Robotic kiwi the star of science fair
A remote-controlled kiwi, designed to help protect the living native bird from roaming dogs, has won five awards at the NZAS Southland Science and Technology Fair in Invercargill this week.
Halfmoon Bay School pupil Travis Chittenden, 12, made the robotic kiwi for the fair and will soon give it to the organisers of the kiwi avoidance training for dogs programme on Stewart Island.
The fair was for school children.
Roaming dogs killing or endangering kiwis had been a serious problem on the island until the programme was introduced five years ago. One of the programme trainers, Sandy King, thought it was two years since a dog killed a kiwi on the Island.
Training programmes for dogs are held twice a year and up to now, small furry objects, depicting the body of a kiwi, and with electrodes sticking out, are used.
When dogs touch them, they get a small electric jolt, and its usually enough to deter them from going near living kiwis in the future.
‘‘We often said, wouldn’t it be good if there was some movement [in the decoy’s body],’’ King said.
Travis’s teacher, Kath Johnson, approached King to ask if Travis could make a robotic kiwi for the training programme.
The robotic kiwi has about 30 electrodes sticking out of its body.
Chittenden said the robotic kiwi had a wooden base and beak, steel legs and polystyrene head. Inside the kiwi are small batteries powering two motors that make the head, body and legs move.
The movements are controlled by an app on a cellphone.
‘‘We had a few problems [making the robot], like the legs were a bit wobbly and we had to make them stronger,’’ Travis said.
‘‘It hasn’t been tested yet [for the training programme], it’s going to happen at Labour Weekend.
‘‘I’m pretty happy how it’s come up.’’
The top prize winners at the NZAS Southland Science and Technology Fair were:
Michael Chesney and Charlotte Collie, Travis Chittenden, Hunter Norman, Summer Thompson, Corbin Fraser and Ella Zwagerman.