Against 66 other teams from around the world.
By The American Bazaar Staff
BANGALORE: A team of engineering students from the Mukesh Patel School of Management and Engineering in Mumbai will compete in an American competition by entering their state-of-the-art remote-controlled underwater robot.
The team, from the school’s Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, will compete in the 13th Annual Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) ROV International Competition in Alpena, Michigan later this month, against 66 other teams from countries around the world. The engineering competition will award the team that builds a robot with the most innovative design and full functionality.
The team from India, which calls itself “Team Screwdriver,” has constructed a remote-operated underwater vehicle that has a separately controlled robotic arm, as well as a camera to capture photo and video footage, as well as to assist with guiding the vehicle and operating the arm. The device is apparently meant to be used for capturing biological samples underwater, specifically off of shipwrecks.
The ROV – which means Remote Operated Vehicle – section of the larger MATE competition has teams competing from countries like the US, UK, Russia, Japan, and Egypt. The Indian team from Mumbai will have to beat more than 60 other teams, all of whom are comprised of students from kindergarten to college-level, to claim the top prize.
The contest is currently in its 12th year for the underwater category, and was created to foster interest in the STEM fields by making science and engineering fun and engaging. The MATE Center is headquartered in Monterey, California, and is funded by the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Center for Excellence.
Team Screwdriver will compete at Alpena’s Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary from June 26-28.