CSIR's robotics competition
October 2008
News
Engineers from the CSIR’s mechatronics and micro-manufacturing group recently organised a robotics competition for students at colleges around South Africa.
The competition was part of an information and communications technology (ICT) expo in KwaZulu-Natal, hosted by the Department of Communications at the Elangeni Further Education and Training College in Durban. The expo aimed to expose young learners to possible careers in fields related to ICT.
The CSIR competition was intended to encourage learners to use multiple skills, including mechanical design, electronics, project management and teamwork. Each team had to design and build a robot that would successfully complete preset tasks. To keep the competition fair, the mechatronics and micro-manufacturing area of CSIR Materials Science and Manufacturing supplied all the components and a schematic design that students were to use. The robots had to be able to avoid obstacles using touch sensors and to follow a black line on a white background using an infrared line-sensing module.
Tasks included a time trial, two touch-sensing mazes, and a straight-line following task. It was the first year the competition was held and eight colleges entered. According to Dr Nkgatho Tlale of the CSIR, the standard of the entries was good. “We expect more interest and an even higher standard next year,” he says.
The first prize was awarded to Umfolozi College in Richards Bay. Each team member – four students and a lecturer – walked away with a laptop. The second and third prizes were desktops with a flat screen and a standard screen, respectively. “With prizes like these on offer, we expect many more entries next year,” says Tlale.
For more information contact CSIR Communication, +27 (0)12 841 2911, [email protected], www.csir.co.za
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