CYUT delivered a strong performance at the 37^th International Invention, Innovation, Technology Competition & Exhibition Malaysia (ITEX 2026), winning two gold and two silver medals. This year’s exhibition featured nearly 1,000 entries from 20 countries, and all four CYUT projects received awards.

President Tao-Ming Cheng said the winning projects reflect the university’s growing strength in interdisciplinary research and innovation. The projects cover a wide range of fields, including aviation safety, information technology, environmental sustainability, smart aquaculture, and product design. To date, CYUT faculty and students have earned 87 gold, 119 silver, 49 bronze medals, and 38 special awards at international invention exhibitions.

One of the gold medal-winning projects, “Flexible Piezoelectric Thin-Film Early Warning System for Lithium Battery Swelling and Thermal Runaway,” was developed by students from the Graduate Institute of Aeronautics. The system uses flexible piezoelectric thin films to detect small changes in lithium battery swelling, while also monitoring temperature and using edge computing to provide early warnings before thermal runaway occurs. The technology has potential applications in aviation safety, electric vehicles, public transportation, and home energy storage systems.

Another gold medal-winning project, “Plastic Cleanup Guardian: A Smart Photocatalytic System for Microplastic Degradation,” focuses on microplastic pollution in waterways. Unlike traditional cleanup methods that collect or block plastic waste, the device is designed to help break down microplastics at the source. It uses a floating, non-powered design with solar energy, nighttime UV lighting, GPS tracking, app-based monitoring, and photocatalytic technology to gradually degrade microplastics into carbon dioxide and water.

The silver medal-winning “LEO Satellite-Based Oyster Rack Drift Detection and AI Disaster Prediction Platform” addresses risks faced by oyster farms in coastal waters. The platform combines low-Earth-orbit satellite imagery, satellite communications, AI recognition, virtual simulation, and large language model technology to detect oyster rack drift and predict aquaculture-related disaster risks. The system can help improve the speed and reliability of coastal disaster monitoring.

Also receiving a silver medal was “A foldable mobility device designed to assist intoxicated passengers,” also known as Buddy Go. Developed by Industrial Design students, the device is intended for use in restaurants, bars, KTV venues, and other nightlife settings. It helps designated drivers and companions move intoxicated passengers more safely and can also be converted into a compact mobility tool.

These awards highlight CYUT’s continued efforts to support applied research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and practical solutions to real-world problems.