The ongoing 48th WorldSkills Competition has added seven new events in emerging and future industries, including drone or unmanned aerial systems -- a category that tests competitors' all-round capabilities across hardware and software.
The training base for the drone systems event is located in Hangzhou, provincial capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.
Yang Yongxiang, coach of the Chinese training team for the event, said that as a category added into the WorldSkills Competition for the first time, drone systems place greater emphasis on competitors' multi-dimensional skills.
"The first part is the basic assembly and debugging of drones. Competitors need to assemble a drone step by step from separate components," Yang said.
The competition also requires competitors to test circuits, troubleshoot sensor failures, complete high-precision manual obstacle flights, and write code to enable autonomous planning and drone flight.
Among these, according to Yang, algorithm programming is the most challenging part.
"It's like installing a brain for the drone. It integrates algorithms from multiple sensors, enabling the drone to achieve autonomous recognition, planning, flight, and autonomous landing after takeoff," Yang said.
The event also tests competitors' ability to handle different types of drones. Three different models are used, all of which must be operated proficiently.
Held every two years, the WorldSkills Competition is the world's largest international gathering of skilled professionals.
This year's event, running from Sept. 22 to 27, features 64 skills, including seven new categories. It has brought together over 1,400 competitors from more than 70 countries and regions.
The competition covers six major skill areas -- manufacturing and engineering technology, information and communication technology, construction and building technology, transportation and logistics, creative arts and fashion, and social and personal services.
Drone systems event at WorldSkills tests all-round capabilities
