By Mark S. Kuhar
The Caterpillar-sponsored competition is designed to engage and retain students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, and provides an environment to foster innovative ideas and solutions that could potentially be used on NASA’s journey to Mars.
Caterpillar has a rich history of technical innovation and in order to sustain its long-term competitive advantage, the company needs to continually focus on building a sustainable talent pipeline. By supporting STEM initiatives such as the NASA Robotic Mining Competition, noted the company, its helping to inspire the next generation of engineers and scientists. With over 10,000 engineers and technical experts developing solutions for Caterpillar customers, its key to identify critical skills and sources for talent.
Eric Reiners, a program manager for automation and enterprise solutions at Caterpillar, attended the competition and stated, “The teams involved in the competition are multi-disciplinary and passionate about applying their classroom education in a hands-on environment. These are exactly the type of individuals Caterpillar needs in order to continue to meet our customers’ needs in a rapidly changing world.”
This year, Caterpillar brought its Command for Dozing Operator Station (a long distance, semi-autonomous remote control system) giving students the opportunity to remotely operate a Cat D10T track-type tractor located at the Tucson Proving Grounds in Arizona.
Innovation Award University of Utah
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Social Media and Public Engagement Award 1st – Iowa State University |
SSERVI Regolith Mechanics Innovation Award Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
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Slide Presentation and Demonstration Award 1st – University of Alabama |
Caterpillar Autonomy Award 1st – University of Alabama
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On-Site Mining Award 1st – Alabama Astrobotics, University of Alabama |
Communication Award University of Akron |
Joe Kosmo Award for Excellence
University of Alabama |
Systems Engineering Paper Award 1st – University of Illinois Urbana- Champaign |
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Outreach Project Award 1st – University of North Dakota |