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| 24.05.13 | 11:38
Winged robots: ArmRobotics to hold drone contest final this weekend
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Julia Hakobyan
ArmeniaNow Deputy Editor
Artur Grigoryan proudly tells about the electronic parameters and
technical capabilities of his drone - the airplane of the Cadet model. On
Saturday, May 26, Grigoryan's made drone, which can gather up to 80 km
speed per hour, will rise 200 meters above the ground toward a given
location, will identify the signs and set a reference-point, send an online
video during the flight, and will get back to the takeoff location.
Grigoryan's aircraft will compete with other drones during the final
contest of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, organized by the Robotics
Development Project in Armenia - ArmRobotics. The competition will be held
in the training airport of Arzni town (Kotayk province) with five teams
competing for the first place and prize money of 500,000 dram (about
$1,250).
`The chances to win are high. I've put a lot of effort into this,' says
Grigoryan, a 35-year-old electronic engineer. `This is the first unmanned
aerial vehicles I made, though I had been nurturing the idea for a long
time. Finally, I got a chance to move from virtual into real work. The
process was interesting; it was a serious engineering task. It took a month
to make it and a year for improvements.'
The co-maker of Cadet, Martin Matevosyan, the trainer at Armenia's school
of aircraft modeling, gathered the body of the aircraft.
`The drone has a tank for about half a liter of fuel, which is enough for a
30-minute flight. The important tasks are launching a flight and holding
balance. During the flight I will be directing commands from the computer,
and at some point it will go into autopilot mode. It is really exciting to
see your work in practice,' says Grigoryan, who took part in the early
stages of the contest, the last of which took part in November 2012.
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Contest is one of the Armenian Robots Open
Championship by ArmRobotics, the project, which was founded in 2008 by the
Union of Information Technologies Enterprises to develop the robotics
sector in Armenia. The ArmRobotics project involves the club, the
laboratory, Robotics 2 Business and other programs.
Starting next September, ArmRobotics (in cooperation with VivaCell-MTS,
Cronimet Charity Foundation, World Vision Armenia and Counterpart
International Armenia) will set up robotics hobby groups in 50 educational
centers throughout Armenia, aiming to raise interest among teenagers
towards robotics and develop their engineering thinking.
`In the study groups participants will study how to design, program and
built robots,' says Mariam Nahapetyan, the ArmRobotics manager. `Each study
group will be provided with one training robots, made by ArmRobotics and
components for another 3 robots. The schools that want to have a study
group should provide the teacher (usually an information science or physics
teacher) with a salary and a classroom. During the summer school teachers
will be trained.'
The programming of educational robots in the schools will be implemented
through Labview, Microsoft robotics studio programs.
`Today, there are a few robotic groups in Armenian school and the
experience shows that students show great interest in creating robots.
Besides it's a very good experience and opportunity for those students who
choose exact sciences as a future specialty.'
One of the robotics study groups has for three years operated in the
Polytechnic basic college (high school) and now is attended by some 100
students from the college and other schools. It is noteworthy that half of
them are girls.
Ani Asatryan, an 11th-grade student of the college, is one of those who
know about robotics firsthand. The 16-year-old participated in the DigiTech
2012 expo and presented the robots made by her.
`There were three robots I made for the expo, one of them could recognize
colors, another one could navigate and the third one was a guitar player,'
says Asatryan. `Robotics is the sphere I want to be engaged in also in the
future, I am really interested in making robots. I have been fond of
modeling since childhood; while other girls were playing with dolls, I was
busy with construction sets. It's thanks to my grandmother, a math teacher,
who worked a lot with me.'
Ani's classmate Lilit Tamrazyan, a future programmer, says she attends the
group every day and spends at least two hours there.
`When sometimes I am asked if this is interesting for a girl, I answer:
`how can robotics be not interesting to someone?' she says. `It is three
years that I have attended the group and I find the process extremely
interesting - from choosing a look and model of the robot, to its ability
and programming.'
http://armenianow.com/economy/it_and_telecom/46423/armrobotics_project_drones_contest_arzni_armenia
| 24.05.13 | 11:38
Winged robots: ArmRobotics to hold drone contest final this weekend
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Julia Hakobyan
ArmeniaNow Deputy Editor
Artur Grigoryan proudly tells about the electronic parameters and
technical capabilities of his drone - the airplane of the Cadet model. On
Saturday, May 26, Grigoryan's made drone, which can gather up to 80 km
speed per hour, will rise 200 meters above the ground toward a given
location, will identify the signs and set a reference-point, send an online
video during the flight, and will get back to the takeoff location.
Grigoryan's aircraft will compete with other drones during the final
contest of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, organized by the Robotics
Development Project in Armenia - ArmRobotics. The competition will be held
in the training airport of Arzni town (Kotayk province) with five teams
competing for the first place and prize money of 500,000 dram (about
$1,250).
`The chances to win are high. I've put a lot of effort into this,' says
Grigoryan, a 35-year-old electronic engineer. `This is the first unmanned
aerial vehicles I made, though I had been nurturing the idea for a long
time. Finally, I got a chance to move from virtual into real work. The
process was interesting; it was a serious engineering task. It took a month
to make it and a year for improvements.'
The co-maker of Cadet, Martin Matevosyan, the trainer at Armenia's school
of aircraft modeling, gathered the body of the aircraft.
`The drone has a tank for about half a liter of fuel, which is enough for a
30-minute flight. The important tasks are launching a flight and holding
balance. During the flight I will be directing commands from the computer,
and at some point it will go into autopilot mode. It is really exciting to
see your work in practice,' says Grigoryan, who took part in the early
stages of the contest, the last of which took part in November 2012.
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Contest is one of the Armenian Robots Open
Championship by ArmRobotics, the project, which was founded in 2008 by the
Union of Information Technologies Enterprises to develop the robotics
sector in Armenia. The ArmRobotics project involves the club, the
laboratory, Robotics 2 Business and other programs.
Starting next September, ArmRobotics (in cooperation with VivaCell-MTS,
Cronimet Charity Foundation, World Vision Armenia and Counterpart
International Armenia) will set up robotics hobby groups in 50 educational
centers throughout Armenia, aiming to raise interest among teenagers
towards robotics and develop their engineering thinking.
`In the study groups participants will study how to design, program and
built robots,' says Mariam Nahapetyan, the ArmRobotics manager. `Each study
group will be provided with one training robots, made by ArmRobotics and
components for another 3 robots. The schools that want to have a study
group should provide the teacher (usually an information science or physics
teacher) with a salary and a classroom. During the summer school teachers
will be trained.'
The programming of educational robots in the schools will be implemented
through Labview, Microsoft robotics studio programs.
`Today, there are a few robotic groups in Armenian school and the
experience shows that students show great interest in creating robots.
Besides it's a very good experience and opportunity for those students who
choose exact sciences as a future specialty.'
One of the robotics study groups has for three years operated in the
Polytechnic basic college (high school) and now is attended by some 100
students from the college and other schools. It is noteworthy that half of
them are girls.
Ani Asatryan, an 11th-grade student of the college, is one of those who
know about robotics firsthand. The 16-year-old participated in the DigiTech
2012 expo and presented the robots made by her.
`There were three robots I made for the expo, one of them could recognize
colors, another one could navigate and the third one was a guitar player,'
says Asatryan. `Robotics is the sphere I want to be engaged in also in the
future, I am really interested in making robots. I have been fond of
modeling since childhood; while other girls were playing with dolls, I was
busy with construction sets. It's thanks to my grandmother, a math teacher,
who worked a lot with me.'
Ani's classmate Lilit Tamrazyan, a future programmer, says she attends the
group every day and spends at least two hours there.
`When sometimes I am asked if this is interesting for a girl, I answer:
`how can robotics be not interesting to someone?' she says. `It is three
years that I have attended the group and I find the process extremely
interesting - from choosing a look and model of the robot, to its ability
and programming.'
http://armenianow.com/economy/it_and_telecom/46423/armrobotics_project_drones_contest_arzni_armenia