The Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Wins the Final of ‘Sener–CEA’s Bot Talent’, the Robotics Competition Organised by the Sener Foundation and the Spanish Committee of Automation

The Sener Foundation, a non-profit organisation belonging to the Sener engineering and technology group, along with the Spanish Committee of Automation (CEA) and in collaboration with the Department for Youth and Childhood of Tres Cantos Town Council, held the final of the applied robotics competition for autonomous vehicles, ‘Sener–CEA’s Bot Talent’, this Tuesday at the Tres Cantos Exhibition Centre. The competition is aimed at teams made up of final-year undergraduate and master’s students, with participants from the Carlos III University of Madrid (UC3M), the University of the Basque Country (UPV-EHU), and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC).

This competition was created with the aim of encouraging young talent in engineering, bringing university students closer to real-world technological challenges, and promoting STEM vocations through a practical challenge. Representing Tres Cantos Town Council at the event were Jorge Aragón, Councillor for Youth and Citizen Participation, and Ana Isabel Pérez, Councillor for Human Resources, Employment, Economic Development, and Housing.

Throughout the day, teams comprising final-year and master’s engineering students competed with autonomous vehicles they had designed, programmed, and assembled themselves. All teams started from the same set of components, based on a NASA-published design provided by Sener, and were required to complete various challenges related to guidance, navigation, environmental perception, and path planning.

The overall winner of the competition, receiving a prize of €2,000, was the team PUCRA – PHOENYX I, made up of Paula Olivera, Oriol del Castillo, Sidi Navil García, Pol Pavo, Germán Bueno Lozano, and Santiago Pallarès Ocampo, students from UPC. This team also won the Design Award, worth €500, which is given to the team with the most precise and well-assembled design in terms of neatness, cleanliness, sensor anchoring and layout, and adherence to good engineering practices.

The Technology Award, also worth €500, was presented to the team that implemented the most innovative and technically sound solution. This award went to the BilboTiks team, composed of UPV-EHU students Nagore Toja, Pablo Elustondo, Álvaro Gorczyca, Ane Porto, Mario Hermo, and Javier Arambarri.

“Initiatives like this help to foster technological talent and promote key areas for our productive sector, such as engineering and STEM vocations. The students had the opportunity to put their skills to the test by tackling complex challenges in a hands-on way,” said Rosana Madroñal, Director of the Sener Foundation.

The event featured a professional jury made up of Sener experts: Mercedes Ruiz, Head of the Navigation and Control Systems area in Aerospace and Defence at Sener; Carolina López, from the Quality area of Aerospace and Defence at Sener; and José Gala, Technical Manager in Aerospace and Defence at Sener.