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  • Robot Ethics - Noel Sharkey Podcasts

    Hopefully by now you will have had a chance to look at the report of our Robot Ethics event held at the Science Museum back in June - if you've missed it you can view it here In the planning stages for the event, we had approached Professor Noel Sharkey to be one of the presenters. Sadly, he was not able to join us on this occaision as he had a prior commitment, however he did graciously agree to record some podcasts for us. Noel is well known for his early work on many aspects of neural computing, machine learning and genetic algorithms. As well as writing many academic articles, he also writes for national newspapers and magazines and has created thrilling robotics museum exhibitions, mechanical art installations and has run robotics and AI contests for young people from 26 countries including…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • Forthcoming Events

    Lots of interesting events booked up starting from September. Why not join us and take the opportunity to network and build up your CPD points at the same time.

    Andrew Dodd
    Andrew Dodd

  • Buffet Preceeding The Lecture On 29 October

    On Thursday 29 October there is to be a joint IET/RAeS/I Mech E lecture at CUED by Ian Greig and colleagues from the Mercedes Benz F1 team. At 1800hrs, preceeding the talk, there will be a buffet organised by the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) which the F1 group will attend. The buffet will be provided by external caterers and in the room next to the lecture theatre. The cost of the buffet is £15. If you wish to attend the buffet, please send a cheque for £15 to Royal Aeronautical Society, c/o Mike Hawkins, 5 Martin Close, Godmanchester, Cambs PE29 2WA. The cheque should be made out to Royal Aeronautical Society. Please include your name, address and contact details. The lecture is at 1930 hrs and entry is free of charge although a booking will be needed - see this page.

    David Blake
    David Blake

  • DRDC Biological & Chemical Defence Presentation now postponed to 2016

    Unfortunately the DRDC Technical Presentation scheduled for September 9th has been postponed until spring 2016 due to matters beyond the speakers control. A joint presentation by the British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) and Cubic Defence will take place on the 9 September. Further details will be available on the CPGCE events link and at www.CPGCE.org shortly.

    David Dean
    David Dean

  • MotoE ready and raring to go again!

    The 2015 season of the MotoE Electric Motorcycle Racing Series started with the first round on 1-2 August 2015 at the Nurburgring. Here is a pre-season write-up by Rupal Patel, promoter of the MotoE series. The images in this blog are by kind permission of MotoE.

    Deborah-Claire McKenzie
    Deborah-Claire McKenzie

  • Female Civil Engineer Competition

    Building the Future, Shaping our World, is a global female engineering competition for 11-18 year olds to promote women in engineering. It is being run by Rachel Hayden a year 12 student from Jersey College for Girls, through the International Women's Academy (IWA). The competition is divided into two main sections. Jersey Section This can be entered by any female individuals or teams of up to 4 people, aged 11-18 who currently live in Jersey, Channel Islands. You will have to design a sporting venue for the derelict Fort Regent swimming pool site. The winning team will get to present their design to the States Assembly, receive four iPad Mini 3's and four tickets to the opening ceremony of the Natwest Jersey Island Games 2015 and be automatically entered into the global section. All entries…

    Former Community Member
    Former Community Member

  • Jessica Lee wins the 2015 IET NorCal PATW

    Congratultions to Jessica who won this years NorCal PATW and will be heading to the Regional final in Trinidad later this year Jessica ]presented on how learning from biological structures we can improve various kinds of technology, in her case the pulling power of a robot cockroach! Valedictory Message from the Chairperson of the Norcal Network I am pleased to report the success of the PATW organized by the IET Norcal Network at the University of California, Berkeley. I thank Sonia, Allen and John for working unceasingly for the program. I also want to thank Dr. Hayden Taylor and Ms Synyee Chin for accepting the request to serve as judges. Norcal Network is very grateful to the University of California for their gracious help in letting us use the facility for the function. My special thanks…

    Allan Casey
    Allan Casey

  • Europe, Middle East and Africa PATW final - 31 July, Abu Dhabi

    Well, it's that time of the year again when I get back to my desk, thoroughly exhausted, after attending our Present Around the World final! What can I say about this year's final in Abu Dhabi? It seems to get better every year, and with 15 fantastic competitors, the challenge to compete for a place in the final was huge! A massive congratulations to Faisal Al Refae from Kuwait who won the competition! Also a massive congratulations to Harriet Walsh from Ireland who was the runner up. The other countries represented included Bahrain, Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Germany, Czech Republic and Mauritius. The other 13 competitors should still feel extremely proud that they made it to the regional final and were able to present to an audience of peers…

    Former Community Member
    Former Community Member

  • Motorcycle that can surf on water

    I wonder what the surfing purists will think of this video showing Robbie Maddison, an Australian MotoX rider who uses a specifically convered MotoX bike to ride the waves ? Although he seems to ride some reasonably sized waves in the video, I'm not sure how he'd cope with Jaws in Maui. If you're a keen MotoX rider, is this something you'd like to try or if you're a dyed in the wool surfer do you think motorcycles should stay out of the water?

    Deborah-Claire McKenzie
    Deborah-Claire McKenzie

  • I(ET) Robot

    Robot Ethics at the Science Museum If there’s one area of science that can be guaranteed to capture public imagination, it’s Robotics. The IET’s recent Robot Ethics lecture, hosted at London’s prestigious Science Museum, was no exception. As robotic devices become ever more commonplace in our lives, this event explored the ethical implications arising from increasing interaction between man and machine. Organised by the Robotics and Mechatronics TPN (Technical and Professional network) in partnership with the UK-RAS Network (Robotics and Autonomous System) this two-hour, three-speaker event filled the venue to capacity, packing in 120 attendees. Lead volunteer Mark Witkowski was delighted with the turnout: “Robotics lectures are always well attended but this one gave us a particularly interesting…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • 2015 PATW Americas Regional Final Hosted By Trinidad & Tobago

    Click here to download the event booklet, with additional information (The 2015 PATW Americas Regional Finals in Trinidad & Tobago) After months of intense competitions, participation of Local Networks througout the Americas Region, all culminating with the winner and runner-up of the 2015 PATW Americas Regional Final. Dr. Kevin Murray awards the winner and runner-up with their certificates. (Robert Mayall will represent the Americas Region at the Global Finals in London) (Runner up, Travis Schoepp) (Competitors pose with members of the CC-A) Marriott's HSE representative conducts the safety briefing before the start the event, a key component in any event. (Vice Chair of the TT LN and the MC for the morning period, David Drakes, with the HSE representative) The competitors remain focused as…

    Jason Robert Rameshwar
    Jason Robert Rameshwar

  • IET at the TTCAA STEM Aviation Summer Camp

    As part of engaging with young students in various STEM and STEAM activities, our local network was invited to the Trinidad & Tobago Civil Aviation Authority (TTCAA) STEM Aviation Summer camp, on Thursday 23rd July 2015. Colin and I had a captive, but highly excited, audience of over 200 children between the ages of 11 and 14yrs and the task was to excite them about STEAM in avaition. (A quick photo of the first class before we begin the presentation) (Photo of the second group engaged in the IET's Engineering Our World video) Everyone was excited by the various engineered designes and ideas in aviation, as it demonstrated the benefit of each element of STEAM in developing an aviation industry and an aviation engineer for the next century. The key focus was to link each discipline of STEAM…

    Jason Robert Rameshwar
    Jason Robert Rameshwar

  • Robots in Agriculture

    In May, one of our exec team members, Sam Wane, travelled to the Channel Islands to deliver several presentations on the subject of Robots in Agriculture. The mini tour was a huge success and Sam tells us more about it below: " On 20-22nd May I visited the Channel Islands to talk about agriculture and robotics. This was sponsored by the IET Robotics & Mechatronics TPN, and the Channel Islands Group of Professional Engineers , the representative body for the professional engineering institutions in the Channel Islands I landed in Guernsey and lectured to Elizabeth College school for boys (12-18) Then I was interviewed for a radio programme on BBC Radio Guernsey. My Guernsey interview 3hr12mins after Wham! I was also interviewed by the Guernsey Press newspaper but haven’t heard if I’m in. And…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • Join The Control & Automation TPN Executive Team

    Are you working or studying in Control & Automation? Are you passionate about supporting the community? Do you have 3-4 days per year that you can volunteer to attend committee meetings and organise activities? We’d love to hear from you! The IET Control & Automation Network is seeking professional engineers working in this field to join our Executive Team. We’re trying to make the Executive Committee representative of as wide a cross-section of the Control and Automation community as we can, so we’d especially like to hear from people working in areas where we don’t have enough representation just now. We’d like to hear from people involved in manufacturing, power generation and distribution, water…… We need some good representation from the ‘Automation’ part of C&A and we need some people…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • Cyber In Bristol

    With the world becoming ever more connected, crime is moving into the cyber domain and cyber security is becoming a concern for individuals, companies and nations. This season, the IET will be hosting a range cyber themed events in Bristol: Cyber Security for Critical Infrastructure (CSCI) . 21-24 Sep 2015, Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre. 4-day IET Professional Development course providing a comprehensive overview of the different stages of a cyber incident. 10th IET System Safety and Cyber Security Conference . 20-22 Oct 2015, Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel. Selected presentations from the conference will be available afterwards via IET.tv . Cyber Security for Smart Buildings . 23 Nov 2015. Free event. Could your new building get hacked or catch a virus? Hugh Boyes, IET Cyber Security lead…

    James Inge
    James Inge

  • Looking Back: Highlights From IBC 2009 - 3D TVs

    With IBC 2015 fast approaching, we're taking a look back at IBC 2009. A sight for sore eyes . The big buzz at IBC in 2009 was 3D TV technology! E&T magazine spoke to David Wood, deputy director general, European Broadcasting Union about some concerns he had with the technology in relation to anecdotal tales of eye strain. 2009 saw the launch of the Best of IET and IBC publication that contains papers and articles on electronic media technology from IBC, presented with selected papers from the IET’s flagship publication Electronics Letters . Mark Waddell won the Best Conference paper award for Compatibility Challenges for Broadcast Networks and White Space Devices .

    Former Staff Member
    Former Staff Member

  • Opportunities and Challenges for Cyber-Physical System Design

    At the beginning of June, the Control & Automation TPN held an event on the subject of Opportunities and Challenges for Cyber-Physical System Design . More than 30 delegates attended this technical event, which included two presentations - giving both an academic and industrial perspective. The speakers were Dr Eric Kerrigan , who is a Reader in Control Engineering and Optimization at Imperial College London, where he has a joint appointment in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering as well as the Department of Aeronautics, and Dr Andy Chang , National Instruments. Dr Chang is a senior manager for academic research at National Instruments in Austin, Texas. He is currently a PhD candidate in the department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas, Austin. Delegates…

  • Online Careers Solution

    The Railway Network would like to draw your attention to a new project that is being developed by the Young Railway Professionals (YRP) in collaboration with Routes into Rail . One of the Routes into Rail strategic projects is the development of an Online Careers Solution to promote rail careers to students and feedback on the idea from the Railway industry would be appreciated whilst they are still considering what this solution should be like. The YRP have prepared this survey (just 6 questions) which they’d be grateful if you could please respond to. Please send all responses to Guilia Lorenzini by 6th August 2015 to help the YRP meet their challenging delivery timescales.

    Deborah-Claire McKenzie
    Deborah-Claire McKenzie

  • Pledge to Support the IET Open House Day on Thunderclap!

    http://bit.ly/1I97mox “A career in engineering can be creative and fascinating. Support #IETOpenHouse Day to inspire the next generation! http://bit.ly/1I97mox

    Former Community Member
    Former Community Member

  • Join The Robotics & Mechatronics Network Executive Team

    Are you working or studying in Robotics and Mechatronics? Are you passionate about supporting the community? Do you have 3-4 days per year that you can volunteer to attend committee meetings and organise activities? If so, we would be delighted to hear from you! The IET Robotics & Mechatronics TPN is appealing to members with an interest in these areas to join the Executive Team and represent the interests of this technical community. What is the role of the Network? The role of the Network is to create an environment where its members can: learn about and extend their existing knowledge of the topic network with like-minded individuals receive information via the web share knowledge and experience with others This is done through a number of physical and online activities. What is expected…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • Present and Future Robotics In Space Applications 29-30 October 2015

    It is an exciting time for robotics. Robotic systems are increasingly being used in dealing with the challenges of space and other extreme environments where it is impossible to have a human presence or where robots can accomplish new tasks that humans cannot. This Space Robotics Symposium sponsored by IET Robotics & Mechatronics TPN and IMechE, organised by Strathclyde Space Institute and SMeSTech provides a platform for researchers to share innovative research and application findings in this rapidly-evolving field. This Symposium aims to provide a platform for researchers, academics, industrialists and engineers to share the latest developments and future ideas or position papers in robotics. It is intended to run this Symposium by inviting researchers, industrialists and other who are interested…

  • Autonomous Vehicles: From Theory To Full Scale Applications

    18th June saw the Control & Automation TPN's flagship event on Autonomous Vehicles: from theory to full scale applications. This was a full day event, held in a magnificent venue in central Paris and was a joint venture between the TPN and CNRS, GdR Robotique and Renault. We were also very pleased to welcome a couple of our colleagues from the IET France network to the event and managed to film a quick chat with them both. Over 70 delegates attended and heard from some fantastic speakers, including Shad Laws from Renault, Serge Lambermont, Automated Driving Director, Delphi US Silicon Valley, Axel Fuchs from Quanergy, and Professor Michael Fisher, University of Liverpool, to name but a few. A good range of topics kept the delegates attention throughout the day, covering such subjects as Addressing…

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

  • 30th Anniversary of The IET Satellite Communications Systems Course

    A note from David Bookham CEng MIET Course Chairman As the satellite communications industry has evolved, each new technology has provided increased throughput and flexibility. This has resulted in highly sophisticated Broadband satellite terminals becoming a commercially viable proposition to both commercial and domestic users alike. The evolution started with the development of advanced Forward Error Correction (FEC) algorithms ensuring quasi error free links which were well suited to packet switched traffic. Since IP traffic could now be carried with almost zero packet loss, the use of ACM (using high order modulation schemes and flexible FEC codes) resulted in the commercial exploitation of Ka band and the use of small beam sizes and more efficient spectrum usage. Now in its 30th year,…

    Deborah-Claire McKenzie
    Deborah-Claire McKenzie

  • PicknPack Workshop 4th September 2015

    The Robotics & Mechatronics TPN is very pleased to support the PicknPack Workshop that is being run at the launch of Innovate UK's Northern Robotic Network on 4th September at University of Salford, Media City. Sponsored by FMEG , the workshop includes the following speakers: Alan Norbury, Siemens Chief Technology Officer; Edwin Booth, Chairman of Booths Supermarket Group; Erik Pekkeriet, Wageningen UR; Mike Dudbridge, National Centre for Food Manufacturing; Professor Wouter Saeys, KU Leurven; Professor Zhipeng Wu, University of Manchester Professor Samia Nefti-Meziani, University of Salford - SMART-E Project The event includes a panel debate and an extensive robotics exhibition. You can get more information on the downloadable flyer Attendance is free but you do need to register

    Joanne Longton
    Joanne Longton

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