Students showcase their creativity and ingenuity in robotics expo

Students from different schools creating their own robocars out of the starter kits given to them

Four schools showcased their innovative robocar creations in the recently held Genyo e-Learning Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Robotics Workshop and Robocar Design Exposition. Spearheaded by Diwa Learning Systems Inc. (Diwa)—the leading provider of print and digital educational resources in the country—the event aims to boost students’ interest in robotics by providing them with the basic knowledge and allowing them to apply it. The schools were asked to develop a robocar that aids in earthquake rescue operations using the Genyo e-Learning DIY Robotics 3-in-1 Robocar given to them by Diwa.

The students of Colegio de San Francisco Javier of Palompon, Leyte designed their robocar based on the Mars Rover Model of NASA. The Mobile Earthquake Rescue Bot or MERB can run through rocky terrain and slopes, and detect the presence of survivors underneath rubble.

FAITH Catholic School of Tanauan City, Batangas made a robocar rescue using Simultaneous Localization and Mapping or SLAM, a synchronous location awareness and recording of the environment in a map of a computer, device, robot, drone, or other autonomous vehicles. Their robocar creation employed various types of sensors capable of understanding its environment, thus helping rescuers locate casualties.

Students of the Immaculate Heart of Mary College of Manila created Disaster Ready Emergency Aid for Man or DREAM Bot to deliver quick emergency supplies to a survivor during an aftershock to also help ensure the safety of the rescuers.

Saint Joseph College of Maasin, Leyte developed a versatile and low-cost model for their robocar using recycled materials. Its main purpose is to search for alternative routes to unreachable areas.

Aside from the design exposition, various schools were invited to undergo a seminar workshop that includes a short lecture by Engineering and Robotics expert Mr. Jun Bagaindoc. He talked about the basics of robotics and the functional role of robots in our society. Participating schools were Emmanuel Christian School, Escuela de Sophia of Caloocan Inc., Espiritu Santo Parochial School, Immaculate Heart of Mary College Quezon City, Sacred Heart Academy Pasig, Saint Mary’s Academy Pasay, San Lorenzo School, and San Sebastian College Recoletos.

A line-tracing competition and pop-the-balloon challenge were also held to let students explore the Genyo DIY Robotics kits.

To know more about Diwa and its other innovative programs, visit www.diwa.ph.