Students created product prototypes in a summer course
Students got to realise a prototype project from start to finish at the Protopaja course. The aim of the summer course, organised by the School of Electrical Engineering, was that students learn how an industrial project is designed and realised in a group. A further objective was for the students to get to apply competence in their field in a creative way.
'The projects realised by the students during the course include a programming component and a concrete product; in other words, the aim was to learn how to combine electronics, programming and information transfer with data collection and analysis', explains Sebastian Sonntag, teacher in charge of the course.
Eight projects were realised during the course. Each project had been commissioned by a client and was implemented based on their demands.
An electric wheelchair project was commissioned by the alumni of the Inkubio guild and the product was a computer-operated electric wheelchair.
The experimental steering methods were based on real-time gaze tracking and an inclination sensor
'An interface was created between the wheelchair and the computer, making it possible to steer the wheelchair with means other than a joystick', explained Topi Hämäläinen, who participated in realising the project.
The alternative experimental steering methods were based on real-time gaze tracking and an inclination sensor. These steering methods introduce new kinds of mobility opportunities, for example for paralysed people who cannot utilise a joystick in steering the wheelchair. There is also an aim to continue developing steering the electric wheelchair in later student projects.
Panu Pellonpää worked in the MPPT satellite project.
With the growth of IoT applications, the need for smart sensors is also increasing. This was taken into account in an application created for satellites. The Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) application was realised in collaboration with Reaktor. The purpose of the application is to help optimise power obtained from solar panels. The project particularly called for an ability to comprehensively manage basic knowledge of electronics.
Work produced during the Protopaja course was presented on 8 August in a final exhibition held at the Design Factory.
Read more news
Aalto University and Bocconi University to launch a double degree programme in strategic and creative marketing
The first cohort, 10 students admitted through Aalto and 10 through Bocconi, will start their studies in autumn 2027
Student exchange in Europe? Unite! can take you there
Aalto is a member of Unite!, a European university alliance that gives students the opportunity to internationalise their degrees both online and in-person. Join the webinar to find out more.
Opinion: Finnish language learning should be integrated into degree programs
In this opinion piece, Rebekka Nylund, an expert at the University of Helsinki, and Elisa Räsänen, a university lecturer at Aalto University, reflect on what they have learned from the EU-co-funded Language-supported Knowledge Pathways project and offer suggestions on how and why learning Finnish could be integrated into the structures of higher education degree programs.