AN 11-YEAR-old girl has designed a robot that can solve a Rubik’s cube – a feat she can do herself in 15 seconds.
Katie Reilly from Kimmage built the robot from Lego and programmed it to complete the puzzle automatically. She also developed a ‘Rubik’s Mania’ website, full of information on the popular cube game.
Her project won the AOL Websites category at this year’s CoderDojo Coolest Projects Awards.
CoderDojo is a group of volunteer-led clubs which allow young people to learn how to code for free. The clubs also explore apps, programs and games.
More than 10,000 people gathered in the RDS on Saturday at the awards to see inventions such as flood warning systems and a network-less mobile phone.
The judges were impressed that Katie’s website featured videos of her robot completing the cube in minutes.
I wanted to create a site that detailed the full history and different types of cube, along with instructional videos on how to solve the puzzle.
The Dublin 15 CoderDojo member has been coding for three years and used Lego’s Mindstorms language to code her invention.
Coolest Projects co-founder, Noel King, believes the organisation is providing a bridge to future employment and says there is a current “coding skills shortage” in Europe.
According to King, there are 1,020 Dojos in 63 countries around the world.
More winners
Thirteen-year-old Niamh Scanlon, who was named European Digital Girl of the Year, designed Auto-Journalist. The app is designed to help journalists by allowing interviewees to record answers and then send the clips back.
Brothers Jasper and Harvey Brezina Coniffe from Dublin’s Warehouse Dojo both won their respective categories.
Jasper won the Liberty Global/Virgin Media Future Makers category with Everyfone, a low-cost phone that doesn’t require a network. The product is aimed at developing countries.
Harvey’s invention, a website that allows kids in CoderDojo to start their own site, took the Accenture Innovator’s Special Prize.
Intel’s Best Hardware winner was a flood-warning system that would alert communities via email and tweet. The project was developed by 11-year-old Shane Fahy from Athenry.
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