Indian Rover Challenge - 2019

Indian Rover Challenge - 2019 was conducted by Mars Rover Manipal (MRM) at Manipal Grounds, MIT, Manipal from 09 Jan - 12 Jan 2019.

IRC 2019 was the second edition of the Rover Challenge Series in India. The first one was conducted at VIT Vellore where Mars Rover Manipal (MRM) from MIT, Manipal won the first prize.

The competition challenges undergraduate students from all over the globe to design the next generation of rovers which will one day work alongside the astronauts on the planets and their moons. The Rover should not weigh more than 50 kg and should not cost more than ₹ 15,00,000 for its manufacturing. The rover should be controlled wireless with the help of cameras from a distance of up to 1 km.

The rule book for IRC was released 6 months prior to the competition in June 2018. Nearly 30 teams registered for the competition. They were required to submit a video of their rover which will be scored out of 100 for the final event. Based on this video submission round known as System Review, 15 teams were selected and were invited to compete in Manipal.

Out of selected 15 teams, only 10 teams could make it up to the event due to some unavoidable circumstances. 10 teams were from across the globe, 2 from Poland, 3 from Bangladesh, and 5 from India. Every attempt was made from the organizer side of IRC for the best hospitality to the guests and to make themselves feel at home. Teams were given good accommodation and working space for the rover.

The event started on 9th January 2019 by the felicitation function where dignitaries from Manipal academy of higher education (MAHE) and MIT inaugurated the function by lighting diyas and addressing everyone.

Now comes the first day of the event. I am sure all the team members' heartbeat has skyrocketed. On the first day, all the teams were required to perform the Astronaut Assistance Task. The teams were required to traverse through the rock gardens, collect objects as per GPS coordinates provided and deliver to another GPS coordinate.

On the second day of the event, 2 tasks were scheduled for all the teams. The first task was Equipment Servicing Task in which the rover has to perform small activities via its robotic arm such as flipping switches, turning a knob, operating joystick, opening, and closing of drawers. The second task was the Autonomous task in which an onboard computer has to do everything and human intervention is not allowed. The rover has to go to certain GPS coordinates and look for objects kept their, identifying their shape and color, do some more activities and return to the base station.

On the 3rd day of the event, the Science Task event took place in which the rover has to go in the field and dig some soil. The rover will have to identify some basic soil properties like temperature, pH, the humidity of the collected soil from the onboard sensors, and chemical equipment. Then in a presentation task, the teams have to explain the reason for selecting a particular site for the soil samples. They were also required to answer some questions of the jury related to the Mars terrain and its environment.

After completing all the tasks, teams assembled at the event site with their rovers for the meet and greet session. We got to see a rover fight between VIT Vellore's Team RoverX and the University of Warsaw Rover Team. It was awesome and breathtaking to watch. You can have a glimpse of it in the picture. During this session, all the teams interacted with each other, shared their experience, knowledge. Above all, they made lifelong contact and memories that will last to eternity.

All the scores were compiled as received from the jury after deducting the penalties (if any). The valedictory function was organized for the announcement of results. This function was graced with Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) dignitaries as MRPL was the title sponsor for the event. The function also saw the presence of dignitaries from MIT and Manipal academy of higher education (MAHE). Everyone shared their views about the event. One member from all the team was requested to share their experience with the event. All the teams gave positive experience about the event, said they learned a lot and specially thanked the organizing committee for the amazing hospitality.

The first prize was conquered by Team Anveshak - IIT Madras, second by AGH Space Systems - AGH University of Science and Technology, Poland, third by IUT Mars Rover - Islamic University of Technology, Bangladesh.

A special mention is required for the University of Warsaw, Poland over here. Unfortunately, their shipment could not clear the Indian customs so they could not compete in the competition. But they didn't lose their hope and spirit for building the rover. They went around all the local stores, bought a toy car, and converted the same into a rover by putting all the electronics and communication modules on the same. This all they did in less than 72 hours, which is frankly nothing less than a miracle.

This competition was wholeheartedly supported by the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) and MIT Manipal. The efforts put by everyone for the successful organization of this event is beyond recognition. But I would like to highlight a few, who deserve some special attention.

The event would have not have been even imagined without the vision and guidance of Dr. Y S Upadhyaya, Chairman - IRC 2019. Throughout the full journey, the 24x7 immense support and supervision of Prof Navaneeth Krishna Vernekar can't be thanked enough. The man of the hour is Mr. Sagar Dhaka, Event Manager of IRC. Everyone is speechless after looking at his continuous efforts and dedication right from March 2018 and is continued till I write this article.

The efforts put by Miss Pratishtha Gupta, Mr. Indupura Sri Harsha, and Mr. Abhinav Goyal before and during the event was spectacular. I could totally see in their eyes the thrust coming from their heart to make the event best of the best. In the end, the successful completion of this could have not been possible without the hard work and dedication of everyone concerned.

I would also like to thank all the jury members from the university. Special thanks to Mr. Akhil Kavacheri and Mr. Aru Raghuvanshi who are the alumnus of MRM and MIT, for taking out time out of their busy schedule and become a part of the jury for the competition. Their insights and suggestions helped the organizers for the smooth running of the event.

Creating something out of nothing has been human nature. This drive to create something different is making the world a better place every moment. So take this moment to thank our ancestors for making the world such a beautiful place for us to live.

Now, it's our time, to lead with example, dignity, and integrity to make it even better. To implement science and technology to make society the best ever.

May God bless our earth and may God bless science and technology.

Thank you very much for reading this patiently.

This is Saurabh Kumar, Co-founder MRM, Mechanical Head, 2016 Team. I was also a part of the jury for this competition.

Keep checking out the space for the upcoming article of our team journey of starting MRM, problems, and our experience about the same.