear

Press a to launch on an Android emulator, i for iOS Simulator, or scan the QR code with Expo Go on a physical device.

🔥 Firebase setup

The app requires a Firebase project with three services enabled.

Go to console.firebase.google.com and click Add project.
After the project is created, click </> (Add Web app) and copy the 6 firebaseConfig values it gives you.

Paste those values into your local .env file (see .env.example for the keys):

EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_API_KEY=…
EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_AUTH_DOMAIN=…
EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_PROJECT_ID=…
EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_STORAGE_BUCKET=…
EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_MESSAGING_SENDER_ID=…
EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_APP_ID=…

In the Firebase Console, enable the three services the app uses:
- Build → Authentication → Sign-in method → Email/Password → Enable
- Build → Firestore Database → Create database → Test mode
- Build → Storage → Get started → Test mode

For Maps to work in an installed APK you also need a Google Maps Android API key — create one in Google Cloud Console → Credentials → API Keys, enable Maps SDK for Android, and paste it into .env as GOOGLE_MAPS_ANDROID_API_KEY.

No credentials are hard-coded in source. All keys load from .env (gitignored) for local dev and from EAS Environment Variables for cloud builds.

⚙️ Available scripts

Command	Purpose
`npm start`	Start the Expo dev server
`npm run android`	Run on a connected Android emulator/device
`npm run ios`	Run on the iOS Simulator (macOS only)
`npm test`	Run all 72 Jest tests
`npm run test:watch`	Run tests in watch mode
`npm run test:coverage`	Run tests with coverage report
`npm run lint`	Run ESLint

📦 Building an APK

# One-time setup
npm install -g eas-cli
eas login
# registers this project to your Expo account
eas init

# Build (10–20 min in the cloud, fully managed)
eas build --platform android --profile preview

The preview profile produces an installable .apk. EAS prints a download link when the build finishes.

The production profile (--profile production) produces a Play Store .aab instead.

Environment variables for cloud builds are stored in EAS itself — push them once with:

eas env:create --environment preview --name EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_API_KEY --value "…" --visibility sensitive
# … repeat for each EXPO_PUBLIC_* var and GOOGLE_MAPS_ANDROID_API_KEY

📁 Project structure

STEMM-Labs/
├── app/                    # Screens (expo-router file-based routing)
│   ├── (tabs)/             # Bottom-tab navigator: Home, Leaderboard, Map, Profile
│   ├── activity/[id]/      # Dynamic activity routes: overview, instructions, record, results, camera
│   ├── login.tsx           # Email/password sign-in
│   ├── signup.tsx          # Create new team account
│   ├── register.tsx        # Team profile setup (after first sign-in)
│   ├── settings.tsx        # Theme, text size, logout, danger zone
│   └── help.tsx            # Per-activity curriculum + formula reference
├── components/
│   ├── activity/           # Custom data tables (Parachute, HandFan, Earthquake, generic Editable)
│   ├── sensors/            # AccelSensor, SoundSensor, ReactionSensor
│   ├── AdBanner.tsx        # AdMob banner with graceful Expo-Go fallback
│   └── ThemedText.tsx
├── context/                # AuthContext, TeamContext, ActivityContext, SettingsContext
├── services/               # firebase.ts, firestore.ts, database.ts (SQLite),
│                           # storage.ts (AsyncStorage), location.ts, notifications.ts,
│                           # backgroundTask.ts, calculations.ts, sensors/*.ts
├── hooks/                  # useBattery, useThemeColor, etc.
├── constants/              # theme, types, activities (master activity definitions)
├── __tests__/              # 72 Jest tests across 6 files
├── __mocks__/              # Jest mocks for native modules
└── app.config.js           # Dynamic Expo config (reads env vars)

🧪 Testing

72 tests across 6 files, covering unit, integration, and component-level e2e:

File	Type	Person
`calculations.unit.test.ts`	Unit (14 tests)	Person 1
`activityCalculations.integration.test.ts`	Integration (16 tests)	Person 1
`homeScreen.e2e.test.tsx`	E2E component (7 tests)	Person 1
`storage.unit.test.ts`	Unit (10 tests)	Person 2
`notificationService.integration.test.ts`	Integration (10 tests)	Person 2
`profileScreen.e2e.test.tsx`	E2E component (9 tests)	Person 2

Run with:

npm test

The app has also been validated on Firebase Test Lab Robo crawler across multiple Android device profiles.

🆘 Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
`npm install` fails with peer-dep error	Use `npm install --legacy-peer-deps` (matched in `.npmrc`)
Metro shows "Firebase config missing"	Copy `.env.example` to `.env` and fill in your Firebase values
Map tab shows blank grey screen in APK	Add `GOOGLE_MAPS_ANDROID_API_KEY` to `.env` AND push to EAS env, then rebuild
`expo-notifications` warnings in Expo Go	Expected — push notifications need a development build, not Expo Go
dB meter reads consistently high	Adjust `DBFS_OFFSET` in `services/sensors/audio.ts` (default 90)
EAS build fails with `npm ci` mismatch	Delete `package-lock.json`, run `npm install --legacy-peer-deps`, commit, retry

📄 License

This project was built as a team submission for CSE3MAD Mobile Application Development at La Trobe University. The code, design system, activity definitions, and reports are coursework.

Activity content (formulas, curriculum links, discussion text) is adapted from the 2026 STEMM Lab User Specification.

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🔬 STEMM Labs

📥 Download

🎯 What's inside

🛠️ Tech stack

📋 Prerequisites

🚀 Quick start

🔥 Firebase setup

⚙️ Available scripts

📦 Building an APK

📁 Project structure

🧪 Testing

🆘 Troubleshooting

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Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.vscode		.vscode
__mocks__		__mocks__
__tests__		__tests__
app		app
assets		assets
components		components
constants		constants
context		context
hooks		hooks
scripts		scripts
services		services
types		types
.env.example		.env.example
.gitignore		.gitignore
.npmrc		.npmrc
README.md		README.md
app.config.js		app.config.js
eas.json		eas.json
eslint.config.js		eslint.config.js
package-lock.json		package-lock.json
package.json		package.json
robo_script.json		robo_script.json
tsconfig.json		tsconfig.json

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🔬 STEMM Labs

📥 Download

🎯 What's inside

🛠️ Tech stack

📋 Prerequisites

🚀 Quick start

🔥 Firebase setup

⚙️ Available scripts

📦 Building an APK

📁 Project structure

🧪 Testing

🆘 Troubleshooting

📄 License

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