AIT TEAM LEAVES FIELD BEHIND IN ROBOTICS COMPETITION
The MECHA BIKE team from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) emerged winner of the 2nd annual BicyRobo Thailand Championship.
Thirteen teams took part in the event organised by Seagate Technology (Thailand) together with the Thai Robotics Society (TRS) and the Department of Mechatronics, School of Engineering and Technology, AIT.
The winning team earned Bt150,000.
“I find the contest a great way to learn engineering, robotics and technology. Our bicycle robot was fast, intelligently programmed and stable, which is why we won,” said Rewat Bunchan, the leader of AIT’s winning team.
Taking second place and the Bt100,000 cash prize was iRAP_Indy from King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok.
STRI, King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok, won Bt50,000 for “Best Technique”.
The “Most Creative” prize of Bt50,000 went to Micro Robot, Mahanakorn University of Technology.
All prizes were sponsored by Seagate Thailand.
BicyRobo Thailand Championship aims at inspiring youngsters in Thailand to sharpen their skills in robotic technology, automation and control engineering. It also stimulates extra-curriculum activity and stages an exchange of knowledge on robotics for practical utilisation in the future.
The objectives of the contest were to stimulate creativity and the scientific and robotic talents of engineering students; build competencies in conducting research and development projects; facilitate knowledge exchange among students of different academic institutions through the competition; and motivate university students in Thailand to apply their knowledge towards practical solutions.
Seagate Technology (Thailand)’s Teparuk plant manager Sirirat Euaypadung said that robots are increasingly taking on important roles in many people’s lives. For this reason, the 2nd annual BicyRobo Thailand Championship was also meant to serve as a platform for networking and for nurturing young talents entering the robotics sector.
“The competition’s aim is to build a bicycle robot that is able to balance itself and is able to navigate along the predefined path. The team that could run the bicycle for the longest and fastest time will be the winner. This initiative will provide a platform for university students across the country to improve their capabilities in robotics, automation and control engineering,” said Sirirat.
As an interdisciplinary field of research, which includes areas such as computer science, electronics, mechanics and artificial intelligence, robotics will play an increasingly large role in the global economy.
“The appeal of robots and robotics technology among teenagers and young adults is well known. Robotics education will shortly become commonplace in university classrooms throughout the industrialised world. In addition, it has been proved that using robotics in education is a great way to inspire young minds to embrace a career in science and technology,” said Sirirat.
She added that the BicyRobo Thailand Championship is one of the corporate social responsibility programmes of Seagate. It has sponsored the event for the last two years. Seagate is committed to encouraging young people to develop their capabilities, express their creativity, and showcase their scientific as well as technological talents, in robotics through the contest.
