Saturday, April 12, Group T staged the finals of the Solar Olympics. Teams from highschools all over the country competed for an award with their solar-driven gadget.
Prizes were awarded in four categories:
The Business Class-award for the gadget with the best price/quality ratio, interesting options, and an appealing presentation—in short, the most commercial gadget. Team Catwaj of the Vrije Technische Scholen Turnhout outshone the others with a driver education training ground using traffic lights running on LEDs and solar energy.
The Technology Class-award for the electronically most sophicated product. Team ICTIA, from the Liège school with the same name, won with an autonomous mini-greenhouse allowing you to adjust the amount of light, water, and heat. The system then makes sure that the plants can flourish in the best of circumstances.
The Creativity Class-award for the most original gadget, involving context, choice of materials, and presentation. Team 12ME of the Don Dosco-Instituut Mariaberg, proved to be the most creative. Their solar-driven ball housing a mobile weight, moves perpetually.
Team Pimp My Sun from Institute Notre-Dame Philippeville won the public's award—a hot air-balloon trip—with its automated sunshade. The sunshade opens and closes automatically, as sunlight comes and goes.
To all competitors and, of course, the winning teams: nice work and congratulations!
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