Bangalore team for aerodesign competition in Brazil

Team Pushpak, a four-member group of students of Mechanical Engineering from R V College of Bangalore (RVCE) is taking part in the four-day competition.

The competition requires participants to make an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle capable of lifting the maximum payload "while conforming to restrictions put forth on weight, dimensions and engine," College Pricipal Prof K N Raja Rao said.

SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) has been conducting similar competitions in the US and teams from India have been taking part in these competitions but this is the first time a team will be representing India in Brazil and 'SAE BRASIL' is cited to be the toughest as it witnesses the best designs from the world, he said.

Sriraj Kumar R Reddy is the team leader.
Prof R S Kulkarni, Faculty Advisor of the team, said the total cost of the project is about Rs six to seven lakh. "Out of this, Rs four lakh has been sponsored by HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited), the college trust (Rashtriya Shikshana Samiti) has promised to give Rs 1.5 lakh and the rest promised by private sponsors," Kulkarni said.

Prof Raja Rao said the RVCE students, who have taken up various innovative projects such as "Ashwa" (Formula Racing Car), are working on a micro satellite. The project is partly being sponsored by ISRO, he said.