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UWB's exhibit at this year’s Inovujeme Plzeň festival covers a wide range of topics – from a planetary robotic rover to artificial intelligence and a robotic rock band. The event kicks off on Monday, June 9, at TechTower, the Cukrovarská complex, and Plzeňský Prazdroj. While the first day features the Security Forum focused on cybersecurity, the following day expands the program to include AI, robotics, drones, entrepreneurship, and marketing.

UWB researchers and students will aspire to leave a major mark on the festival, taking over two main venues: Cukrovarská and TechTower.

The Faculty of Mechanical Engineering will bring a planetary robotic rover model to TechTower, developed by the UWB Robotics student team. “Planetary rovers currently represent humanity on alien worlds. Similarly, in university competitions, student rovers function as an extension of the operator’s hands and senses,” explained team leader Václav Mašek, a doctoral student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. But what happens when the control signal is lost and the machine must decide for itself? The student team will demonstrate how the rover communicates with the operator and how it perceives its surroundings when offline. “Stop by our booth for a chat about robots and space exploration. We’d love to show you our rover's design and discuss the challenges we overcame during its construction,” Mašek added.

The Faculty of Electrical Engineering will draw visitors into the world of robotics at the Cukrovarská site. Visitors can watch the uArm robot draw, explore a robotic welding model, and see Hexabot, a student-built walking robotic spider. Meanwhile, over at TechTower, KAP{F}ELA will take the stage. This electronic, robot rock band seamlessly connects 3D printing, hardware, and music, playing electric guitar, bass, and drums. FEL will also showcase how artificial intelligence can predict heat consumption in the energy sector. “In our research, we demonstrate how neural networks and advanced AI can effectively manage and predict the operation of energy systems, from local heating networks to large-scale power grids,” said Jan Ullmann from the Department of Electrical Power Engineering.

Visitors can meet representatives from the Faculty of Applied Sciences at two locations. At TechTower, the faculty will present cybersecurity topics and show how to use artificial intelligence in education and applied projects. Students can learn how to integrate AI into their studies, including the university chatbot, while businesses can discover practical AI applications in process automation, data handling, decision support, and intelligent software. At Cukrovarská, visitors will witness cybernetics in action across industry and agriculture, highlighted by a nearly two-meter-tall 3D-printed crane that uses smart sensors to stabilize a swaying load.

For details and the complete schedule, please visit the Inovujeme Plzeň website.