INRTU “Vanguard of Science” Competition: Boosting Drone Efficiency and Creating AI Assistants for Metal Monitoring
Irkutsk National Research Technical University (INRTU) has announced the results of its annual “Vanguard of Science” research project competition. Winners will receive grants of 30,000 rubles to implement their projects and are now eligible for merit-based scholarships.
Daria Lobanova, INRTU's Vice-Rector for Youth Policy, congratulated the students on their victory:
“The ‘Vanguard of Science’ competition was held to a very high standard. I attended all the defenses and saw every participant. I can say with certainty that this year's projects were much stronger than entries fr om previous years. I hope you do not abandon your ideas and continue to develop them.
I would especially like to thank the academic supervisors who worked alongside, investing a great deal of time and effort into preparing these projects. I wish you continued success; do not stop at what you have achieved”.
Daria Lobanova also noted that the university hosts numerous other grant competitions wh ere students can promote and refine their existing projects.
A total of 55 people applied for the “Vanguard of Science” competition. In the final round, 22 students competed for the top spots. The winners included six students submitting individual applications, as well as several teams.
A team comprising Egor Kuimov, Polina Sharipova, and Sofia Samarkina presented a project on developing an intelligent assistant for monitoring the condition of metal in power equipment.
Ekaterina Beznosova took first place for creating an intelligent system to monitor the technical condition of lubrication in moving parts of mechanisms.
Pavel Sobolev demonstrated a 3D plant phenotyping system using computer vision, while Anastasia Kushnir presented a method of delayed chemical reaction.
The team of Anastasia Chusova, Aisuluu Askarbekova, and Anastasia Baksheeva, was recognized for their work on the biotransformation of waste fr om thermal power plants and the timber industry. Meanwhile, Artem Burkalov is developing an analytical system to improve the energy efficiency of UAVs.
First-year student Anastasia Kushnir presented her project, “Method of Delayed Chemical Reaction”, completed under the supervision of Associate Professor of the Department of Oil and Gas Engineering, Grigory Romanov, to the experts. According to the freshman, the project aims to improve well cementing techniques for gas and oil wells:
“We conducted experiments in the laboratory and analyzed the project’s relevance. It was difficult and required a lot of effort, but now I am very glad that I managed to figure it all out. I became convinced of the importance of the chosen topic. I plan to continue working on the project and presenting my research results, as well as new ideas, in future grant competitions”.All the “Vanguardists” have been recommended for a merit-based research scholarship. Provided they successfully pass the winter examination session, they enrolled in the merit program for a year. To maintain their winner status, they must also complete the summer session on time and without receiving any merely "satisfactory" (grade C) marks.
It should be noted that the “Vanguard of Science” competition began on September 30 with a business game wh ere participants networked and took on the roles of contractors in a tech startup simulator. This was followed by a series of lectures fr om leading experts who shared insights on finding project ideas, formulating them correctly, and accounting for economic factors.
The contestants also went through a “round-robin” session – a networking event with academic supervisors wh ere they received valuable consultations and feedback on their projects.
