School of Media Arts & Design | Asia Pacific University (APU)

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School of Media Arts & Design

An Immersive Experience

Today, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies are applied to advanced fields of medicine, engineering, education, design, training, and entertainment. To expose our students to the potential that VR & AR have in store for us, an industrial visit was organized for the Multimedia Technology (MMT) & Computer Games Development (CGD) Students from the School of Media Arts and Design (SoMAD) to MinistryXR - A company specialising in effective communications through XR – who is the pioneer in creating breakthroughs that redesign the way we Live, Work, Play and Learn by using XR Technology.

A total of 15 students along with Prof. Dr. Ir. Vinesh Thiruchelvam, Assoc. Prof.Wong Bee Suan and Dr. Maryam Shahpasand visited the studio for an immersive experience of VR and AR Technologies. The students were given a virtual live experience of the "Toyota Car Showroom" , where they were able to take a virtual tour of the showroom and interact with the car with the help of HTC Vive and Oculus Rift Head Gears. The students also got to experience the Augmented Reality apps that the company created for CIMB Bank and PizzaHut. Through these immersive experiences, students were exposed to the amazing wonders that can be created in the world of VR, AR and XR, stimulating them to make use of these technologies in developing creative solutions in future.
 
 
 
    
Overall, students had a positive feedback about the visit, broadening their horizons on VR, AR and XR. Kudos to our lecturer, Mr. Edwin Pio Rufus from SoMAD for coordinating and arranging this visit.

[Press Release] A Perfect Blend of Creativity, Ingenuity and Technology

Kuala Lumpur, 10 December 2018: A cross-faculty and trans-disciplinary effort among students and staff from Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) and the Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology (APIIT) led to the production of the university concept car named - Invictus.

The Invictus was a working prototype designed and assembled by team Invictus to compete in the Proton DRB-Hicom Creative Car Challenge (PD3C) 2018 which was concluded on 8 December. The car emerged as the champion of the challenge and the team walked away with a cash prize of RM7,000. In addition, Khoo Wern Sheung, Year 3 student of the BA (Hons) Transport Design programme, who was part of the team also achieved a 3rd Prize at the Design Battle.

Prior to the final challenge, the team from APU was one of the 13 finalists at the PD3C pitching session held in March 2018. At the pitching session, the team proposed to use the Proton Preve as the base model of the Invictus’s concept design. They were then given a Proton Preve and were required to re-design and re-engineer the given car model with brand new ideas and concepts.

Under the guidance of academic staff from the School of Media, Arts & Design (SoMAD) at APIIT, 20 students from the Product Design, Transport Design and Engineering disciplines worked on sketching, designing, modelling, assembling and styling the Invictus over 9 months.

 

Animation and Visual Effects students applied their skills and knowledge in creating the promotion video and designing the electronic display panels available within Invictus.

Personnel from the PD3C committee visited the team and were kept updated of the progress twice throughout the progression. The car development process was fully documented in the logbook as required by the organizers.

This was the first concept car assembled by APU & APIIT students, as they participated in the PD3C for the first time.

The car featured futuristic design elements that cater for urban living lifestyle, in line with APU’s nature of being a technology-savvy and innovative university. Some key features on the concept car include:

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) integrated headlamps
  • Integrated side view cameras to replace traditional wing mirrors
  • Smart Auto Door with Facial Recognition System
  • Fully digital Infotainment System
  • High-pressure front windshield to replace traditional wipers
  • Touch-screen and fully-interactive panel to replace traditional dashboard, speedometer, odometer and fault indicators
  • Front lower radar sensor to detect uneven objects or surfaces ahead

 

Khoo Wern Sheung, Year 3 student of the BA (Hons) Transport Design programme, also participated in the Design Battle that was held as part of the competition. His hand-sketched design of a compact car based on the theme given, ‘Fish’, emerged as the 3rd Prize Winner of the Battle.

Overwhelmed by their victory at the competition, Invictus team member, Lee Kian Chong, expressed his gratitude to the university lecturers and his team mates for the support. “It’s been such a wonderful experience! There were times we felt frustrated but with great team work we are proud of the final outcome. I am really proud to be part of the team. We manage to turn the impossible to possible,” said Lee.

Saifullizan Bin Abdul Wahab, academic staff of APIIT, recalled the team’s efforts and the strong passion demonstrated by the staff and students over the 9 months while working on the Invictus, “The Invictus born out of teamwork among all staff and students, as well as the strong support by the management and our colleagues at APU and APIIT. Team Invictus had a challenging yet memorable 9 months; I am thankful to all students and staff who had worked on the Invictus tirelessly. Our hard work paid off!” 

The team worked with passion, perseverance and dedication to achieve a concept that is revolutionary. An awesome effort by students and staff from across different schools, working together as an integrated effort,” commended Datuk Parmjit Singh, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of APIIT Education Group.

The Invictus is on display at APU’s campus located in Technology Park Malaysia, Bukit Jalil from 10 December 2018 onwards. For more information about the Invictus, follow them on social media: Invictus – APIIT (Facebook) / Invictus.apiit (Instagram).