Two female and one male student from Mexico present a self-developed robotic arm as part of a mechatronic project.
He moves and can fully extend his arm! What looks like a conventional movement is hard work for a group of students from Mexico. Visiting students from the Tecnológico de Monterrey Alexia Damián Medina, Jimena Estrada Vazquez and Miguel Angel Valenzuela Bucio developed a functional robotic arm as part of a mechatronics project and had to overcome major challenges to do so. They presented their project to the public in February.
"Part of their guest studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science is the implementation of a mechatronic project as part of the 'Mechatronics Project Work' module in the Bachelor's degree course in Automation and Mechatronics, " explains Egmont Schreiter. The graduate engineer accompanies the Mexican students during their project work. He knows exactly what is important: "The aim of the project is to demonstrate different motion sequences with the robot arm using specially programmed software."
The requirements are very complex. In addition to design and additive manufacturing in the 3D printer, electronics have to be wired and software has to be programmed for control, simulation, commissioning and monitoring. As in the real professional environment, new findings must be incorporated into the work during processing. However, the students also have the opportunity to focus on specific topics.
How did the students experience their project work? "This project was a great learning experience," says Alexia Damián Medina. "We had the opportunity to develop a project with almost complete freedom. This allowed us to improve our skills and knowledge and discover things we could do better."
And what makes a woman decide to study mechatronics, a seemingly male-dominated field? "Studying mechatronics reflects my own personal interests. In addition, as a woman in science, I am opening the way for women who come after me. This is exactly what motivates me to always deliver the best possible work and to constantly improve every day."
Jimena Estrada Vazquez can only agree: "As mechatronics is the combination of many engineering disciplines, I found it very interesting and comprehensive." The student says that it is easy to notice that there are not so many women on this course. That's why it was all the nicer working on this project that there were no gender-specific barriers. "We were able to get involved in every task, but we decided to assign specific tasks to each member to give our process agility."
The Mexican students gained a great deal of knowledge and experience during their time at the university. "Our goals for the robotic arm development allowed us to integrate many of the insights we gained during our studies and to combine new ways of thinking and working with new technologies such as 3D printing and the Robotic Operating System (ROS)," says Miguel Angel Valenzuela Bucio. Having developed an operational arm that is scalable for other future projects is, in his view, the greatest result of this project. Important tools for such projects are additive manufacturing and open source technologies.
HSZG student advisor Alina Bulcsu supports Mexican students in all administrative and management-related matters. In times of pandemic, this is mainly done by e-mail. How do the students actually get to Germany? "A list is usually drawn up in April. The decision on who can come to us is made over the summer. We welcome students from Mexico every year, and young Mexicans will be continuing their studies with us again in the coming winter semester."
Egmont Schreiter is certain that projects such as the development of a robotic arm are a great enrichment for the students: " Carrying out something like this offers the guest students good opportunities to make the most of their further stay in Germany. Experience shows that they can expect good internship contracts with large, renowned companies."
What experiences do Mexicans usually have in Germany? "As soon as they arrive, their interest in the country and life seems to be awakened almost automatically, " says Egmont Schreiter, describing his impressions of the students from South America. "Some even come back for a Master's degree, but they have to have completed two to three semesters in Mexico beforehand."
The added value for the university itself should not be underestimated in this collaboration. After all, if a relatively inexpensive robotic arm becomes available, completely new areas of application can emerge in the laboratories of the university, companies and institutes.
"This semester was a great experience for us as engineers and, above all, personally," Miguel sums up, referring to the thrill of adapting to a new environment and culture and improving his language skills along the way. "Living and studying in Germany naturally helps to develop language skills that can't be learned in textbooks. Germany is now a part of our hearts. We are excited to see what we can experience here in the future as we continue our academic, professional and personal experiences."
As part of a university network, the HSZG enables young Mexican students to study here.
Within the university, Prof. Uwe Schmidt is the subject coordinator for the cooperation with the Tecnológico de Monterrey. The HSZG's partner university is one of the largest universities in Mexico with over 25 campuses.
More information on the partnership can be found at uwe.schmidt(at)hszg.de.
Text: Cornelia Rothe M.A.
