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CORVALLIS - Need to silence your car alarm without blushing? Send it a quick text message. Looking for a longer surfing experience next time you catch a wave? Use a hydrofoil surfboard. Want to see a car capable of driving 175 miles across a desert with no driver? Check out the Grand Challenge vehicle, outfitted with sonar, radar, and other vision technologies.

Innovative prototypes of these products and many more, all designed and built by engineering students at Oregon State University, will be on display at the annual OSU Engineering Expo on Tuesday, May 17. The event runs from 2-5 p.m. in and around Owen Hall on the OSU campus, and is free and open to the public.

In addition, there will be a Robo Palooza, celebrating students' robotic creations - which include stair-climbing robots, robots built by the FIRST robotics teams from Oregon high schools, and the TekBots Triathlon featuring OSU engineering robots competing head-to-head.

There will also be a Senior Design Project Competition featuring more than 70 projects, with judges awarding prizes to top projects.

"We're expecting a wide array of student-designed engineering marvels," said Tina Batten, coordinator of the event and a member of the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. "If you're interested in engineering or technology, this is a must-see event for all ages."

Among the exhibitors will be OSU students who designed a microchannel filter small enough to fit into the implantable dialysis machines of the future. Also on hand will be the award-winning SAE Formula and Mini-Baja race cars that are designed, built and raced by OSU engineering students.

The event is hosted by OSU's School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and the departments of mechanical engineering and chemical engineering. Parking is available at Reser Stadium connecting to a free, nearby shuttle service. For more information about the expo, call 541-737-3617.

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