Award-winning Innovations

Taylor's School of Computing & IT and School of Engineering win four medals at the 9thMalaysia Invention and Innovation Awards 2010
Media:	Nanyang Siang Pau
Date:	13 April 2010

"Imagine being able to synchronise and coordinate all your business and personal events from your mobile phone. The "Mobile Personalised Scheduler", invented by Taylor's School of Computing and IT (SOCIT) students is able to do just that.

This mobile phone organiser allows users to view their business calendar using an Internet browser and synchronise it with their mobile phone calendars. Best of all, this information is exchanged wirelessly and automatically between devices. Not surprising then, that this useful innovation was awarded a gold medal at the recent 9th Malaysia Invention and Innovation Awards 2010.

Inspired by an earlier project that he had to do as part of his course, Alex Hee, a Bachelor of Computer Science final-year student said, "We are thrilled to have won a gold medal, especially since we didn't expect it. The learning process was both challenging and exciting. We plan to continue working on improving this application until it is ready for commercialisation."

Alex, together with Allister Chew, another final-year Bachelor of Information Technology student, worked together with their lecturer Ms. Tan Ee Xion, to develop and fine-tune this interesting innovation.

"I believe this project stood out because it fits with the current trend of mobile communications. This application incorporates a variety of features that users need and want," commented Ms. Tan.

SOCIT also won a silver medal for "Track the Trek", a reliable outdoor workout tracking system that enables sportsmen to measure their workout activities easily. It incorporates analytical tools, such as graphs and tables to analyse their performance and progress, as well as uses a GPS tracking device to capture users' data. This application was the brainchild of Teh Chin Kuan and Edward Wijaya, both final-year Bachelor of Computer Science students, and developed with guidance from Ms. Tan.

(From L-R):  Chin Kuan, Alex, Allister and Ms. Tan with their awards

Meanwhile, Taylor's School of Engineering (SOE) bagged two bronze medals at the same event. Their "Improved Pathology Transport Bag" received nods of approval from the judges, proposing the concept of "a bag inside a bag" in the transportation of pathological samples. The carry bag provides an improved thermal insulation property, where the inner bag is made from a gel pack which lines the whole bag and acts as another layer of insulation.

Dr. Edwin Chung, Deputy Dean of SOE, worked together with students Yeow Joo Buan and Xia Ji Yi - both first-year students in Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Chemical Engineering. The idea was inspired by an earlier prototype developed by the students for the Taylor's Engineering Fair last December.

Joo Buan explains about her team’s invention to visitors

SOE lecturer Dr. Marwan Shamel teamed up with Dr. Chung to claim a second bronze medal with their "Laryngotracheal Dissection Box (The Final Prototype)". This was a continuation of a project, "Laryngotracheal Dissection Box (Prototype II)" that won a gold medal in the BioInno Awards 2009. Working together with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rahmat Omar from University of Malaya's Faculty of Medicine, the duo improved the dissection box (a universal specimen holder housed in a portable laser-safe compartment that makes it safe to perform demonstration of endolaryngeal and endotracheal procedures for teaching purposes) by cooling it externally with chilled water at 6oC, designing a suitable specimen holder for better experiment and modifying the system for proper removing of discharges.

Dr. Marwan (far right) sets up the display of his project with help from some engineering students

"This product holds great educational benefit, especially for medical students as it allows them to practice laser operations on animal tissue," explained Dr. Marwan.

Professor Dato' Dr. Hassan Said, Taylor's University College Vice Chancellor and President, congratulated the Taylor's teams for their outstanding achievement. "Taylor's was only one of four private educational institutions that participated in the competition and to win four awards out of six submissions is certainly an admirable feat. The academics and students have displayed a high level of dedication, determination, innovation and excellence."

The 9th Malaysia Invention and Innovation Awards 2010 was held in conjunction with the 9th Malaysia Technology Expo (MTE) 2010, the largest invention and innovation expo in Malaysia. This competition recognises the exemplary and outstanding inventions and innovations within a multitude of technology industries.