UK and US University students battle it out for Arduino Challenge victory

University students from across California have taken part in a Thales international engineering and computing science team challenge to help inspire them to take up careers in technology.

Project Arduino – organised and funded by Thales – challenges teams to build a piece of equipment, using the Thales Arduino open-source electronic microprocessor platform which as a type of  mini-computer, to help design a useful product that could be used within the company’s existing markets of aerospace, space, transport, defence and security.

The overall winners from the US will be competing against two UK finalists who completed an equivalent competition. The finalists’ videos will be uploaded to (web site closed) for people to vote for their favourite. The overall winner will be announced in January.

This was the first time the invite-only Arduino workshop was held at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Out of 120 applicants for the competition, just 24 students were able to participate. A total of 17 students from UCLA and seven students from the California Institute of Technology were arranged into teams based on their majors. 

At the end of the workshop, each team received their own Arduino kit consisting of an Arduino board and some hardware. Competitors could also ask Thales engineers for assistance with any questions they may have throughout the build on Twitter (via #thalesarduino). A final showcase, along with a team video, will be used to determine the winning team. 

A similar competition has also been held at the University of California, Irvine.

Last year’s winning entry was from a team from the University of Southampton. The students designed an innovative helmet that used an Arduino to monitors soldiers' heartbeat and temperature along with other factors such as their body position.

Gemma Minish, Thales UK’s Campus Marketing Manager, Emerging Talent, says:

The competition has been a great success on both sides of the Atlantic and the students have created some amazing projects and videos. I look forward to seeing who the winner will be!”