Please note: Images in this article were taken before current COVID-19 safety measures were in place.
[Vision: Monash University Engineering building]
Amanda Caples - Lead Scientist, Victorian Government
[Vision: Nova Rover Team from Monash University - robot operating - students watching the robot operate]
We’re here at Monash Engineering to celebrate the participation for the second time now of the Nova Rover Team, which is a Monash University student team, that is the first in Australia to compete in the International University Rover Challenge.
[Vision: Students chatting about robots]
Henry Lourey - Team Leader & Chassis Lead, Nova Rover Team
We’re a student-led team and we compete in the University Rover Challenge every year in May in Utah in the United States.
[Vision: Nova Rover Team arriving in Utah - students working on robot - Robot operating in test on all terrains - Student using 3D viewer - robot operating outdoors]
And so basically we have to build a robot, and it competes in five tasks, all depending on the dexterity of the robotic arm as well as how the rover can traverse different terrain, all the way up to detecting life, trying to simulate what that would be like on other extra-terrestrial planets.
[Vision: Emily operating robot indoors with XBox controller]
Emily Kuo - Software Lead & Rover Pilot, Nova Rover Team
It’s very basic.
It’s just using an XBox controller, so you’ve got a, kind of like a game, you drive your rover forward and then it takes the input from the XBox controller and tells each of the wheels to drive a certain direction.
[Vision: Robot operating indoors - student talking to Amanda Caples - Australian International Airshow and Aerospace & Defence Exposition advertising]
This year at the Avalon International Airshow we are putting together an exhibit to display careers and skills in STEM with a particular focus on space.
[Vision: Amanda Caples speaking - Nova Rover Team - robot display]
And one of the teams that will be on show there is the Nova Rover Team, which will be displaying and talking to students about this exciting project.
[Vision: Nova Rover Team talking about robots to interested people and showing diagrams of how it works]
What we’re hoping to achieve is to inspire the next generation of STEM and space skills so that Victoria and Australia can participate in the international space economy.
[Vision: Emily operating robot indoors - Emily speaking - robot operating indoors]
I just like learning a lot of different things.
[Vision: Emily operating robot indoors with XBox controller]
You can create new technologies and have that used all over the world so yes, really big applications possible.
[The Victorian Connection - For more news and stories go to The Victorian Connection - connection.vic.gov.au]
[Victoria State Government]
[Speaker: Authorised by Victorian Government, 1 Treasury Place, Melbourne]
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