Mechanical Engineering

To design an innovative solar heating system with a solar tracking system and solar power supply system which aims to convert biomass waste materials to char products, namely charcoal, biochar and activated carbon through pyrolysis with the use of renewable energy. The fabricated solar heating system is 100% driven by solar energy and is a zero-carbon emission and conversion system. It has a short payback period of less than 7 years and it is generally economically viable, with a minimum requirement of land. It is hoped that the project will contribute to both environment and optimisation of power storage to discover cost-effective designs in the future.

The team design, build, and test autonomous unmanned aerial system (UAS), which consist of a drone carrying a small unmanned ground vehicle for package delivery, to complete a mission that include autonomous flight, obstacle avoidance, object detection, mapping, and air drop. The complete system is expected to participate in unmanned aerial system related competition.

The robotic fish project provides aspiring engineers with a platform to gain hands-on experience in applied engineering. With design innovation, we enhance the functionality of the fish to further improve manoeuvrability and control.

Our initial goal to make the robot faster and break the world record again has been achieved. Now, the second goal is to solve real-world problems. From discussions with stakeholders, we have identified an opportunity to apply our robot in data collection for marine exploration and pollution monitoring. It can be used to collect water data such as temperature, pH, etc. and also for real-time mapping and monitoring of specimens in the environment such as coral reefs, microplastics, etc.

We envision a series of such projects under the BREED umbrella to promote bio-robotics with a purpose. Ultimately, we hope to create an organisation that drives social impact through innovative robotics solutions.

To design an innovative solar power system with a solar tracking system and solar power supply system, which comprises the concepts of applying solar energy and waste-to-energy, to convert biomass waste materials to char products, namely charcoal, biochar and activated carbon through pyrolysis. The solar power system is a zero-carbon emission system during operation and conversion. Furthermore, it is an economically viable system with a short payback period of less than 7 years with a minimal land requirement. It is hoped that the project will contribute to both environment and lead to the optimization of power storage to discover cost-effective designs in the future.

Automation is becoming much popular nowadays, ranging from household appliances to large industrial machines. The project of Automatic Chair Stacking System is aimed to showcase the idea of automatic conference room by cooperating with the Automatic Chair Parking System. The systems will be able to set up the conference room and tidy up the chairs without any manpower. The system is built with different types of mechanical drives and Arduino programming.

The automatic chair parking system aims to provide a smart solution in
moving and arranging chairs in large venues such as classrooms while
reducing the risk of occupational and ergonomic injuries. This can also
reduce the reliance on labor force and ultimately improve efficiency. The
system therefore is designed to autonomously transport chairs to a
designated parking area with minimal human control.

WWF-HK, the management organization of the Mai Po Nature Reserve, has to offer waterbirds a mudflat without vegetation. Currently, workers are deployed into the mudflat to remove the vegetation. However this method is inefficient and dangerous. WWF-HK wishes to develop a product to reduce the necessity of sending out workers to the intertidal mudflat. Field visits were conducted to understand the design constraints. Removal methods adopted by other wetland management in the world were studied. As a result, radio-controlled hovercraft mounted with a grass cutter was chosen as the solution to the problem. The product was tested in different settings, including lawn, water and Mai Po. Results proved the product met the target specification. The product would serve as a reference for WWF-HK in future projects in vegetation removal.

HKU Racing, the first motor racing team in HKU and the first team based in Hong Kong to compete in Formula Student (European series), was established by a group of engineering students in 2018. Electrification of the transportation system is a leading trend in the modern world, where building up a race car with the combination of the electric powertrain and the traditional mechanical system is an innovative activity. With the university’s support and the team’s effort, the team has achieved 3rd place overall in class 2 and 2nd place in design at the Formula Student 2019.