SEED’s Robot Challenge
Date: 01/27/2012
Malaysian students show creativity in robot-building competition.
Few challenges in the field of science can be more appealing or exciting to schoolchildren than building a robot.
With that in mind, Schlumberger Excellence in Educational Development (SEED) held a robotics workshop for Malaysian students from eight SEED schools in December.
The 100 students and 12 teachers were split into 15 groups and given two days to design and build a robot based on the themes of energy, water, or the environment.
Making robots
One device that can be used to design robots is a GoGo Board, a small computer to which sensors are attached to collect information from its environment. All kinds of sensors are available, including ones to detect light, temperature, moisture, and other characteristics, for example.
GoGo Boards are programmable, so information collected by the sensors can be used to control output devices such as motors, lights, and other devices. The board can be used, for example, to switch a streetlamp on or off depending on the time of day by detecting the amount of light with a sensor. Or it can switch on an irrigation system when a moisture sensor detects that the ground is dry.
GoGo Boards are also affordable and their parts are widely available, making them an accessible learning technology.
The results
The competition produced a wide variety of designs and functions. One group built a model of a ship that automatically releases oil-digesting bacteria when it detects an oil spill. Another group created a smoke detector prototype that can automatically switch on an air-purification unit when it is triggered.
But the winner, selected by a panel of Schlumberger judges, was the FLOMP-Float Management Project from Sekolah Menengah Taman Keramat School in Kuala Lumpur. The device uses moisture and rain sensors to detect air humidity, soil moisture, and the amount of rainfall to determine the risk of flooding in areas located near a river – a critical issue in many locations in Malaysia. If necessary, water can be diverted to a reservoir to prevent flash flooding.
The winners will virtually present their project at the YouthCaN Conference in New York on April 2, 2012.
About SEED
SEED is a global nonprofit education program that focuses on students from ages 10 to 18 in communities where Schlumberger people live and work. SEED offers a range of specialized learning tools delivered through a multilingual Web site; face-to-face, experimental, education workshops; and collaborative international projects. At the heart of SEED are its volunteers, who inspire by sharing their time, knowledge, and passion for science and learning.
Through the SEED School Network Program, over the past 10 years, Schlumberger has provided technology grants to 264 schools in 43 countries. More than 4,300 employees, retirees, spouses, and youth from 111 countries are registered SEED volunteers.
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