The introduction video of the VROBO team and their projects. (Video provided to GDToday)
The VROBO team from Guangdong province reaches the global finals of the Conrad Challenge, a US-based STEM competition to be held this April.
The team consists of five Guangzhou high school students: Cai Liangyu, Chen Honghan, Chen Peiying, Sun Haohan, and Shen Ziyue.
The team is included in the "Cyber Technology and Security" category for their idea of building robots in virtual space through VR technology. VROBO asserts that with a set of VR, everyone can enjoy the opportunity of elite robotics education. Based on their four-year experience in the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), they have developed an online VR industrial robotics curriculum for K12 learners.
"We're not only developing a VR course, but also building a global Metaverse robotics innovation community," the five students offered their insights into the experience in an interview with GDToday. "It is not easy to create our own course and software well. We learned the importance of teamwork, effective planning and communication skills, whilst expanding our knowledge of 'Unity Hub and 3Ds Max'".
Zhou Yuhong, a professor at the South China University of Technology, is the instructor of the VROBO team.
"After doing research, the five students found that the vast majority of teenagers are curious about and interested in robots. However, many children cannot get in touch with robots due to a lack of time and high costs. VROBO thus launched this free course and hope to share it with children all over the world," Zhou explained.
According to Zhou, VROBO also proposed a very forward-thinking concept - the Metaverse robotics innovation community. This community allows people from all over the world to sit together and discuss robotics innovations. It can overcome the limitation of time and space and greatly promote technological innovation.
The Conrad Challenge is a global competition for students aged 13 to 18 years old. It enables students to develop science, business, writing, and presentation skills. Students are tasked to design a product or service to address a global problem. The four key categories include: Aerospace and Aviation, Cyber Technology and Security, Energy and Environment and Health and Nutrition. The top five teams in each category get invited to the finals.
Currently, the five students are busy working on an eight-minute pitch to a team of judges. They will showcase their products and marketing collateral to judges, investors and finalists in the middle of April.
Author: Ariel
Editor: Wing, Olivia, Monica, James
