For the love of robots

It may be surprising to learn that Ramie Lim is not only passionate about Robotics, but is also the first engineer in her family. The Year 4 NUS College of Design and Engineering (CDE) student with a Major in Mechanical Engineering and Second Major in Innovation & Design (iDP) has always enjoyed Physics as a school subject. But the turning point for her came when she was praised and validated by a strict teacher for her aptitude.

“I realised how rewarding it was to make my teacher proud. My grades shot up as a result, and this spurred my interest in Engineering further down the road. Topics in physics such as dynamics and kinematics have always appealed to me. But when I entered NUS, I wanted to explore its applications in a Mechanical Engineering setting,” she recounts. In her Freshman year, Ramie also got her first taste of Robotics and programming, which piqued her interest – and the rest is history.

Having decided on her first Major and specialisation in Robotics, the missing piece for Ramie was moving past theory to application. In Year 2, Ramie found her final piece in the jigsaw when she stumbled upon the iDP – which trains undergraduates to develop innovative, interdisciplinary solutions and design new products, services, and experiences.

Flexible and forgiving culture

To prospective students fretting about what courses to pick, the 23-year-old student advises, “There is really no cause for worry as the CDE curriculum offers great flexibility. I measuredly built my Majors and specialities slowly over the years. Even if you feel you have made the wrong call, there is always a window for change - wide enough for you to recalibrate your educational pathway to what suits you best,” she reassures.

On the learning environment in CDE, Ramie elaborates: “The culture is flexible and forgiving enough to allow room for mistakes; even if you took a detour with an unsuitable pick of courses, you can still pivot and catch up with your peers.” She is the perfect example of that – having only decided on the iDP Second Major in Year 2 when most have made their choice in Year 1. Ramie considers CDE to be the perfect thriving ground for students who are open-minded, interested in growing in their own discipline, yet also keenly interested in interdisciplinary learning.

Best of both worlds

Armed with two majors, Ramie straddles the best of both worlds – hitting her own sweet spot of linear precision and big-picture thinking. On the interdisciplinary bent in CDE, she observes: “A lot of group projects in CDE require students to interact with those from across other disciplines to achieve project deliverables. Our respective fields don’t matter as much as building the project team spirit by being versatile and adaptable.”

Of the common curriculum in CDE, Ramie found the course EG1311: Design and Make most impactful. With three of five teammates from the Department of Architecture, the group had to build a small robot to traverse an obstacle course. While the architects were not experts in the robot-building component, they played to their strengths in the video and animation components of the presentation. “It became a very nice balance of how different disciplines worked and complemented one another’s domain expertise,” she opines. 

My badge of street-cred

Unsurprisingly, Ramie’s favourite course to date is EG3301R: Ideas of Proof-of-Concept where she embarks on a year-long project to build a Boxing Robot in a team of four - two from Mechanical Engineering, and two from Engineering Science. To prove that their prototype could truly function as intended was no mean feat. As none of the group members specialised in Electrical Engineering, they had to work hard to cover for that knowledge shortfall, while working towards replicating boxing movements in their robot model.

“It was also my most challenging and fulfilling course because this project is a culmination of applying everything I have ever learnt in school. You know, for those who survived the gruelling course they actually give you a keychain for bragging rights!” she laughs. 

⁠Learning from the best

Ever driven to expand her domain knowledge, Ramie secured an A*STAR learning internship where she got to work on a wide range of applications in robotics like investigating ground robots and aerial vehicles for autonomous missions, and developing control for drone and ground vehicles in simulation. She reflects: “I was fortunate to have a superior who was interested to teach. Even though I was out of my depth, that summer gave me the space to grow, and this internship cemented my passion and resolve to specialise in Robotics, especially in mechatronics and autonomous control.”

Her Student Exchange Programme (SEP) to the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon, South Korea in 2023 also saw Ramie venturing beyond our shores to learn from the very best, clarifying her own preferred learning style in the process. “I chose KAIST as it is well known for their expertise in Robotics and theoretical research, and I wanted to learn from the best in the field. Outside of school, I also got to travel around with fellow NUS exchange students as we visited places like Nami Island, Gangchon Rail Park, Vivaldi Ski Resort, Haeundae Beach in Busan and literally crawled our way to the steep peak of Bukhansan, the tallest mountain in Seoul!” she shares. Besides playing badminton for KAIST, Ramie’s other favourite past-time in Daejeon was hanging out in their neighbourhood singing karaoke.

Of sports, bikes and fully immersing

By Year 4, the Engineering senior wanted to explore more aspects of University life, and decided to immerse herself in student life – by living on campus in Raffles Hall. Relishing the experience thus far, Ramie enthuses: “Since young, I have always loved sports as it’s not only a great recreation, but also a wonderful way to meet new friends. But playing sports for the hall allows me to play competitively instead of just recreationally. My current attraction is playing volleyball in my hall, as I got to play a different position from before.” Besides volleyball, Ramie also plays tennis and squash, and will be taking part in competitions at the Inter-Hall games. 

To unwind and relax, Ramie gets high-octane thrills on her motorcycle – an orange Honda street bike – with her friends once a month as they ride the loop in Lim Chu Kang that exits at Kranji, before refuelling with biryani along Upper Thomson Road. “I ride mostly with my Final Year Project partner, who’s also my teammate for my Boxing Robot project. Riding relaxes me because of the speed and the wind against my skin,” she raves.

Her wish list for her bike? “To implement a few Internet of Things (IoT) features, and design her own custom smart camera on her bike, or on top of her helmet for a 360 view - in part inspired by bike influencer videos that capture funny incidents on the road.”

⁠Passing on the trade, mentoring the next

As a person who is always interested and curious, Ramie found herself naturally drawn towards teaching and mentoring others. A Teaching Assistant at CDE since 2022, she has not only taught and mentored students in robotics-related workshops, but was also a Student Mentor during ArtxTech 2022 and CDE Summer School 2024 where she guided students from different tertiary institutions on the basics of Arduino-controlled electronics, Computer-Aided Design and laser cutting to create a self-painting robot.

“I have a thirst for knowledge, and aspire to be somebody others can approach for problem-solving or asking questions. Being a student mentor really suits my personality as I enjoy brainstorming and ideation as well as facilitating the students to do the same. I consider it part of my personal growth arc; one that is personally fulfilling,” she enthuses.

⁠From drawing board to reality

As the President of Engineers Without Borders (EWB-NUS), Ramie was involved in humanitarian community activities such as conducting engineering workshops for youths from disadvantaged families. In her own way, she wishes to shape these youths-at-risk and influence their lives for the better, by providing them with a wider range of learning opportunities so that they may pursue better paths in life.

“Being an Engineer is not just about your technical competency. It also provides an opportunity to teach and share your knowledge with others, and I hope to continue doing so in future. By exposing them to new things and presenting more options in life, I hope it will inspire others to explore new interests and possibilities and take action on the ideas they have,” she affirms.