MELAKA: Four Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) students bagged the gold medal at the 2021 World Invention Creativity Olympics (Wico) in Seoul, South Korea. recently for their drone innovation.
UTeM’s Mechanical Engineering Faculty senior lecturer and project supervisor Dr Juffrizal Karjanto said in a statement on Sunday (Aug 22) that the drone has a speed of up to 50kph with up to two hours of flight time.
He said it was developed by a group of students from his faculty as well as the Faculty of Electronic Engineering and Computer Engineering and Faculty of Information and Communication Technology, together with two lecturers.
The students are Iqbal Hakimi Mohammad Feirdaus, 20; Nurul Khalida Kasim, 23; Muhammad Haziq Mohd Hamizat, 22; dan Aqil Haikal Jalalus Sayuti, 21; and their supervisors, senior lecturers Dr Fudhail Abdul Munir and Dr Nidzamuddin Md Yusof.
Juffrizal said the drone was developed in stages from early last year, and development is still ongoing.
He added that the drone, which had been tested by the Malaysian Unmanned Drone Activists Society, was developed to be cost-effective and commercialised locally and internationally for surveillance, search and delivery purposes in open as well as narrow spaces.
Juffrizal said he hoped that this innovation could help drone makers to boost their competitive edge.
He also hoped the achievement would encourage more Malaysians, especially youths, to collaborate and nurture their talents in innovation, science and technology to put the country at par with other developed nations.
UTeM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Raha Abdul Rahim said the achievement was in line with the university's goal of ensuring that its students excel not only at the national level but also across the globe.
"This success will be a boost for them to put their knowledge into practice in the real world," she said.
Wico 2021, hosted online by the Korea University Invention Association, brought together more than 1,000 students and inventors from over 25 countries including the United States, Canada, China, Romania, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Iraq, Thailand and India. – Bernama