NYCU 2025 ICT Open Labs Turn Student Innovation into Real-World Action

(中央社訊息服務20251225 11:05:10)What does the future of technology look like when it steps out of the classroom and into society?

At National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU), the answer is taking shape through code, carbon fiber, drones, and immersive digital worlds. From December 22 to 24, NYCU ICT Innovation Workshop hosted its interdisciplinary showcase, Create the Future, Let’s Go!, opening its laboratories to the public in an OPEN LABS format that showcased students’ creativity and engineering ingenuity.

The exhibition brought together student teams and faculty mentors across eight technology domains — including the Internet of Things, robotics, drones, new media, biomedical engineering and health sciences, VR/AR, digital manufacturing, and artificial intelligence — demonstrating how cross-disciplinary, hands-on learning can translate ideas into practical solutions.

The showcase was organized into three thematic zones: Smart Pulse, Virtual Artistry, and Aerial Life, each highlighting a different facet of future-oriented innovation.

The most eye-catching was Aerial Life, where engineering met human-centered design. Students from NYCU’s drone micro-program unveiled a multi-rotor system capable of coordinated object retrieval using multiple unmanned aerial vehicles. Powered by the ROS2 framework, the drones communicate in real time and operate collaboratively, integrating wearable gesture controls, autonomous visual obstacle avoidance, and magnetic grasping mechanisms — offering a glimpse into the future of automated logistics once confined to science fiction.

Another standout came from the university’s drone project competition team, where students undertook a complete Design-Build-Fly development cycle from scratch. Using carbon fiber, lightweight wood, and 3D printing, the team engineered a high-strength, lightweight airframe that integrates flight-control algorithms and embedded systems. This year’s projects pushed the limits further, validating drone performance in extreme environments — from high-altitude adaptive return systems and swarm communication to short-runway heavy-load takeoff and landing — underscoring the technology’s potential for logistics, disaster response, and search-and-rescue missions.

In the Smart Pulse zone, teams working in IoT, robotics, and AI demonstrated how sensing, computation, and mobility converge to form the backbone of future smart societies, bringing advanced technology closer to everyday life and industrial applications.

Meanwhile, Virtual Artistry transformed VR/AR and new media technologies into immersive creative experiences. Through interactive installations blending visuals, sound, and spatial design, students explored technology not just as a tool, but as an artistic medium — inviting visitors to experience how digital creativity reshapes perception in the virtual-physical age.

The exhibition also featured NYCU’s Formula Student electric racing team, NYCU Vulpes Racing, which showcased an electric formula race car built entirely from the ground up. By integrating CAD design, structural analysis, digital manufacturing, and carbon-fiber composites, the team executed a complete engineering workflow from concept to production.

Their latest model, the VR7.5, represented NYCU at FSAE Japan in 2025, completing its first overseas competition. This milestone highlighted students’ strength in system integration, real-world testing, and international-level engineering execution.

More than a display of finished projects, the NYCU ICT Innovation Workshop exhibition reflected a mindset: learning by doing, collaborating across disciplines, and responding to real-world challenges through action.

By embracing OPEN LABs and interdisciplinary practice, NYCU continues to cultivate students who can turn imagination into reality — and carry their ideas beyond campus to shape the future they envision.