First year engineering and computer science students gear up for the RoboRugby challenge
Innovative engineering and computer science students unleashed 21 robots for the final of the Siemens RoboRugby competition which took place this month in UCD. This is the fourth year of the event with 62 students taking part in the competition which aims to make engineering fun while also developing the students’ lateral thinking and ingenuity skills.
Since January the students have spent thousands of hours designing, building and programming robots to compete in this event. All participants in the competition use the same basic kit and introduce electronic sensors and on-board computers into their designs. The robots are then programmed by the students to act autonomously when they engage in battle on the RoboRugby court. This means students have no control over their robots once they start, requiring them instead to develop the skills to teach their robots how to operate.
This robotics design project is an elective module for students across most of the Engineering degree programmes in UCD. “Design and problem-solving are an important part of an Engineering education. The best way to develop these skills is by solving problems and designing things,” according to Brian Mulkeen, UCD School of Electrical, Electronic & Mechanical Engineering, one of the co-creators of the competition that aims to increase the appeal of engineering and computer science.
“The RoboRugby project provides an interesting and enjoyable challenge, yet there is plenty of scope for innovation and creative thinking,” Mulkeen added.
The aim of the RoboRugby game is to score points by moving balls into scoring areas on a 2.4m playing table, while also trying to prevent the opposing robot from scoring. Sir Winalot robot created by first year students Con Murphy, Shane Power and John Kirby powered its way to victory by deploying an ingenious hinged wall, to secure the winning title at Roborugby 2008.
