After years of rigorous theoretical exposure to concepts in their chosen streams, students of engineering spend a large chunk of their final year trying to translate that knowledge into practical applications.
Two groups of electronics and communication engineering (ECE) students from Mookambigai College of Engineering have designed prize-winning device that claim to address two diverse, yet socially important situations, as part of their final year project.
Accident control
According to the Sundar Committee Report on Road Safety and Traffic Management brought out in 2010, the number of deaths caused by accidents is higher than those caused by diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, and AIDS. With this, and a few other accident-related statistics forming their basic premise, N. Mohamed Abdaal Taj, R. Mansur Ahamed, I. Asarudeen, and R. Joel have designed a unit that claims to limit accidents to a mere 10 per cent.
“The Anti-accident Safety System for Vehicle that we have designed uses a variety of embedded technology to control the car and driver-behaviour when the situation arises,” says N. Mohamed Abdaal Taj, one of the group members.
The unit, he says, consists of an eye blinking sensor, flex sensor, infra-red sensors, ultrasonic sensors, GPS tracker, alcohol, and mobile phone sniffers.
The system controls the use of mobile phones while driving, drunken driving, provides assistance in reversing and parking, and regulates speed according to data pre-fed into the GPS system, they say.
Designed for their final year project, the unit has won several accolades at various forums across the country, with the most prominent among them being National Institute of Technology-Tiruchi (first place at SENSORS 2k12) and Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (third place at APOGEE 2k12). Their project has also been adjudged the best project of the year at their own college.
Robot truck
ECE-students R. Richard, R. Vianni Raj, N. Vinod Kumar, S. Arun Kumar and M. Vigneshwaran from the same college have designed an Automatic Robot Truck that envisages the automation of key farming processes like ploughing, sowing seeds, and water distribution.
The truck is equipped with a tough blade to act as a plough and it operates based on a set of pre-programmed data like the dimensions of the land.
Also, an infra-red sensor allows it to detect obstacles, while a keypad lets the farmer control the truck's movement.
A gun that operates on direct current is used to evenly sow the seeds, while a valve connecting the truck to a water tank takes care of the water distribution.
Though the project was not ready in time to compete at external symposiums, it was adjudged the second best project within their college.
