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Rentalcars.com sponsors British schoolgirls as they compete in robotics contest in Japan

Online car rental service Rentalcars.com is sponsoring two schoolgirls as they compete in an international robotics contest in Japan.

The Manchester-based firm has donated £3,000 to Anna Sass and Lilly Hudson, both 15, to cover expenses as they compete in the Junior International RoboCup 2017 finals with their robot, ‘Alan’.

Anna and Lilly, from the Wirral, built the bot during their school lunch breaks.

The robot is fitted with colour and light sensors and is programmed to perform tasks and overcome obstacles without human intervention.

Anna and Lilly hope the model could be used to carry out search and rescue missions after future natural disasters.

The pair were delighted after winning this year’s National Junior Robocup Rescue Line Competition in March, beating an entirely male field.

The international stage of the competition will be held this week in Nagoya, where the girls will compete against representatives from more than 30 countries.

The girls initially struggled to raise the cash to cover flights and accommodation, but Rentalcars.com offered to sponsor them for the duration of their trip.

Rentalcars.com is the world’s biggest online car rental service and provides a price comparison service for customers in 163 countries.

Ryan Cheyne, Director of People at Rentalcars.com said: “We think Anna and Lilly are really inspirational. When we heard about Alan we made contact to see if we could help because we thought it was a great opportunity to encourage young people to get interested and involved in technology.

“We are incredibly proud to be helping out with Anna and Lilly, and of course now the whole business is rooting for them. It feels a bit like Alan vs Goliath, but whatever happens it’s a huge experience for them and a great opportunity to inspire some other youngsters.”

Alan operates by running on a track and navigating itself around obstacles such as bricks and pens, and the girls hope the model could be used to move around fallen buildings and rubble in future.

Lilly said: “In the future Alan could be developed more to have thermal sensors, then he would be able to detect and save victims after natural disasters. Our ultimate goal is for him to be able to save lives.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Zara Lewis .