AAUA Students Invent Artificial Intelligence Wardrobe

Three recent graduates from the Physics and Electronics department of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo state, have set a record by inventing an Artificial Intelligence (AI) wardrobe. They are Promise Ijalade, Ogonifoluwa Paul and Aslem Emmanuel.

The inventors started in 2021 when they invented a robotic dog. Under the supervision of Jelili Adedeji, a lecturer in the Physics and Electronics department of AAUA, the inventors created the AI wardrobe to fulfil their final year project. 

One of them, Mr Ijalade, said “It all started when I was looking for a project to do, and my supervisor presented a series of topics before me. When I saw the topic ‘Artificial Intelligence robotic wardrobe’, it caught my attention. Although it looked complicated, I went for it because I love challenges. 

“I don’t have experience with the project, but I have been into tech before I gained admission. I have been fixing laptops. I love tech so much, and that fundamental knowledge helped me aside from what was taught in school,” he said.

Mr Ijalade added that many people were so surprised, and they asked if it was necessary to build the AI Wardrobe, but he determined to make it a reality.

Mr Paul, another team member, said that the project seeks to make life at home easier through the computerised wardrobe system. 

Mr Emmanuel, the third member of the team, explained that the wardrobe is meant to keep the personal data and belongings of the user safe and secure from any external intrusion and can be accessed only by the user’s identity.

Challenges

Mr Paul explained how finance and poor electricity were challenges while building the project.

“I went back to Mr Jelili, who had initially assigned one student to join me on the team. He then assigned one more student to make us three that produced it. We faced electricity challenges throughout the work, which made it very challenging.

We faced other challenges mainly from the electronics design and its structural design, which are very expensive,” he revealed.

Mr Adedeji, the project supervisor, said, “We intend to make it a wardrobe suitable for hotels, schools and personal use, but it would cost a lot of money to make it as a large wardrobe, so we did a prototype first.”

Regarding the challenges encountered, Mr Adedeji added, ‘The first was finances, the second was a technicality, the third was that Nigeria does not produce most of the items used. There was also the issue of constant electricity and a lack of storage space. I had to keep it in my office so that people would not tamper with it, although we met regularly every Friday to discuss the way forward.”

He further said that he initiated the idea due to the high level of unemployment among graduates, hence, the need to train students to be relevant and self-reliant even while in school.

“Becoming relevant in the future is a product of what you do when you are in school. The school management should approach the government for assistance; in that case, they can generate revenue through things like this.

“However, the wardrobe is a rechargeable one, and you do not need to put it on every time so that it would consume less power. It also has a space for charging where you can charge your phone,” Mr Adedeji noted.

Mr Adedeji hopes the team can approach organisations to fund the project and help them produce in large quantities. He also hopes that the team members become self-sufficient through the initiative.