By Marianne Grace Sarmiento
ENCOURAGEMENT is the secret behind the victory of the Philippine Robotics Team (PRT) at the 17th International Robotics Olympiad in Bucheon, South Korea, in December last year.
So said Department of Education National Science and Technology Fair Chairman Joseph Jacob. “Encourage minds-on, hands-on and hearts-on activities to develop students’ interests and let them become active learners,” Jacob told parents and educators during recognition rites for the PRT. All in all, the PRT brought home 62 medals from the international contest. With only three members when the Philippine team started joining the competition in 2007, it has grown at present to 182 members, aged between 10 and 15, from 11 schools nationwide.
Math
IF not doing research and making possible combination for robots, PRT member 15-year-old Jared Elamparo spends his time surfing the Internet and social media.
“It’s based on the person’s background in robotics competition and the person’s commitment to join training,” Elamparo said when asked what is the criteria for joining the PRT. As a team, he narrated that they did research, trained to design possible robots that can be used for the actual challenge and went through training sessions with students of other schools.
“I study math and play math games,” said Zandra Pauline Chavez, 10 years old, when asked what she does during her free time. She is also a majorette and enjoys hip-hop and ballet dancing. As early as 2 years old, Chavez has been curious of what I do at work, according to her father Norman who works for a manufacturing company. “I share some experiences with [her on] the nature of my work, procedures, current technology and what’s the difference between analog and digital.” For 11-year-old Vince Jhanzel Sulit, he thinks Thomas Edison is the greatest inventor in the world and the smartphone the best invention yet.
Apart from studying science, he finds time to play basketball and ride his bicycle. Aspiring to become an engineer, Sulit said he aims to use his knowledge in robotics to aid future generations in constructing buildings. Chavez and Sulit, together with Ezekiel Godwin Torres, made the Robotank Smart Machine Studio, a robotank that can film under water and help filmmakers with a low budget. Chavez told the BusinessMirror that coming up with the concept for their robot was not easy. A lot of their ideas were rejected at first. She said their coach told them their concept needs to stand out if they’re competing with delegates from countries like Korea, Japan and China.
During the event, Chavez said she was more excited than nervous because she’s confident with her group’s work.
Nurture
CHAVEZ’s father advises nurturing children’s creativity and inquisitiveness. We must encourage their critical thinking and support their pursuits, he added.
“We look forward to reaching greater heights in innovation and win big in the next Olympiad with your support,” Chavez said. “Our country has enormous talents waiting to be tapped and it takes all of us to get more kids to join us.”
Chavez, Sulit and Torres are students of Colegio De San Juan De Letran who won four silver medals in the Creative category at the 17th International Robotics Olympiad. Bringing home three gold medals are De La Salle Santiago Zobel School students Cholo Aguilar, Elamparo and Juan Carlo Hernandez in the Mission Challenge event. Hernandez also bagged a gold in the “Robot in Movie” (RiM) event.
Seven bronze medals were won by Keith Daniel Dee, Alexis Diane Ngo and Eian David Imperial in the Creative category; Rod Walter Magpanta, Josh Matthew Oronce, Jeth Spencer Carlos and Jose Luis Torres in the RiM event. Wyeth Philippines Inc. also conferred a special award to Chavez, Sulit and Torres for their ability to make a difference in the field of science and technology.
Forecast
THE International Data Corp. (IDC) has identified robotics as one of six “Innovation Accelerators” that “will drive digital transformation by opening new revenue streams and changing the way work is performed.” In a statement, IDC said it forecasts global spending on robotics and related services to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 17 percent, from more than $71 billion in 2015 to $135.4 billion in 2019. The new spending guide measures purchases of robotic systems, system hardware, software, robotics-related services and after-market robotics hardware on a regional level across 13 key industries and 52 use cases.
“Robotics is one of the core technologies that is enabling significant change in manufacturing through factory of the future initiatives,” Jing Bing Zhang, research director, Robotics at IDC Manufacturing Insights, was quoted in a statement as saying. “While traditionally used in the automotive industry, there is an increasing adoption of robotics in sectors like electronics, retail, healthcare, logistics, agriculture, services, education and government.”
Image credits: ROY DOMINGO