Innovative UQ students help shape the future

Up to 120 innovative student projects will be on display and assessed at The University of Queensland's 2008 ITEE Innovation Expo on Thursday October 16 at the St Lucia campus.

The designs include "smart" appliances, projects illustrating leg movement analysis in sleep disorders research, bio-inspired robot language projects and research into controlling an unmanned aircraft.

The annual event will showcase ideas and research projects from some of the University's leading information technology and electrical engineering students.

ITEE Innovation Expo is an initiative of UQ's School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering (ITEE).

Head of School, Professor Paul Bailes said the event allowed final-year students to communicate and demonstrate their project work to school students, industry and the Brisbane public.

"This is the final chapter, the show and tell of both group and individual thesis work on a public platform," Professor Bailes said.

"The event will give industry, students and the public the opportunity to meet the innovators of the future from UQ and discover some of the products they could potentially be using in the future.

"The School prides itself on its excellence in research and teaching in all aspects of Information Technology & Electrical Engineering.

"ITEE Innovation Expo is an important part of the maintenance and future expansion of our links with industry and the general public,” Professor Bailes said.

Professor Bailes said prizes would be awarded in many different areas, including best software project, most imaginative demonstration of a 4th year thesis project, best embedded micro hardware/software project, best industry project and best piece of working electronics hardware.

Professor Bailes said people attending the event would include sponsors, industry representatives and school students from South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales.

School students visiting the event have the chance to win an iPod Shuffle (2GB) and a $100 iTunes voucher simply by answering a simple treasure hunt questionnaire on the day.

ITEE Innovation Expo is open between 1pm and 5pm in the Sir James Foots building (building 47A), UQ St Lucia.

For more information or to register your attendance for the day visit innovexpo.itee.uq.edu.au/2008. Free entry.

Media: For more information, contact Steve Forster, ITEE Marketing & Communications Manager (telephone 3365 2392, email: s.forster@uq.edu.au) or Jan King at UQ Communications (telephone 07 3365 1120).