Örebro student develops lighting robot that could save lives during earthquakes

Rescue work after an earthquake often must pause at night because it becomes too dark to continue, which is a significant problem since every hour is crucial in saving lives. 

This inspired Meryem Berat Kahramanoglu, a student of industrial engineering and business administration at Örebro University, to develop her lighting robot. 

Along with a group of students in Germany, she had already started designing a robot to rescue people from burning buildings. They have now shifted their focus to developing a robot capable of navigating and illuminating rugged terrain, such as that encountered during an earthquake.

Many deaths occur because rescue efforts do not arrive in time. We felt that this was a significant problem to try to solve,” says Meryem Berat Kahramanoglu.

“I dream of something, I want to be able to bring it to life”

Meryem says she has always been creative. Over the years, she has set up a start-up company, designed drones that can identify the causes of forest fires, and created a multi-functional appliance for student flats that combines a microwave, kettle, coffee maker, oven, and stove.

“The reason I wanted to become an engineer was specifically to develop my ideas. When I dream of something, I want to be able to bring it to life,” says Meryem Berat Kahramanoglu.

She met the German students at a trade fair in Turkey last year. They quickly realised that they had similar interests and decided to collaborate on a project. The outcome of this collaboration is the lighting robot, which they have been working on in their spare time ever since.

Top 16 of 90,000 innovations

When they heard about the Teknofest innovation competition in Istanbul, they decided to submit their entry. Out of 90,000 entries from around the world, their innovation was among the top 16 finalists.

Meanwhile, Meryem contacted the Innovation Office at Örebro University, which provided her with verification funds to enable them to travel to Turkey.

“The innovation advisor thought our project sounded very exciting. I submitted an application and received a reply the following week.”

Feedback from rescue personnel

Meryem and her German associates attracted a lot of attention at Teknofest.

“It was very exciting and really huge – the fair attracted over a million visitors. We had our own stand, and many people involved in earthquake rescue operations in Turkey in 2023 stopped by. They thought our idea was great and offered us valuable tips on how to develop it further, which is exactly the kind of feedback we needed.”

Along with their exhibition stand, Meryem also had the opportunity to present the innovation to the jury.

“They believed it was a unique idea and asked many questions. They encouraged us to keep developing it.”

The lighting robot placed among the top 16 in the competition. 

“It’s impressive that a small student project managed to achieve this. Many of the other entries were research-based and led by established researchers. We’re simply a group of students who have been working on this in our spare time for a few months.”

What have you gained from the experience?

“Above all, we realised that people reacted very strongly emotionally. We developed the idea based on what we had seen on the news, but hearing from people who had worked during an earthquake that our solution could actually help felt incredible,” says Meryem Berat Kahramanoglu.

The next step: testing in a mining environment

One tip that Meryem received was to test the prototype in a mine, as the conditions there resemble those experienced during an earthquake. Therefore, the next step will be to contact mining companies in Bergslagen. 

“Right now, the robot is somewhat bulky, so we will redesign it to enhance portability. If we succeed in developing a working prototype, we would like authorities such as the ,” says Meryem Berat Kahramanoglu.