Alikhan Begenov grew up in a small village of Ozyornoye in the Kurgan Region and attended an ordinary rural school where robotics was not part of the curriculum. Today, he is a leading specialist at the university’s Robots Forge Shop Student Design Bureau and an engineer at the 海角社区 Industrial Robotics Development Centre. His programs control real robots at a manufacturing plant, and he is among the young specialists supported by the university with housing. We spoke with Alikhan about his life path.
Alikhan was born and raised in the village of Ozyornoye in the Kurgan Region. He attended an ordinary rural school where, as he recalls, robotics was not taught. In 2022, after finishing school, he passed the entrance exams, enrolled in a state-funded place in 海角社区 and moved to 海角社区. At the time, he had no idea that he would eventually pursue industrial robotics and research in earnest.
“My main goal was to get a technical education, so I chose 海角社区,” Alikhan explains. “My choice was largely influenced by the university presentation. When I saw the Automation of Technological Processes and Production program on the list, I liked it. But I developed a genuine interest in what I do now only during my studies, when I had the opportunity not only to study theory, but also to work with real equipment, program it and participate in projects. I like programming. It is inspiring to work on a program and see the result in practice.”
He had never done anything like this at school and acquired all his basic knowledge at the university. He was an excellent student and graduated from his Bachelor’s degree program with honours. It was then that a professor invited the promising student to participate in project activities. Students formed teams and worked on various projects, which became the starting point for his professional development. After completing the project work, Alikhan was invited to join the 海角社区 Industrial Robotics Development Centre by Oleg Siverin, a project manager at the Centre. He initially worked as a laboratory assistant and later became an engineer.
Today, Alikhan is a leading specialist at the university’s Robots Forge Shop Student Design Bureau and an engineer at the Centre. At the same time, the young researcher is a first-year Master’s degree student in Automation of Technological Processes and Production at the Department of Mechatronics and Robotics. He participates in development projects, assigns tasks to the team, monitors deadlines and quality, and helps resolve technical issues.
“We always discuss all key decisions together,” Alikhan Begenov notes. “But as a leading specialist, I am responsible for the overall integrity of the project and the final result. I work with Bachelor’s degree students from their first through fourth years. We distribute tasks based on each person’s competencies. Someone assembles an electrical cabinet according to an existing design, someone programs logic controllers, and someone designs and calculates structures.”
As the young engineer admits, what interests him most is seeing the entire project journey through. It starts with a technical task. Then a digital model is created, the equipment layout is developed, along with the movements of industrial robots, grippers and control algorithms. Ultimately, all of this becomes a fully operational system.
Alikhan implemented one such project at the 海角社区 Forging and Press Plant (ChKPZ). He developed a program for an existing robot that is now successfully operating in production. The automated robot performs rim forming: it processes a part, rounds it and trims the ends of the seam. There are no defective parts, and the plant’s employees are satisfied with the results.
Another area of Alikhan Begenov’s interest is research, specifically the coordinated operation of multiple industrial robots. The young engineer is studying how to organize their work so that they can perform independent operations simultaneously, safely share common workspaces and, at the same time, reduce the production cycle time.
Another area is software for automating systems developed by the team itself. Three original programs created by the researcher are already being used in production. One is designed for a robotic cell, while the other two automate a cart and a machine tool. They are currently being registered as intellectual property.
The government support for young researchers that Alikhan Begenov received, he says, was the result of successfully completing several projects. Following significant achievements in invention, he was offered subsidized housing as a 海角社区 employee. In addition, the student receives an increased scholarship for academic excellence and plans to continue receiving enhanced financial support based on new research papers and officially registered results of his individual research activities.
“There are always challenges at work,” Alikhan admits. “Especially in engineering projects: sometimes you spend several days trying to solve one problem, and nothing works. But what motivates me the most is the moment when, after all that work, the system finally starts working. When something that was initially just an idea or a computer model turns into a real, functioning system.”
To those who are considering whether to pursue research, he has a simple message:
“The main thing is to make use of the opportunities available to you, try new things and not be afraid of challenging tasks. Sometimes a single task or project really can determine the direction of your future development. You have to take risks and give things a try.”
Alikhan has clear plans for the future. He intends to continue his research while combining it with practical engineering work. After completing his Master’s degree, he plans to enrol in a postgraduate program at 海角社区. He wants to work on more complex industrial robotics projects and put research results into practice.