| James Kon |
AN ARRAY of projects and gadgets were on display at the Serambi Suluh Hall of Tarindak D’Seni yesterday, from sensors and applications to detect water leakages in water supply pipes and a Variable Speed Multi Grits Sander, to a pen and accompanying app designed to assist dyslexic children and adults in writing, to name but a few.
The innovative exhibits are the products of a group of winners for this year’s Crown Prince CIPTA Award.
The awards ceremony was graced by His Royal Highness Prince (Dr) Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah ibni His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, and Pro-Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB).
Category 1: Creating New Product, Process or Technology, third place
For the competition’s Category 1: Creating New Product, Process or Technology, third place was won by Dr Haji Sharul Tazrajiman bin Haji Tajuddin and Nur Hamizah binti Haji Awang Harun for their Water Leakage Detection and Management system. There were no winners for first or second place in the category.
The system is a prototype product that involves the use of sensors and an application to detect water leakages in water supply pipes to households (main supply pipes that are usually buried underground). The sensor will measure the pressure of the water volume in the pipes at appropriate intervals.
“It took three months to complete the project. The idea came from one of my family members who experienced water leakages at home but didn’t notice it until the water bill amounted to more than BND1,000,” Nur Hamizah said of the system. “So I decided to come up with an early-detection sensor to help homeowners avoid such huge water bills. I hope to commercialise the project.”
On taking third place, Nur Hamizah, who is currently job hunting having graduated from UTB last year, said, “I didn’t expect to progress this far in the competition. This is my first project that I am doing alone and it’s my first time participating in the Crown Prince CIPTA Award.”
Consolation prizes for the category were awarded for the ‘Ghusl Stretcher for the Deceased’ and ‘Food Processor’.
Category 2: Modifying Existing Product, Process or Technology, first place
Category 2: Modifying Existing Product, Process or Technology was won by Sufre bin Haji Muhamad with his ‘Variable Speed Multi Grits Sander Machine’ project. The system is suitable for both amateurs and skilled users.
Speaking about his creation, Sufre, a mechanical and electrical engineer working at the Public Works Department, said, “Alhamdulillah, my hard work and sacrifices have paid off. I live in Lumut and work in Bandar so I commute daily to work. I could only work on my project at night and in my free time. This is the first time I emerged a winner in the Crown Prince CIPTA Award. I love to come up with inventions.”
On where he got the idea for the sander, he explained, “My hobby is carpentry, so I face difficulties while doing some carpentry works. I was looking for a machine that has multi grits but I couldn’t find one, so I invented this machine – 80 per cent of the parts can be found in Brunei, while the rest of the system is made from recycled electronic parts. It took one and a half months to complete the project.”
Second place went to the Spotgenic (Plant disease detection system) project, while third place was awarded to the ‘Vepo Device’ project. Consolation prizes went to the ‘Diabetic Emergency Notification with MedibAind’ project and ‘Mobile Hydroponic’ project.
Category 3: Creating New or Modifying Existing Product, Process or Technology by Young Inventors, second place
Second place for Category 3: Creating New or Modifying Existing Product, Process or Technology by Young Inventors went to Janelle Joyce Ampongan Perez, Muhammad Haziq Safwan bin Sheran and Nurayezha Barasi Nurul Islam – all students of Seri Mulia Sarjana School – for their ‘Eco BN Waste Management Bin’ project.
Made of steel and aluminium for product longevity, the system comes with a can crusher and has three compartments for different recyclable materials, allowing the user to segregate common recyclable materials such as aluminium cans, plastic straws and paper.
“The idea of the project came about when we noticed that the cleaner in our school was stomping on the empty drink cans and our teacher thought it would be a good idea to come up with the project,” Nurayezha Barasi Nurul Islam said. “We produced our prototype in less than two weeks and the project took around two years to complete. We’ve joined other competitions in the past like BruBiz and LiveWIRE with the same concept and an improved prototype.”
She added, “It’s an achievement for our team and the project. Although we are in second place, it feels like we have won the category because there is no first place winner. We plan to further improve the Eco Bin and outsource it in the future. Special thanks to teacher Rhoel Pacis for his guidance in the project.”
Third place went to the ‘Blind Assist Sensory Suit’ project by students of Berakas Secondary School. Consolation prizes went to the ‘Smart Lure’ project by students of Anthony Abell College and the ‘Electricity, Clean Water and Slat from Sea Water’ project by students of Chung Ching Middle School.
Smart Junior Competition, first place
For the Smart Junior Competition, the winning entry was the ‘My Penpal – Pen for Dyslexics’ project by Jordan Hee Shan Yung, Loo Chun Yung and Sharlaine Tan Qi Jie of Chung Ching Middle School.
The project involves a pen and an accompanying app designed to assist dyslexic children and adults in writing.
“We are really happy that we emerged as the winner. Our hard work has really paid off, and we are happy to represent our school,” Sharlaine Tan Qi Jie said. “From doing our research we noticed that there was an increasing number of dyslexia cases, so we modified the pen to help dyslexics to write without spelling mistakes.
“The project was completed in a few weeks with the guidance of our supervisor teacher Madam Shanti. If given the support, we hope to make the product available to people with dyslexia.”
Second place went to the ‘Bfit Shoes’ project by students of Chung Hua Middle School, while third place went to the the ‘Innovative Green Energy Collector’ project by students of Berakas Secondary School. Consolation prizes went to the ‘3 in 1 Cost Efficient Farming System’ by the team from St Andrew’s School and the ‘FoodVisor’ project by the Seri Mulia Sarjana School team.
ASEAN category: Young Inventor Category, first place
The winner for the ASEAN Young Inventor Category went to the ‘TE-Ractor’ project by Siti Nurhasya Dinie binti Abdul Mahdi, Che Ku Ahmad Habib bin Che Ku Ahmad Amir and Adam Fitri bin Mohd Shariff Lei, students of Tengku Lela Segara National Secondary School, Terengganu, Malaysia.
TE-Ractor is a seafood drying machine designed to help small entrepreneurs in producing dried seafood and maintain their quality, such as salted fish and fish crackers. The system detects changes in the weather and the presence of rain and covers up the dried seafood as required.
“We are really happy and it’s an honour to be able to compete in the Crown Prince CIPTA Award. This is our first time competing overseas,” Che Ku Ahmad Habib said.
“We conceived the idea with our friend, who noticed his grandmother drying seafood products, and whenever it rains, she will rush to collect the products to prevent them from getting spoiled. We took three months to complete the project. We are in the process of availing it to the market, and there are already entrepreneurs who are interested.”