The Faculty of Engineering has established the Centre for Robotics and Technology Education (CRATE) to promote technology education among primary and secondary schools in the local territory.
Officiated by Mr. David T.Y. Mong, chairman of Shun Hing Education and Charity Fund, Mr. Zhang Keke, vice chairman of Shenzhen Association for Science and Technology, and Prof. Michael K.M. Hui, Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor, CUHK, the inauguration ceremony was held on 26 January. Close to a hundred students and teachers from over 10 primary and secondary schools attended the ceremony, which showcased some 30 robotic designs of students. Most of the students had previously joined workshops and competitions organized by CRATE.
On behalf of CUHK, Prof. Hui thanked Shun Hing Education and Charity Fund for its generous sponsorship. The director of CRATE, Prof. Liu Yun-hui, introduced a series of exciting new projects and activities of the centre, including the Internet Robotics Innovation Park (IRIP), a project supported by the Innovation and Technology Fund and Quality Education Fund. ‘Not every single secondary and primary school is equipped with a laboratory to help students realize their robotic designs. IRIP is designed to give students an on-line platform to share and inspire their robotic projects. Successful designs will be implemented in our laboratories,’ said Prof. Liu.
Apart from IRIP, the fourth Internet Robotics Inter-school Competition (IRIS) is formally named ‘2008 National Internet Robotics Inter-school Competition’. Co-organized by the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, the Hong Kong Technology Education Association and CRATE, this year’s IRIS will be expanded to include participants from Macau, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Guangxi, and Zhejiang. A total of 128 national teams will come to CUHK campus in July for a six-day summer camp and to compete at the finals.
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