Move Over Fido: Engineering Students Design The Pet Of The Future

 A robot pet and a bike alarm system are among the 12 projects on display at this year’s University of Victoria senior engineering students’ presentation and demonstration on March 26 from 4 to 7 p.m. in the lobby of the Engineering Lab Wing.
      The projects, each developed by a team of senior engineering students, involve electrical, computer and software engineering; mechantronics and embedded system design.
      Robot Pet: UVic engineering students have designed a new robot pet, which can travel autonomously through an area without hitting anything, and track and follow a beacon attached to its “owner.” Experiments with robotic pets as therapeutic pets for the elderly are being conducted in both the U.K and the U.S. Contact: Gerald Leung, 250-891-4383, leungerald@gmail.com
      Bicycle Theft Prevention System: According to Statistics Canada, nearly 8,000 bikes were stolen in BC during 2007 and that’s just the thefts that were reported to the police. To help solve this problem, a team of UVic engineers has designed a bicycle alarm that can be installed on any bicycle without interfering with ride-ability or being difficult or a nuisance to use. In addition, a wireless key allows the system to be automated even if the user forgets to activate it. Contact: Jonathan Cronk, 250-886-4552, jonathancronk@gmail.com
      All 12 projects will be presented at the 499 Design Project Poster Demo Day and Competition on Friday, March 26 from 4 to 7 p.m. in the Engineering Lab Wing Lobby. This event is open to the public and admission is free. For more information visit www.ece.uvic.ca/~ece499/
 

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