Year Five Scotch College student Maeve Allen-Horvat will be jetting off to an international Robotics competition in Malaysia later this year after winning the Digital STEMSEL competition at last year’s Royal Adelaide Show. PHOTOGRAPHY: JOHN KRUGER
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aeve’s anti-collision robots, which won the overall prize for the Royal Show Innovation competition, attracted the eye of expert judges who provided her with more information on real-life anti-collision research. According to Maeve, 10, her interest in robotics was sparked after a visit to the Royal Show a couple of years ago. “It looked interesting,” she said. “It’s fun and I have the ability to easily make anything.” Maeve got the idea for the anti-collision robots after her mum was involved in several car accidents where cars travelling quite slowly crashed into the back of her car. “In all cases the other driver was distracted or misjudged their speed,” she says. “As a family we discussed ways that technology could be used to try and stop this sort of thing occurring in the future.” In 2013 Maeve and her team will enter a quadro-copter (Drone Helicopter), built and programmed in the advanced STEMSEL (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths, Social Enterprise Learning) class she attends at eLabtronics, who sponsor and organise the robotics and innovation competitions at the Royal Show. The quadro-copter features a flashing LED light in the shape of a boomerang, designed by Maeve and her team to reflect the logo of Tandanya, the National Aboriginal Cultural Institute. “A quadro-copter seemed like a really cool idea,” says Maeve, who hopes to pursue a career in robotics when she grows up. “I’d like to find ways to use robotics to help people medically or maybe become an electronic engineer.” The Royal Show’s Robotics competition requires entrants to produce a commercially viable invention which uses programming of microcontrollers to perform tasks. The invention must add value to or improve the human condition or quality of life, and must be a viable business proposition with a marketable product. Miroslav Kostecki, from eLabtronics, says the Royal Adelaide Show competition has helped university students gain real-life employability skills that have helped with their career development.
56 Official Magazine of the Royal Adelaide Show ’ Www.theshow.com.au
“Our overall aim is to encourage more young people to get interested in STEMSEL, and to consider careers in these areas in the future,” he says. “The competition has also gained the attention of international education experts, with the World STEM conference in October interested in displaying winners from the Show.” Guest judge for this year’s competition, RAAF Squadron Leader, Engineers Australia Vice President and STEMSEL Foundation Director Fernando Gonzalez said the Royal Show technology competition helped stimulate interest in science, maths and technology-based careers amongst young people. “The shortage of skills in the STEM area is a globally recognised problem,” Squadron Leader Gonzalez said. “However, where the Royal Show competition is gold, is with the SEL (Social Enterprise Learning) bit on the end – it means you add to the technical learning experience the opportunity to develop and employ the design as a diverse team of young entrepreneurs.” Squadron Leader Gonzalez said it was important to get children fascinated and engaged by science and technology, and that STEMSEL programs and competitions like the Royal Adelaide Show helped achieve this. “Kids need to be able to see science at work, not just learn about it in the classroom,” he said. “And there’s certainly a wow factor when you see technology doing funky stuff.” Previously open to primary and high school students, the competition is now also open to adults, including tertiary students and engineers. Students from each of Adelaide’s three universities are planning to enter, with the Royal Adelaide Show providing two tickets to a robotics event in Singapore as the main prize. Visitors to the eLabtronics stand during the Show will be able to try their luck at flying the quadro-copter, drive soccer robots, see an operating 3D printer and test their skills on the Giant Reaction Game or Wire Loop test. Students from the Australian Science and Maths School (ASMS) and mentors from all three Adelaide universities will be on-hand to demonstrate the inventions. See the Robotics entries at the eLabtronics stand in the Duncan Gallery.
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