Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Peoples'Friendship University of Russia
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Five students from the RUDN University Engineering Academy have reached the semifinals of the 12th All-Russian Engineering Competition (VIC). This year, a record 13,498 applications were submitted for the competition. All applications were evaluated by industry experts. A total of 898 students from 126 Russian universities made it to the semifinals.
Among them are RUDN students:
Egor Smetanin, a bachelor's student at the Department of Nanotechnology and Microsystems Engineering, with the project "Development of a hardware and software system based on VR technologies for art-therapeutic rehabilitation of patients with disabilities"; Ilya Smetanin, a master's student at the Department of Nanotechnology and Microsystems Engineering, with the project "Diagnostic sensors for non-invasive medicine based on ring laser gyroscopes"; Danila Lukyanchenko, a bachelor's student at the Department of Construction Technologies and Structural Materials, with the project "Accounting for the influence of external reinforcement in the form of permanent formwork in the design of cooling towers for thermal power plants"; Evgeniy Nezhurin, a bachelor's student at the Department of Construction Technologies and Structural Materials, with the project "Development of a multifunctional cultural center with ultra-low energy consumption"; Maxim Chebotarev, a bachelor's student in the Department of Construction Technologies and Structural Materials, with his project "Designing a Restaurant in Perm."
All competition semifinalists will face a challenging program. The intensity and intensity of preparation for the finals can be compared to a sports competition, where victory is the result of tireless training. Students will test their ideas at partner companies under the guidance of experienced mentors using high-tech equipment, where their projects will undergo acceleration.
A large-scale business program also kicked off on February 2: the semi-finalists will attend career consultations, training sessions, and master classes from industry leaders. The culmination will be a grand festival—a meeting place for the next generation of engineers and the country's tech elite. While the participants gain new useful skills and knowledge, we share stories about their projects.
VR, neural networks, and people with disabilities
Egor Smetanin has been working on the project for over a year. He shared that he began by analyzing existing VR rehabilitation solutions and developing hypotheses for combining art therapy, biosensors, and neural networks, and has now moved on to a working prototype of the system.
"The most challenging part is integrating several layers into a single, stable system: hardware sensors, biosignal collection and preprocessing, VR scenarios, and online neural network analysis, so that the results are not only technically correct but also clinically meaningful for rehabilitation specialists," says Yegor Smetanin.
The student chose the topic of rehabilitation for patients with disabilities because he sees a significant unmet need in this area from families and specialists. Currently, there are many subjective assessment methods, but few accessible tools that provide an objective picture of progress. Egor says he is particularly motivated by working with children with autism spectrum disorders and mental retardation, as well as with patients with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The bachelor's project involves creating a hardware and software system that integrates a VR application with art therapy tasks, a set of biometric sensors, and a neural network analysis module that classifies the user's emotional state. The project is currently in the functional prototype stage: key art scenarios have been developed, basic integration of the VR application with the sensors has been implemented, and the first version of the model for classifying emotional states is being developed.
"Participating in the competition gives you the feeling of being part of a strong professional community: already at the semi-final stage, the high level of projects and the expertise of the mentors is evident, and the very structure of the VIC as an accelerator helps you view your development through the eyes of the industry, not just a researcher," says Yegor Smetanin.
The student has already participated in career consultations and training sessions as part of the business program. Egor explained that the consultations helped him "translate" project language into the language of competencies and career tracks, and the training sessions taught him how to explain complex technical solutions in simple terms. He particularly enjoyed the master classes given by industry representatives, who demonstrated real-life cases of implementing engineering solutions and provided feedback on potential partners' requirements.
Packing technology into a compact body
His brother, Ilya Smetanin, is also a participant in the competition. He has been working on the project "Diagnostic Sensors for Non-Invasive Medicine Based on Ring Laser Gyroscopes" for about a year. The project aims to create a compact diagnostic device capable of non-invasively recording microvibrations of the human body caused by the functioning of internal organs. The novelty of this approach lies in its use of the body's natural physiological signals to stabilize the gyroscope's sensing element. The growing global market for health monitoring technologies underscores its relevance. The theoretical justification has already been completed, and the project is currently in the process of developing the first prototype.
"The most challenging task in developing the hardware and software system at this stage is, perhaps, miniaturizing the device without sacrificing its high sensitivity. We need to package high-precision laser technology into a compact, mobile device, while developing algorithms that will accurately filter the biomedical signal from extraneous noise in real-world conditions," says Ilya Smetanin.
The master's student's choice of field was inspired by the idea of combining high-tech technologies commonly used in aviation and space with humanitarian objectives. According to the student, traditional electrocardiography has several limitations: it is sensitive to interference, requires proper electrode placement, and provides information only about the heart. The method being developed (gyrocardiography) potentially allows for contactless and safe assessment of the respiratory system or musculoskeletal system.
"Participating in the All-Russian Engineering Competition was a tremendous experience and an opportunity to look at my project from an outside perspective, through the eyes of experts. I'm very happy to have made it to the semifinals," says Ilya Smetanin.
Of the competition's business program events, he most remembered the master classes given by representatives of major tech companies. Ilya was interested in learning how the process from idea to finished product is structured in the industry and what skills are currently most in demand among young engineers. The career consultations, he says, gave him food for thought about how to more effectively present himself and his developments to future employers or investors.
We'll feature projects from other students participating in the All-Russian Engineering Competition in our next article. We wish all the students a successful defense of their projects in April and a spot in the competition finals!
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