Inha Wins at Robot Aircraft Competition
▲ The DOK4 student team from Inha University demonstrates its aircraft for the development technology evaluation.
The DOK4 student team from Inha University recently won the Grand Prize, the Administrator of the Korea AeroSpace Administration Award, in the regular category of the 24th Korea Robot Aircraft Competition (AAM Tech Challenge) held at the Air Force Education and Training Command in Jinju, Gyeongsangnam-do.
The Korea Robot Aircraft Competition is a competition in which university students design and build their own aircraft and demonstrate their unmanned aviation technology capabilities by carrying out missions simulating real-world disaster situations, such as autonomous flight and victim searches. Since its launch in 2002, the competition has contributed to the development of unmanned aviation technology in Korea and the cultivation of future aviation talent for more than 20 years, making it one of the country's leading competitions in the field.
This year's competition was jointly hosted by the Korea AeroSpace Administration and Jinju City, and organized by the Korea Aerospace Industries Association and the Innovation Convergence Business Division for Aviation and Drones at Korea Aerospace University. The competition was designed to expand the technological foundation of the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) sector and promote the development of specialized talent.
AAM stands for Advanced Air Mobility. It refers to a next-generation transportation system that encompasses urban air taxis using electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL), unmanned cargo transportation, emergency response, disaster rescue, and other applications.
A total of 80 teams participated in this year's competition. Teams underwent comprehensive evaluations through the first preliminary round, which assessed development technology plans, and the second preliminary round, which evaluated development technology results. Their overall system development, autonomous flight capabilities, mission performance, and safety systems were assessed. Among them, teams from 12 universities and graduate schools across the country advanced to the final round.
The final round was divided into regular and intermediate categories according to the aircraft missions. The regular category was held under the theme of “VTOL Fixed-Wing AAM Search-and-Rescue Mission.” Participants carried out a search-and-rescue scenario in preparation for the commercialization of AAM, with their technological feasibility and potential for practical application in real-world industries evaluated.
The DOK4 team received high praise for completing the search-and-rescue mission with the highest level of technical completeness in the regular category. Based on an aircraft they designed and built themselves, the team successfully demonstrated stable autonomous flight and mission performance, earning the Grand Prize, the Korea AeroSpace Administration Administrator’s Award. The award demonstrates that Inha University students possess comprehensive capabilities in aircraft design and manufacturing, autonomous flight algorithm implementation, and disaster-response mission execution required in the future AAM sector.
Dr. CHOI, KEEYOUNG, President of Inha University, said, “This award is a meaningful achievement that demonstrates how students designed and built their own aircraft and successfully implemented future aviation technologies through actual mission performance. Inha University will continue to cultivate talent capable of leading the future aerospace industry by supporting convergence education and hands-on research encompassing aerospace, artificial intelligence, and mobility.”
Meanwhile, Inha University is strengthening its educational and research capabilities in aerospace as well as artificial intelligence (AI), mobility, and other advanced industries, focusing on cultivating convergence-oriented talent capable of leading future industries.
▲ Participants of the 24th Korea Robot Aircraft Competition (AAM Tech Challenge) pose for a commemorative photo.
Original Article