SP students won Airbus - SSTA HADR Challenge 2018

14 Feb 2018

SP team, comprising Year 2 students, Pan Ziyue (Diploma in Computer Engineering), Julian Kang (Diploma in Electrical & Electronic Engineering) and Goh Qian Zhe (Diploma in Mechanical Engineering), was crowned “Winner” of the competition organised by Airbus and the Singapore Space and Technology Association (SSTA) on 23 Jan 2018. The Airbus - SSTA HADR Challenge 2018 sought to utilise satellite and mobile technology developed by the participants to rescue people in distress in the event of disaster, encourage youth to incorporate space technology and engineering into daily lives, provide a ground for students and expertise in the field to communicate and exchange ideas, and spread awareness on space technologies to the public.

The SP team’s solution comprised an innovative use and delivery of data for disaster relief over the air through a mobile application designed for relief workers and survivors, regardless of their level of technical literacy. Their mobile application utilized data from Airbus’s Zephyr Pseudo Satellite to provide for situation awareness and logistical support to relief workers, fleet management for telemedicine drones, multiple map options for easy discernment, C2 Broadcast Information System, SOS Call Relay, and the novel mesh-network created transparently with smartphones of the relief workers to extend communication network in post-disaster area. The innovative solution was displayed at the Global Space and Technology Convention 2018 (GSTC) on 1 Feb 2018. The students had the opportunity to present the winning solution to Minister S Iswaran when he visited the Airbus booth at the Convention.

As winner of the Challenge, the team stands a chance to have an all-expenses paid visit to Airbus’ subject matter experts in Europe.