Students of six different engineering colleges joined to develop low-cost Smoke detectors, ideal for every house. The six member team revealed their project at the Robocamp- 2011, held in the city last week end, in the Indian Institute of Information Technology campus. They displayed their project amidst awestruck audience, the ‘smoke detector’ helps in early detection of fire in a house, especially in a kitchen. And the financials were also very economical making it viable to all homes.

The six students, from different places formed a team and built the smoke detector within 48 hours. They also demonstrated the project successfully in presence of robotic experts. The team led by mentor Rahul Peddi comprised S Sravya, Pallavi M from SRM University, Chennai, B Sneha of Sastra University, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, Srilekha, a student of G Narayanamma Institute of Technology and Sciences, Hyderabad, B Vivek Kiran, a class IX student from Kendriya Vidyalaya, Gachibowli, Hyderabad and Pritika Bahad from Devi Ahilya University in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

B Vivek Kiran, one of the team members, said Rlydo Labs is manufacturing the same smoke detector which costs around Rs 1000. “We want to design the same system but at much affordable prices. The system requires- two pairs of sensors, one infra-red and other a photo sensor, one L29 3D IC to control motors and one micro-processor. The machine will help in early detection of fire in a house,” he added.

The Robo Camp 2011 at Hyderabad had participation from across the  country. Many teams assembled on the spot to make some wonderful projects that have immense public utility. Nearly 900 students from over 100 colleges participated in the event. The workshop is aimed at encouraging potential of students by providing a platform to not only compete but also learn to apply their skills. (With inputs from internet-AW AarKay)