SANTA ANA, Calif. — It looks a bit like a small lawnmower, but instead of dual handles, a single black pole with a tablet-size screen attached rises from the machine.

This robot isn’t wildly talkative like C-3PO from “Star Wars,” but it does have the ability to speak. And the human creator of the simple prototype called CrossBot says it does possess powerful tools — the ability to protect kids in crosswalks — and the potential to reduce a shortage of crossing guards in the Bay Area.

“It has a 360-degree view of the environment,” said Hovannes Kulhandjian, an associate professor in electrical and computer engineering at Fresno State University. “This is a very serious device. You have to have a very low probability of error because you are dealing with kids.”

Kulhandjian, who also works with the Mineta Transportation Institute in San Jose, is working on a patent for CrossBot.

It’s equipped with sensors, including Lidar, a microphone, radar, video camera capabilities, a speaker system and advanced algorithms. In a video demonstration, CrossBot squats at the curb, then rolls out into the crosswalk when traffic is clear.

The robot rolls into the crosswalk with its screen light red. When an approaching vehicle stops, the screen turns green, signaling to kids waiting at the curb that it’s safe to cross. The robot can also tell a visually impaired person that it’s safe to cross.

Kulhandjian said he came up with the idea for a robotic crossing guard while taking his two young daughters to school in Fresno and seeing teachers filling in as crossing guards.

Kulhandjian said he trusts his robot — which he said could cost about $15,000 — to assist all children, including his own, and the device has been tested on city streets with a more than 90% accuracy rate for detecting vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians.

But not every parent is sold on the idea.

“I would be livid if a robot replaced our crossing guards,” parent Kelly Lathrop said. “Crossing guards know our kids and keep an eye out in general, they are a highlight of the morning and afternoon. I wouldn’t trust a robot to not malfunction or not get hacked. We need real eyes on these major and minor intersections.”

Angela Roberts, the mother of two young daughters, said she too would be concerned about the reliability of the robot, but she’s also seen a lot of turnover with school crossing guards over the past three years.

School districts in San Jose, Oakland, Los Altos, San Francisco and Pleasant Hill have reported a shortage of crossing guards. Many were displaced because of distance learning during the pandemic, and some never returned to their jobs, reports show.

“On average, it seems like there is a differently staffed crossing guard every couple months if not weeks. And it’s not uncommon for there to be days where there is no crossing guard at all,” Roberts said. “The demand for robotic crossing guards may be a good solution.”

Accidents, including pedestrian-related car crashes, are the second-leading cause of death for children younger than 14, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Governors Highway Safety Association, which tracks U.S. pedestrian deaths, found that more than 7,500 pedestrians were killed by drivers in 2022, the latest year that data was available. That was the highest number since 1981.