MANILA, Philippines?Named after a feisty fowl, this gizmo which has so far cost P2 million to build better not chicken out.

Students of Philippine Science High School (PSHS) nicknamed ?Pisay? have created a robot named ?Larry Labuyo? which will be entered into competition in the United States next month.

The Philippines is the only member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to be invited to the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition in Hawaii from March 26 to 28, according to the students? mentor Dr. Elmer Dadios.

Named after a wild breed of chicken native to the country, Labuyo was formally unveiled Tuesday at the PSHS campus in Quezon City.

Designed by students

It was designed and programmed by third-year PSHS students and constructed from materials widely available in hardware stores.

Building Labuyo involved a team of 32 students, who received guidance from four advisers from the University of the Philippines, two from PSHS, and four?including Dadios?from De La Salle University.

The robot stands about 4-feet tall and looks more like a piece of appliance with wheels. It comes equipped with a web camera and parts near the wheels are covered with soft padding for protection in the heat of battle.

Dadios said Labuyo would try to outwit and outplay the competition in a game called ?Lunacy,? where participants would try to place as many ?moon rocks? into the trailer of the opposing robot.

The robots are expected to bump hard into each other, but Labuyo should be ready to take such a punishment, Dadios said.

For the first 15 seconds of every 2-minute round, Labuyo should be able to move autonomously and take directions from a software preprogrammed by the students and transmitted wirelessly to the robot from a laptop computer.

At this stage, the robot should be able to ?see? its environment and its opponent with the help of a vision recognition system.

Tricky part

After the first 15 seconds, the students can now take command from the computer and manipulate Labuyo by remote control.

Another tricky part of the competition is the slippery surface of the game area.

?The hardest part (of building Labuyo) was learning everything from scratch in the six weeks we were given to design and build our entry. But it was enjoyable and we learned a lot,? said student Cat Angangco, leader of the team which called itself ?Lagablab.?

Dr. Ester Ogena, director of the Science Education Institute, said not only were the students involved in the design and construction of the robot, they were also part of the public relations, marketing and fund-raising activities for the team.

Ogena said building Labuyo had so far cost the team some P2 million.

Appeal for funds

Sending all 32 members of Team Lagablab to Hawaii, plus shipping cost for Labuyo, would cost around P4 million more, she said.

Ogena, therefore, appealed to donors in the government and private sector to help raise funds for the Philippine team.

?We want our students to have motivation and inspiration to become scientists and engineers,? she said.

Science and Technology Undersecretary Fortunato de la Peña noted how local research in robotics could help advance the country?s agriculture, manufacturing and health sectors.

?What the students have designed and constructed is already a big thing and we hope their interest will be sustained,? De la Peña said.