Another strong showing for NL teams at international ROV competition

Newfoundland and Labrador was once again a force at the Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) Annual International Underwater Robotics Competition

Friday, June 24, 2011

This year’s event was on June 17 and 18 at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas and a trio of teams from this province combined to leave a lasting impression with organizers, sponsors and their competitors.

The Eastern Edge Robotics team led the way for Newfoundland and Labrador, coming away with two awards. Eastern Edge finished first in the Explorer Class for poster display and earned the event’s Safety Conscious Award, given annually to the team that exhibits exemplary safety practices. Eastern Edge also finished fifth overall in the Explorer Class, the highest finish of any Canadian team at the event. Eastern Edge placed third for its engineering panel presentation and its technical report.

The Eastern Edge Robotics team is comprised of students primarily from the Marine Institute and Memorial University’s Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science and Faculty of Science. The team deserves much praise for their strong showing in Houston and at past MATE International Underwater Robotics Competitions, said Dwight Howse, head of the School of Ocean Technology at the Fisheries and Marine Institute (MI) of Memorial University of Newfoundland and a mentor of the Eastern Edge squad.

“The Eastern Edge Robotics Team has been proudly representing the province of Newfoundland and Labrador at international remotely operated vehicle events since 2003,” said Howse. “Since 2003, Eastern Edge has fared very well internationally, bringing home three first place, two second place and two third place finishes during this time while competing against teams from prestigious universities and colleges from around the world. This is further proof of the quality of programs, faculty and students that are in Newfoundland and Labrador, and at the Marine Institute and Memorial University.”

Clarenville, Mount Pearl also perform well

Clarenville High and O’Donel High from Mount Pearl also represented Newfoundland and Labrador at the MATE International Underwater Robotics Competition, having qualified by claiming first and second place respectively at the Marine Institute’s regional MATE ROV high school competition in May. Both schools competed in the Ranger Class, with O’Donel claiming fifth place overall and Clarenville finishing three spots behind in eighth. O’Donel took third place in mission performance, while Clarenville sported the fourth best score in engineering.

The fact both O’Donel and Clarenville fared well at the event came as no surprise to Howse, who watched the teams closely during the regional ROV competition at the Marine Institute. “Having seen first-hand what O’Donel and Clarenville were capable of, I expected they would do very well when they competed in Houston. Both teams obviously have a passion and an aptitude for underwater robotics and they have learned a great deal by taking part in the regional and international competitions,” Howse said. “I want to congratulate O’Donel, Clarenville and Eastern Edge Robotics for representing the province so well at the MATE International Underwater Robotics Competition. Their efforts, dedication and enthusiasm were evident throughout the event and it shows in the impressive results they were able to produce.”