The Safe Cross project, designed by the Técnico students Afonso Certo, Ana Carolina Teixeira, Diogo Branco, Marco Lopes and Nuno Santos, was the winner of the 1st edition of the “Joy in Motion” Merit Award, supported by Critical Techworks, a BMW group company. The award recognises the performance of a group of students enrolled in Vehicular Networks Curricular Unit of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (DEEC).
The Safe Cross team focussed on the mobility difficulties faced by visually impaired pedestrians. The team developed an application that warns citizens when the traffic light at a pedestrian crossing turns green and also presented prototype glasses. The team received a prize worth seven thousand euros at a ceremony held in the Main Building’s Meeting Room, at Alameda campus, on May 20th.
‘Over the last few years, we’ve made an effort to promote these awards and to foster greater proximity between Técnico and society, the economy and the business community,’ said the president of Técnico, Rogério Colaço.
Jochen Kirschbaum, Chief Operating Officer at Critical Techworks, presented some of BMW’s software’s user experience upgrades, specifically in autonomous vehicle driving, and emphasised the importance of knowledge for the progress of technology.
In addition to the winning project, the jury, made up of the Técnico professors Teresa Vazão (head of the Curricular Unit) and Luís Caldas de Oliveira, and Raúl André, representing Critical Techworks, assessed 10-minute presentations from three other finalist projects.
The ByeBye Traffic project, by João Nunes, João Rebolo, Pedro Henriques and Sara Sant’Ana, identified traffic congestion as a problem, associated with the emission of polluting gases, and the cause of high stress levels among drivers. To solve this problem, the group presented a solution based on cooperative cars: the cars would be able to communicate with each other, with a leader (the car in front) setting the speed at which all the other cars should follow.
The Safety Sync team was made up of Daniel Dinis, Diogo Costa, Miguel Lourenço and Ricardo Silva. The project focused on formalising car accidents. The team presented a solution that enables vehicles to exchange information that would then be passed on to the insurance companies, so that no data would be lost.
The GoGo Emergency Go project, by Gil Beirão, João Santos, João Batista, Margarida Alves and Tomás Ferreira, focused on the difficulty that ambulances and emergency and rescue vehicles can have in crossing roads and junctions with heavy traffic. The group presented a solution based on a change to the traffic lights, which would now have a blue light that, when switched on, would inform drivers of the approach of an emergency vehicle.
In addition to the prize money awarded to the students, the company donated 1160 euros to the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering to improve the teaching and learning conditions of the Vehicular Networks Curricular Unit.
The event was also attended by Pedro Amaral, Vice-President of Técnico for Corporate Interface, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and José Santos-Victor, Head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
