The other medals won were 2 Special Awards, 1 silver and 3 bronze. The EUREKA 2009 exposition, which was held between 19 and 21 Nov 2009, is the largest technology conference and exhibition on products of technology innovations in Belgium. UiTM submitted 9 entries.
The team leaders of the 5 gold winning teams are student Mohd Suhairul Suhaimi, lecturers Shuzlina Abd Rahman, Norlina Mohd Sabri, student Mohd Hadi Anuar Mohd Fakharuzi, and Parmjit Singh. Shuzlina and Mohd Suhairul Suhaimi also won the Special Awards.
Undergraduate Mohd Suhairul Suhaimi and team, who also won the Special Award, contested product Shear Thickening Fluid (STF) filled Polymer Microsphere in Protective Clothing. Mohd Suhairul’s invention can be used to reduce the density and cost of STF-fabric composite in the production of protective clothing. The conventional body armour is bulky and stiff whereas using STF will make the armour more flexible and lighter. According to Mohd Suhairul Suhaimi, STF-fabric can also be used in the automotives and other relevant industries. Mohd Suhairul Suhaimi is from the Faculty of Applied Sciences.
Shuzlina Abd Rahman and team contested their product Multi-Parametric Pectin Lyase-Like Protein Function Classifier (MP-ProFunC). According to Shuzlina, MP-ProFunC can be used to assist in the production of healthier food and fruits. It can identify important features to classify the protein function which in turn may assist us to decelerate the maceration process of fruits and plants.
The third gold medal was won by Norlina Mohd Sabri, of the Faculty of Computer and Mathematical Sciences who collaborated with Goh Ying Soon of the Academy of Language Studies, and Abdullah Jamil of the Faculty of Art and Design. Their innovation is Mandarin for Beginners PinYin Approach (Yipin Courseware). It is a courseware developed to assist the non-Chinese speaking learners to learn Mandarin that uses the Pinyin approach. The courseware is a combination of still images and moving pictures (video), audio, text and graphics with many interesting elements and could be used as a learning material for revision, tutorial and enrichment purposes.
While Parmjit Singh invented a Maths learning approach called MathZzle Board Game and student Mohd Hadi Anuar, who is of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, contested Hydroxyleum Technology, a means to reduce fuel to suit various internal combustion engines while increasing power.
The silver was won by Muhamad Azmi Ayub and Mike Jackson whose product was Intelligent Handling System for Web Fabric Materials. The product is invented from a collaboration effort between UiTM and the Loughborough University, the UK. Intelligent Handling System for Web Fabric Materials is a mechanism to automate the handling of materials at the downstream of the production lines in garment industries. Handling naturally soft, flexible and non-rigid fabric materials is tedious but this innovation makes it handier, then easing the cutting.
Meanwhile, Noraida Abdul Karim of the Facuty of Hotel Management, Mohd Razeef Abdul Razak of UiTM Melaka, and Zuraida Khusaimi of the Faculty of Applied Sciences took the bronze.
Reported by Megawati Omar, Research Management Institute, UiTM
