Curtin team secures third spot in robotics competition

MIRI: Five Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) students of Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) clinched third placing in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) R10 Robotics Competition recently.

They were fourth-year students Alan Tiong Ka Wei and Jack Tan Zhen Shiun, third-year students Jason Benny Wan Jutina and Yap Zhi Xuan, and first-year student Amber Kong Jianin.

In the two-day competition held at Chulalongkom University in Bangkok, the team not only competed against, but also engaged and networked with the other participants from various countries in the region.

“Interacting with all the international participants and learning about each other’s projects motivated us to develop more projects that would contribute to creating a better world,” said Tan.

Kong meanwhile described the competition as an immersive joumey into innovation, creativity and technological advancement.

“The competition was highly competitive and challenging, but I gained a wealth of experience from it,” she said, adding that her confidence soared during the pitching sessions.

Jason also expressed satisfaction in participating in the competition.

The competition focused on addressing challenges related to climate change and humanitarian issues, providing a stage for participants to showcase their robotic projects with global significance.

“Our project’s unique concept of transforming waste management to promote a cleaner, safer environment, coupled with our robot’s safety features and other in built technologies highlighted the significance of robotics in addressing real world challenges,” he said.

The team’s project was an autonomous rubbish collector designed to mitigate the issue of overflowing garbage or indiscriminate littering in public parks, which can harm ecosystems.

It reduces reliance on human rubbish collectors and potential health and safety risks, such as exposure to bacteria and hazardous materials.

Yap, who is president of the IEEE Curtin Malaysia Student Branch, said that despite limited exposure to robotics in Sarawak, the team’s forward-thinking approach and creativity propelled them to success and a well-deserved third place.