Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei delivering his speech at the iSpark Start-Ups launch.
Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei (second from right) with members of the FitReactor development team (from left) Tan Zhe Xin, Low Jiun Yang and Wong Jer Syuen.
TAR UC has always encouraged enterprising students to demonstrate their sense of ingenuity and entrepreneurship to innovate in the world of technology. Towards this end, the iSpark programme was launched in 2017 by the Centre for Business Incubation and Entrepreneurial Ventures (‘CBIEV’) to help students turn their entrepreneurial ideas into commercially viable and investable products.
The latest innovations to be developed by TAR UC students under the iSpark programme are the TapFood app and FitReactor electronic training device, both unveiled at the Launch of iSpark Start-Ups event at the iSpark Incubation Centre at the Kuala Lumpur Main Campus on 12 December 2019.
TapFood, which was developed by the Faculty of Computing and Information Technology (‘FOCS’) students Ang Ying Xing, Khor Jun Xian, Goh Yi Xun and Johnson Lim Wei Jun, aims to provide a secure and efficient online platform for ordering food and beverages that will significantly reduce waiting time and simplify the ordering process. Its e-wallet feature allows for a convenient payment system and also provides a seamless transaction tracking system for business vendors.
“Many canteens and self-service restaurants in Malaysia have the same pain point of long waiting times. Therefore, our app is aimed at improving the situation by allowing the merchant to accept their customers’ orders online,” said Ying Xing. “The main challenge we faced while we were developing this app was about choosing the right platform for our app to work properly. In order to overcome this cross-platform challenge, we decided to make our app web-based, since web apps can deliver the same features across different devices with only one code base.”
The key difference between TapFood and other food delivery apps is that TapFood caters for dine-in customers where it enables customers to pick up their orders without queuing up, after they have ordered online. TapFood is most suitable for use in school and university canteens and restaurants which do not offer delivery services.
FitReactor, developed by TAR UC alumnus Low Jiun Yang and his business partners Tan Zhe Xin and Wong Jer Syuen, is a device that aims to provide an interactive approach to fitness training. FitReactor allows for accurate measurements of performances during exercises using reaction time as a unit of measurement. Interactive LED lights will track the reaction time of the user, and real-time feedback is provided by a central command unit.
“My partners and I decided to develop an affordable and user-friendly device that is less expensive than other products in the market and can enhance the quality of sports training and exercise,” said Jiun Yang. “The grant provided through the iSpark programme helped us to develop the prototype, and we also obtained useful advice from CBIEV in establishing our set-up. Additionally, the product launch facilitated by CBIEV also plays an important role in increasing our exposure in the future, which we highly appreciate.”
“The iSpark programme is in line with TAR UC’s new tagline of “Beyond Education”, since we believe that learning is not limited to academic programmes,” said Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei, President of TAR UC, at the launch. “To meet the demands of Industrial Revolution 4.0, skillsets must evolve to contribute to nation-building, and a more holistic type of learning must be cultivated.”
The iSpark programme is part of TAR UC’s efforts in encouraging entrepreneurship-focused education, and is highly relevant to today’s digital economy. The programme allows aspiring entrepreneurs to connect, learn, share and develop their technology-driven ideas towards commercialization through an entrepreneurship ecosystem that promotes innovation.
