Highschool students unveil Larry Labuyo, RP's bet to Robotics Competition

MANILA, Feb 12 (PNA) -- Students at the Philippine Science High School on Tuesday launched "Larry Labuyo", the country's bet for the 2009 For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Robotics Competition (FRC).

"(Through this) the students can learn from play with the 'pros' of the science and engineering world, apply math and science concepts to design, build, test and compete with robots, gain hands-on experience in solving real-world problems and discover the excitement and rewards of science and technology careers," Ester Ogena, Director of the Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) said during the launch at the PSHS campus in Quezon City.

Ogena added this is an opportunity for students to engage in an engineering activity.

“We want our students to have the motivation and inspiration to become scientists and engineers by making them experience what it is like to be in the real world. We hope that through the FRC we would be able to give them an insight to the scientific community,” she said.

Winner of FRC will be awarded with scholarship in the schools in the US, she said.

Philippine's Team Lagablab, composed of 32 junior students from the Philippine Science High School (PSHS), eight mentors from the University of the Philippines and De La Salle University and three coaches from PSHS, will compete in Honolulu, Hawaii.

The robot's name, Labuyo, is derived from the name of endemic specie of wild rooster, or cock, typically found wandering on rural provinces of the Philippines.

Last January 10, the PSHS students received 'kit of parts' from FIRST, made up of motors, batteries, a control system, and a mix of automation components – but no instructions - which they must assemble to create a robot.

"Students are involved in design, building and driving the robot; computer animation and programming; research; fundraising; and even public relations and marketing," she said.

This is the first collaboration among tertiary and secondary level, which is between PSHS, University of the Philippine and De La Salle University College of Engineering, who served as mentor.

"This is the first time were putting talents of tertiary institution with PSHS so that we can put up our flag and can say we are also good in this field," she said.

A total of P2 million have already been spent for the entry, Ogena said, adding the PSHS is trying to raise P4 million more through sponsorship for students and mentors' airfare and accommodation to participate in the event.

The importance of Robotics, now made as an elective subject in PSHS, is undeniable especially in developing and highly-developed countries as robots are now being tapped to perform tasks that used to be too tedious or too hazardous for humans to perform.

"Robotics can be classified as technologies with artificial intelligence. They're best for circumstances that can't always or is dangerous for man, like fixing/making things in mass production," Cat Angangco, Team Lagablab of mechanics group and 3rd year PSHS student said.

Ogena said that in Japan, robots are being utilized in farms to plant crops. Elsewhere manufacturing and medical industries have turned to use the precision only robots can provide.

Building up robots also requires perseverance, diligence and intelligence, values that children nowadays must possess in order to help them solve real-world problems, Ogena said.

Larry Labuyo is set to be shipped to contest site, Hawaii on February 15.

Based in Manchester, New Hampshire, FIRST designs accessible, innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while motivating young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and engineering.

Each year, FIRST unveils a new game for the students to solve using a common kit of parts where they are asked to build a robot that would perform based on the rules of the game.

For this year, the students would be engaging the robots in a game called “Lunacy,” which simulates the conditions in the moon. Robots would be using a special kind of wheel rolling over regolith, a material which is almost frictionless.

The objective of the game is to place as many “moon rocks” into the trailer of the opponent in two minutes and 15 seconds.