The South African team, composed of students, specialists and organisers from the Nelson Mandela University, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) and Stellenbosch University, participated in the BRICS Future Skills Challenge: Drone Technology, competing against teams from other BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China). The challenge was hosted by South Africa in 2018 following the BRICS Council’s recent meeting here. Held at Gallagher Estate in Gauteng from 2 to 4 October 2018, it was attended by over 3000 people.
The tasks in the challenge were set and organised by the Nelson Mandela University, who invited other South African teams from UKZN and Stellenbosch University, through the Robotics Association of South Africa (RASA). Participants had to complete some challenges prior to the event to ensure they attend with the required knowledge.
The five teams with their drones.
The goal was to design and develop a drone and an autonomous landing/charging unit within a couple of days, with some training supplied prior to the event.
The 15 participants were divided into five groups, with five specialists available to help guide the teams’ designs. The specialists were Prof. Riaan Stopforth (UKZN), Damian Mooney (Nelson Mandela University), Michael Marx (for all IT related challenges), Rookpak Jakhmola (India) and Aleksey Shlykov (Russia). The UKZN team was thrown into the deep end as their member were split and added to the India, Russia and China teams. The Nelson Mandela University and Stellenbosch University had their own teams.
Teams had to develop drones using plywood, receivers, flight controllers, Arduino boards, electronics components, actuators, motors, and more. The remaining time was spent designing and developing a landing pad, on which the drone should land and autonomously contact the charging point within a 1 cm2accuracy. Since some common components or modules for the control or the charging unit were not always available, and teams had to improvise using available parts.
The challenge left participants and specialists with approximately four hours of sleep a day, but with several cups of coffee and mutual encouragement, the teams achieved their goals. The teams learned from one another to identify ways to improve their own designs, and this collaboration was an important factor of the event, a skill which could help solve future problems around the world.
Contact Riaan Stopforth, UKZN, stopforth.research@gmail.com
