Computer Science and Engineering talks and workshops

Zumo Wars

Audience: Years 12 and 13
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 10-20 students

Join us for this fun-packed workshop where your students will learn to programme an Arduino-controlled mini-robot to take part in a sumo-style battle. Students will:

• Experiment with changing values to alter motor speeds and turning durations to customise the robots’ fighting style
• Learn basic microcontroller programming and see how the robot uses its sensors to detect the edge of the fighting arena
• Analyse the impact the changes have on the behaviour of the 'Zumo' robot and ultimately how it performs in a competitive arena
• Face each other in a battle to see if they can fight their way through multiple rounds all the way to the Grand Final of the tournament to become the Ultimate Zumo Wars Champion

VR Experience

Audience: Year 12
Duration: 60-75 minutes
Capacity: 10-20 students

This is a hands-on workshop which allows your students to explore games and virtual environments using our VR headsets. We have a mix of headsets and software that can introduce students to immersive worlds in virtual reality. A supplementary talk will explain how the technology is used and how we can develop on these platforms.

AI Maze Solver

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 60-75 minutes
Capacity: 10-20 students

Have you ever wondered how secure websites really are? This session will introduce your students to different website vulnerabilities such as directory issues, authentication and injection attacks. They'll then be given the chance to force their way into a series of websites, with each one getting more secure as they progress through the challenges.

Mobile App Development Workshop

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 60-75 minutes
Capacity: 10-20 students

In this practical session, your students will build a mobile app with web technologies. They'll learn about the different types of web and mobile apps which can be developed including:

• Those integrating IoT or wearable technology
• Those which use augmented reality and artificial intelligence to personalise and enhance user experiences

Your students will have the opportunity to see mobile app and web technology in action and understand the career opportunities available for developers in this field.

The Mysterious World of Cyber Security

Audience: Year 12
Duration: 60-75 minutes
Capacity: 10-20 students

This is an interactive workshop that takes your students on a guided tour of the mysterious world of Cybersecurity. They'll take part in an activity where they'll be introduced to interesting and fun concepts that demonstrate just how important Cybersecurity is in a world where almost everything contains a digital component and is vulnerable to exploitation or attack.  Our staff will also be on hand to discuss studying Cybersecurity and future career prospects.

Game Development: Cannon Fodder

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 60-75 minutes
Capacity: 10-20 students

Learn the basics of Unity development and C# programming in this intense session where your students will code a 3D cannon to launch balls, crash test dummies, and even other cannons! Have them fly through the air, smashing through breakable boxes and tallying points.

Sweet Sorter Challenge: AI for Candy Classification

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 60 minutes
Capacity: 20 students

Join us for an exciting hands-on workshop where you'll build an image-based model using Teachable Machine, an intuitive and accessible machine learning tool by Google. In this event, you'll learn how to train an AI model to recognize different types of sweets based on their appearance.

Once the model is trained, we'll guide you through the process of integrating it into a custom application that automatically sorts and classifies sweets into various categories. Whether you're a seasoned coder or a complete beginner, this event is designed to be fun and educational for everyone.

Industry 4.0 and Smart Factories

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 25 students

The internet has revolutionised the way we live and communicate. In this session, your students will learn how the fourth industrial revolution is harnessing this power to share data and make decisions. It's now possible to link human behaviour and real-world events with smart manufacturing factories to improve efficiency and make intelligent decisions in real time. Students will see this technology in action and understand the exciting careers emerging for specialists in this field.

Strength of Materials

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 25 students

Product failure is not acceptable, especially in safety critical and high-performance applications. This session will help your students understand how mechanical engineers are able to remove the guesswork from the equation when developing products. It will start with the theory of different types of forces and what this means for the materials and components to which they are applied. Using computer software, a real-world situation will be simulated to understand at what load the material will break. Finally, this can be tested in the laboratory to see how theory, computer prediction and real world all compare.

Introduction to Automation

Audience: Year 12
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 25 students

This is an in-depth look into how technology has and continues to revolutionise our thriving manufacturing industry. The picking up and moving of components and products, assembly and testing often makes use of automated machines. Intelligent systems make use of sensors to understand something of the environment of which it is part, make decisions and perform tasks. This is a hands-on session but also conveys the exciting career opportunities available.

Introduction to Design and Digital Workflow

Audience: Year 12
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 25 students

From concept to reality, your students will get a flavour of how engineers can take an idea or set of design instructions and turn it into a product. By using CAD software and a digital workflow, students can see how these ideas can be visualised in virtual reality and turned into products which may be manufactured in their thousands.

Engineering, the Universe and Beyond

Audience: Year 12
Duration: 1.5 hours
Capacity: N/A

This is an engaging talk from our academic team which takes an overall look at engineering as a professional occupation. Students will take part in this conversation and debate to understand some of the challenges and opportunities that exist. The fine balance of achieving technological developments and advancing quality of living, while at the same time maintaining a healthy lifestyle for humans and the planet on which we live, will also be explored.

Introduction to Electronics

Audience: Year 13
Duration: 1 hour
Capacity: 25 students

Your students can get hands on in our laboratories and workshop to build a basic electronic circuit. They'll learn the role of individual components, but also the skills needed to bring them to life to perform a function. This knowledge and these skills will become the building blocks for devices around the home, industrial applications, transportation and communication devices.