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DCU Solar Racing has unveiled the driving model of Ireland’s first-ever solar racing car, designed and built by a multidisciplinary team of students. The car will compete in the 3,000-kilometre Bridgestone World Solar Challenge across the Australian outback in 2026, testing innovation, endurance, and sustainable engineering on the global stage.
Supporters, alumni, and staff gathered at DCU’s Polaris Building to see the prototype and hear from students and drivers involved in the project. The initiative showcases interdisciplinary teamwork, practical engineering skills, and a commitment to renewable energy, reflecting DCU’s role in driving future-focused, sustainable solutions.
Read more: https://www.dcu.ie/electronics/news/2025/sep/dcu-solar-racing-revving-launch-driving-model
#DCUEngineering #DCUEngineersWeek
DCU is celebrating student innovation after Srinidhi Karthik received the DCU STEM Innovators Award at the Stripe Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition. Srinidhi, a student at Athlone Community College, won the award for her machine learning project focused on improving learning dynamics, recognising her creativity, problem-solving skills, and contribution to advancing STEM.
Srinidhi’s achievement highlights the strength of DCU’s growing innovation culture and its commitment to empowering students to tackle real-world challenges through science and technology.
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Mechatronic Engineering (or Mechatronics for short) is a special type of engineering that combines different areas like mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science. These engineers use their knowledge to create machines that can move and react on their own, like robots.
Mechatronics engineers design and build machines that can do tasks automatically, without needing someone to control them. They use their knowledge of mechanical engineering to design the physical parts of the machine, like the body and motors. They also use their electrical engineering skills to design and integrate electrical systems, like circuits and sensors, that allow the machine to sense its surroundings and make decisions. So basically, they create machines that can think and move on their own!
As a robotics or mechatronics engineer, you could design aircraft avionics for autonomous drones, build robots for industry or medicine, develop smartphone-based systems, or enable robots to understand human behavior.
Find out more about Mechatronic Engineering (or Mechatronics for short) at DCU here.
#MechatronicEngineering
Dublin City University (DCU) has partnered with Hangzhou Dianzi University (HDU) to launch the HDU-DCU International College of Electronic & Information Engineering (ICEIE) in China. The college, officially inaugurated by An Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD during his trade mission, will offer undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programmes in cutting-edge fields including Artificial Intelligence, Electronic Information Engineering, and Integrated Circuit Design. This marks DCU’s first undergraduate degrees delivered wholly in China and represents a major milestone in Irish-Chinese educational collaboration.
The International College builds on two decades of cooperation between DCU and HDU, creating a global pipeline of talent for the electronics and AI industries. It will welcome 1,500 students and combines DCU’s research-led, industry-aligned education with HDU’s expertise, fostering innovation, international collaboration, and the development of future leaders in technology.
#DCUEngineering #DCUEngineersWeek
Do you have a passion for the environment? Planet earth is facing tough new challenges. Engineers have an important role to play in developing solutions to these problems and making our world more sustainable.
We have developed an exciting new course in DCU, the BEng in Mechanical and Sustainability Engineering, to prepare graduates to meet the changing world of sustainability and the growing global challenge of transitioning to zero carbon. It's suitable for individuals who have an interest in energy, who care about the environment, and who want to contribute to saving our planet.
Find out more: https://www.dcu.ie/DC194
Until she was 17, Kirsten Lee hadn’t even considered engineering as a career. Growing up in Finglas as the first in her family to attend higher education, she discovered her passion for STEM through a scholarship to DCU’s Centre for Talented Youth Ireland. A guidance counsellor later suggested engineering, and Kirsten realised the Common Entry Bachelor of Engineering at DCU offered the flexibility and opportunities she wanted. She soon found her niche in electronic engineering, excelling in circuitry and electronics theory during her degree.
Kirsten completed a placement at Deloitte in the Cloud and Engineering Department, which led to a full-time role in their digital health team. Now, she works on modernising healthcare systems while actively promoting engineering to young people, volunteering with Junior Achievement Ireland and running summer camps for secondary students. Graduating top of her class, nominated for a Women in STEM award, and determined to inspire more women in engineering, Kirsten hopes to return to academia for a PhD and continue shaping the next generation of engineers.
Read more: https://www.dcu.ie/computing/news/2025/dec/kirsten-lee-electronic-engineering-success
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Dr Eadaoin Carthy from DCU’s School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering spoke on a Newstalk podcast about microplastics, tiny pollutants now found in oceans, air, food, and even inside our bodies. Despite their small size, their environmental and health impacts are significant, yet many remain unaware of the risks or their origins.
In the interview, Dr Carthy discusses the science behind microplastics, their potential effects, and the actions needed at both individual and societal levels to tackle this global challenge.
Listen to the full episode: https://www.newstalk.com/podcasts/28-ways/under-the-microscope-microplastics
#DCUEngineersWeek #MicroPlastics
Niamh Donnelly, Co-Founder and CTO of Akara Robotics, is recognised for her pioneering work in AI-powered robotics to improve hospital efficiency and patient care. Her interest in robotics began at age 13 through a DCU summer school, leading her to study Mechanical Engineering and specialise in machine learning and computer vision. At Akara, founded in 2022, Niamh develops technologies like the Akara AI Sensor, which uses privacy-preserving thermal vision in operating rooms, and Violet, an autonomous UV-disinfection robot supporting infection control.
Her innovations have been deployed across healthcare systems in Europe and the U.S., earning her recognition as a European Commission Rising Innovator and a laureate of the European Innovation Council. Akara’s work has featured in TIME’s Best Inventions of the Year 2025, with the social robot Stevie appearing on the magazine’s cover, and coverage in Forbes, CNN, and TechCrunch Disrupt. Niamh continues to champion safe and responsible AI, while inspiring the next generation of robotics innovators.
Read more: https://www.dcu.ie/alumni/2025-alumni-awardee-niamh-donnelly
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The world is more connected than ever before, and that’s only going to grow. It's no longer just computers and smartphones that are digitally connected. From fridges to TVs, alarms to mirrors, more and more devices are finding their way online.
Electronic and computer engineers create and innovate to invent, design, improve and build products and technologies that really matter in people’s lives. Watch our video to find out more about Electronic and Computer Engineering at DCU: https://www.dcu.ie/DC190
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New research from Dublin City University highlights that Ireland’s existing port infrastructure isn’t sufficient to meet the country’s 2030 offshore wind energy targets, with no ports currently equipped to handle the large‑scale assembly and marshalling required. To reach the Climate Action Plan’s goal of at least 5 GW by 2030, the study finds Ireland needs four dedicated offshore renewable energy (ORE) ports, but only Cork Ringaskiddy and Rosslare Europort are in early planning stages, and land availability for wind projects remains far below what’s needed.
The authors call for a coordinated government‑led plan, significant investment (€2‑3 billion) and strategic expansion of quayside space to support turbine construction, logistics and energy security. Without rapid action on port development, researchers warn that Ireland risks failing its offshore wind commitments, missing economic opportunities and falling short of its climate and energy goals.
#DCUEngineersWeek
Aoife Guanzon, a computing student at Dublin City University, has been awarded the Fidelity Women in STEM Student Scholarship 2025/26 in recognition of her academic excellence, leadership potential and commitment to advancing women’s participation in science and technology. The scholarship, supported by Fidelity Investments Ireland, also offers financial support and mentorship to help scholars pursue their studies and career ambitions.
Aoife’s achievement reflects DCU’s ongoing dedication to fostering diversity and inclusion in STEM fields and inspiring more women to excel in technology and computing.
#DCUComputing
Despite advances in autonomous driving, AI systems handle routine driving well but remain poorly prepared for rare, high-risk scenarios such as sharp curves, steep slopes, or sudden changes in road conditions. These “edge cases” are uncommon but often cause serious accidents, and collecting real-world data to train AI is slow, costly, and unsafe.
Researchers at Dublin City University and the University of Birmingham are using generative AI in virtual proving grounds to safely create and train vehicles on these scenarios. The AI produces realistic, complex events based on real-world data, allowing cars to practise repeatedly. Combined with human–machine shared control, where the system gradually intervenes in risky situations, this approach improves safety, driver engagement, and public trust while better preparing self-driving cars for real-world challenges.
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From realistic and powerful prosthetic limbs to individually engineered implants, and from high-tech scanners to tiny cameras that can explore blood vessels, biomedical engineers work to develop products at the cutting edge of what is possible to heal and help the human body.
If you’re creative, analytical, inquisitive, and innovative, and keen to work in a fast-growing field with real human impact, this could be the course for you. You’ll get biological and medical knowledge, and technical engineering expertise, so you can solve problems in biomedicine. You’ll study advanced biology, biomaterials, biomechanics, tissue engineering, medical device design, surgical technology, rehabilitation engineering and much more besides
Dr Tanya Levingstone is an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at DCU. In this video she explains what Biomedical Engineering is and why she choose to explore a career in this sector.
Find out more about the BEng in Biomedical Engineering at DCU: https://www.dcu.ie/DC197
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Emerging research shows that everyday food ingredients like seaweed, starch, and gelatine could replace plastics in wearable devices, creating electronics that are safe for both humans and the planet. These “edible electronics” can bend, flex, and measure heart rate, movement, or skin hydration while biodegrading naturally, reducing microplastic pollution from conventional wearables.
Scientists are turning natural polymers into smart, conductive films that rival traditional plastics in performance, offering breathable, flexible, and environmentally friendly alternatives for devices like smart patches and medical sensors. With the wearable-tech market booming, these innovations could transform healthcare and electronics by combining high-tech monitoring with sustainability, positioning Ireland at the forefront of a new bio-electronics industry.
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As generative AI makes deepfakes and AI-written essays increasingly convincing, educators and technologists are racing to keep up. Professor Alan Smeaton of Dublin City University’s Insight Centre for Data Analytics highlights the challenge: while AI detection tools exist, their accuracy often falls below 80%, leaving universities vulnerable to academic dishonesty and misinformation.
To stay ahead, DCU is exploring innovative assessment methods, such as video presentations and interactive projects, alongside research into deepfake detection using techniques like Euler video magnification to spot subtle facial cues. While perfect detection remains elusive, Smeaton believes a combination of smart policy, innovative teaching, and advancing technology can help maintain trust in both education and digital media.
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