The 2nd Automation Transmission Technology Application Competition hosted by German company Wittenstein was held on November 4th at the International Conference Hall of Building 6 of Taipei Tech, following a live proposal and popular vote training. The organizers kept the results secret until the last moment, when the presenter opened the envelope and announced the winners. The results were revealed, and Taipei Tech won both the annual championship and the first place, making it the biggest winner of this year. The runner-up was won by the joint team of National Taiwan University and Taipei Tech, while the dark horse team from National Central University won the third place, bringing the event to a perfect conclusion. The live award ceremony was opened by the Dean of the College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering at Taipei Tech, Lee Chun-Ying, who stated that due to the epidemic, the entire event was broadcast live, resulting in a higher level of activity and influence. He also mentioned that this year, in addition to Taipei Tech, teachers and students from general universities in the field of mechanical and electrical engineering were invited to participate, promoting interdisciplinary industry cooperation experience for students and advocating cross-school team formation. As a result, 28% of the teams that registered for the competition were cross-school teams, indicating a rising trend that will not be easily stopped.
From topics such as robot applications, energy conservation, carbon reduction, to environmental detection, the diversity and relevance of the entries to industry and daily life were the highlights of this year's event. What is even more commendable, according to Li Chun-ying, is that while the competition emphasizes on creativity, many teams have already demonstrated their innovative ideas. On the day of the finals, some teams even brought their laboratory hardware to showcase at the venue, and he encouraged the students to implement this spirit into the industry. Finally, Li Chun-ying encouraged the teams present, who were invited by the judges, to remember this memorable moment and continue to strive for more and better experiences.
As the representative of the German company, Weintek, the general manager, Wei Cheng-zhi, first expressed his gratitude to the staff who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make this event a success. He thanked them for being "the noble ones in life" and for enabling this year's competition to be completed successfully and remarkably. Especially, the students and the guidance of their professors have continuously demonstrated their innovative spirit, creating fruitful results, which are admirable. Many teams have formed cross-university collaborations, which have already met the industry's requirements for cross-unit team cooperation and remote communication and should be expanded and promoted.
Mr. Wei Chengzhi, the general manager of Wittenstein in Germany, first expressed his gratitude to the organizers and staff of the event, calling them "angels in his life" for their hard work and dedication in making this year's event a great success. He especially admired the innovative spirit of the participating students and their guidance professors, who have once again achieved fruitful results. Many cross-campus teams have demonstrated their ability to collaborate across different units, which is a model for the industry. Mr. Wei pointed out that several teams integrated sensing technology, remote control, artificial intelligence, and deep learning technologies into their projects. As long as these technologies are continuously developed, they not only meet the needs of Industry 4.0 smart manufacturing, but also help Taiwan combine more intelligent new technologies in the precision machinery industry to enhance Taiwan's competitive advantage. Mr. Wei said that the end of this year's event marks the beginning of a new milestone next year. He sincerely hopes that everyone will continue to cherish, respond and support this annual automated transmission technology application competition, so that it will continue to shine and become a skill competition and a good tradition among universities.
Professor Lin Huai-en, the project leader from National Taipei University of Technology, summarized the opinions of the seven judges from the final and preliminary rounds. He said that many of the participating teams' projects were innovative and practical, and they are in line with the trend of environmental protection and energy conservation in recent years. The proposals incorporated popular themes such as AI, automatic recognition, and deep learning, and the design concepts were diverse. Many teams even made working prototypes, which is highly commendable. Professor Lin encouraged the students to continue working hard and gaining experience in the field of automation technology, and to continue to improve and create a better future.
Entering the awards ceremony, the first award presented was the Popular Choice Award. It was announced and presented by Dr. Tseng Chin-Li, the general manager of the co-organizer, Strategic Vision Consulting. The award went to the proposal of the WLCT team from the Department of Electronics at National Taipei University of Technology, for their system for detecting and preventing aging of transmission belt driven electric motors. The team had accumulated 2,028 views and received 401 likes during the competition week. The team was led by their advisor, Professor Chung Ming-An, who accepted the award and delivered a speech.
In his speech, Professor Chung first thanked the authorities for their support. He said that the competition further integrated the two departments of electronics and mechanical engineering. As a professor at National Taipei University of Technology with expertise in radio, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity, and with 15 years of industry experience working for companies such as Foxconn, Quanta, and Acer, he knew that the most important thing for students before entering the industry was to pass simulated exams, which involved learning about projects related to cost and profit. He believed that the knowledge taught in schools should not have a gap with the industry and that students should know how to connect what they have learned to the industry. This competition encouraged students to do what they should do.