Seven Winning Projects Support Hong Kong’s Vulnerable Groups
The HSBC Hong Kong Community Partnership Programme (CPP) today announced the winners of SMART Community Hackathon 2020 (Hackathon) that challenged secondary school students to create innovative tools that support our community’s vulnerable populations.
Huifeng ZHANG, Head of Corporate Sustainability, Asia-Pacific, HSBC, said, “For the second year in a row, the SMART Community Hackathon has provided an excellent platform for our younger generation to apply their creativity, critical thinking and STEM knowledge towards developing practical tools that support our community’s vulnerable groups. I would like to thank all the participating schools, teachers, students and the public for their tremendous support. COVID-19 has challenged us all, and yet this competition has demonstrated that our students have the ability to innovate with empathy and understanding.”
Forty teams from 18 secondary schools submitted their projects to the Hackathon in August. Half of the teams were selected as finalists and each received HKD5,000 from the CPP to develop their ideas. Among them, seven projects were awarded the ultimate title in the Hackathon’s five categories for their ingenuity and practical solutions which go towards supporting those with physical disabilities, visual impairments, those experiencing social isolation and the elderly.
Participants were encouraged to take inspiration from the CPP’s theme “Support Hong Kong!” and to specifically put their STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) knowledge into practice.
The seven winning projects are as follows:
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Award |
Winning Project and Secondary School |
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Community-friendly Award |
Beach Wheelchair Vehicle |
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Most Creative Award |
Smart Kung Fu Trainer |
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STEM Pioneer Award |
SAVE In Time (Pak Kau College) |
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Best Potential Award |
BI-f-ind way (The Yuen Yuen Institute MFBM Nei Ming Chan Lui Chung Tak Memorial College) |
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My Favorite STEM Project (chosen via online poll) |
Smart Drug Dispenser (Salesians of Don Bosco Ng Siu Mui Secondary School) |
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Laughter Catcher (St. Paul’s Convent School) |
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Wheel Connect (St. Paul’s Convent School) |
This year’s judging panel had representatives from the business, social welfare and academic sectors, including HSBC Volunteers and members of The Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS). The winners of “My Favourite STEM Project” were chosen online using a public poll.
Due to COVID-19, the Hackathon held its panel presentation and interactive session online. Participating teams were also invited to showcase their work at various public events and exhibitions including the Gerontech and Innovation Expo cum Summit.
To find out more about HSBC Hong Kong Community Partnership Programme, please visit: https://www.communitypartnership.org.hk
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Media enquiries: Calvin Njo |
3920 7670 |
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Michelle Tan |
3920 7617 |
Note to editors:
Winners of SMART Community Hackathon 2020
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Community-Friendly Award |
Beach Wheelchair Vehicle (TWGHs Wong Fung Ling College) The Beach Wheelchair Vehicle was specifically designed to allow wheelchair users to safely visit the beach. The electric vehicle features a caterpillar band to enable wheelchair users to travel freely and securely on sand. A mobile app will also be developed to support a rental and return service. |
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Most Creative Award |
Smart Kung Fu Trainer (HKTA Lee Heng Kwei Secondary School) Combining the traditional Chinese Kung Fu Wooden Dummy and the latest technology, Smart Kung Fu Trainer was designed to teach the elderly Chinese Kung Fu, which can improve memory, coordination, concentration, mental power and judgement. It also features a scoring and health monitoring system for users to track their physical progress, which may be shared with family and friends. |
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STEM Pioneer Award |
SAVE In Time (Pak Kau College) SAVE In Time was developed with AI technology and can be installed in any home to monitor elderly individuals in real-time. If an emergency situation is detected, the device will sound an alarm and send an alert to other registered relatives. This device was conceived to ensure the elderly who live alone can receive immediate care when needed. |
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Best Potential Award |
BI-f-ind way (The Yuen Yuen Institute MFBM Nei Ming Chan Lui Chung Tak Memorial College) BI-f-ind way aims to help visually impaired people to safely go jogging with a smart vest embedded with an AI enabled camera and a vibration detection device. The vest can detect the conditions of the running route ahead, analyse the surrounding environment and evaluate the potential risks, in order to provide users with alerts and directions to avoid obstacles. This invention was created to enable the visually impaired to exercise safely for both physical and mental wellness. |
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My Favourite STEM Project |
Smart Drug Dispenser (Salesians of Don Bosco Ng Siu Mui Secondary School) The Smart Drug Dispenser is designed to differentiate medicines according to their colour and shape, helping elderly people to take the correct medications and prevent dosage errors. With 3D-printed components, the dispenser features a small electronic motor controlled by Arduino programming software to sort medicines into different colours and shapes. Laughter Catcher (St. Paul’s Convent School) Laughter Catcher is a creative mobile application that allows users to capture videos of them laughing and share them with friends. After watching a video from a friend, the user can take a selfie and “Laughter Catcher” will analyse the facial expressions with an advanced AI emotion sensor to generate a “happiness score”. This mobile application’s big data may also be used to guage a community’s mental health. Wheel Connect (St. Paul’s Convent School) Wheel Connect is an Internet of Things (IoT) enabled wheelchair with various built-in devices such as an alarm, ultrasonic sensors and light sensors, that aims to enhance the user’s quality of life and safety. Key features include a “wheelchair rollover detection and alert”, “GPS tracking”, “gesture control” and “emergency stop control”. The student team believes Wheel Connect’s real-time monitoring and risk assessment capabilities will draw public attention to existing safety issues of the elderly who live alone. |
HSBC Hong Kong Community Partnership Programme
Since its launch in 2012, HSBC Hong Kong Community Partnership Programme (CPP) has been supported by the Home Affairs Department, the Social Welfare Department and The Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS). HKCSS has been appointed by HSBC to administer the applications and monitor the grant projects. CPP aims to inspire district-based community initiatives to foster a more inclusive society. Also, it encourages cross-sector collaboration to address the social needs of local districts and help charities and community organisations in Hong Kong build capacity. CPP has supported more than 1,200 projects reaching 5 million beneficiaries since its launch.
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited is the founding member of the HSBC Group. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 64 countries and territories in its geographical regions: Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of USD2,956bn at 30 September 2020, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.
The Hong Kong Council of Social Service
The Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS) is a federation of non-government social service agencies of Hong Kong. The Council represents more than 490 Agency Members, providing quality social welfare services through their 3,000 operating units in Hong Kong. HKCSS is committed to building a social service sector that is highly accountable, efficient, effective and responsive to social needs, upholding the long-term sustainable development of society and the well-being of all citizens.
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