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Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTPC) and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) today announced the exceptional achievements of local innovators at the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva. Among those who attended the press briefing held at InnoCentre included Consul General Rita Hämmerli-Weschke, Consulate General of Switzerland; Miss Janet Wong, Commissioner for Innovation and Technology; Mr Nicholas Brooke and Mr E. Anthony Tan, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of HKSTPC respectively; and Professor Alex Wai, Acting President of PolyU.

2012 marked the first year that HKSTPC's partner companies and incubatees participated in the International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, which ran from 18 to 22 April 2012 and attracted a total of 789 exhibitors from 46 countries with 1,000 inventions. All five HKSTPC participants made an immediate impact with each capturing a Gold Award at the event. What is more, Rehab-Robotics Company Limited was awarded the Grand Prix Du Salon International Des Invention De Genève for the robotic 'Hand of Hope' jointly developed with PolyU, making it the first Hong Kong invention to receive the grand prize in the 40-year history of the event.

Immensely proud of the achievements of the Corporation's partner companies, Mr Nicholas Brooke, Chairman of HKSTPC, enthused, "The inventions that were presented at the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva clearly suggest that creativity and innovation are present and flourishing in Hong Kong. I trust that we will be able to further tap this inventiveness and innovative spirit, spurring still greater accomplishments that act as the catalyst for a prosperous tomorrow."

PolyU Acting President Professor Alex Wai is delighted to see that PolyU researches have borne fruit at the exhibition. The two collaborative projects with companies based in the Science Park, namely the 'Hand of Hope' and the 'Solar-Powered Air-Conditioning System for Vehicles', have proved the practicality of PolyU's application-oriented research. "This international honour is a testimony to the strength of PolyU's extensive scope of technical and professional expertise."

Building on its impressive track record in the past nine years, PolyU has been awarded record number of top prizes in this world-renowned event again this year. The seven breakthroughs exhibited brought home five Gold and two Silver Awards along with four Special Prizes, with an array of innovations which range from medical and healthcare systems to engineering researches and new fabrics.

HKSTPC and PolyU are similarly motivated to foster innovation and technology development in Hong Kong by piquing young people's interest in the sciences. Through ongoing collaborations between the two parties, an effective platform has been established that allows students to develop and grow. Specifically, PolyU provides a fertile environment for conducting basic and applied research under the guidance of world-class professors while HKSTPC offers state-of-the-art hardware and software for graduates to continue their R&D projects with the ultimate goal of achieving commercialisation. While PolyU provides vast resources of technology and expertise that are readily transferrable to its partner companies, HKSTPC has advanced infrastructure and professional services, enabling these companies to more readily turn innovations into value creation. And in addressing the needs of start-ups, incubation programmes specifically aid their development during the vulnerable inception stage, including rental subsidies, business consultancy, talent matching and other support services.

The recent accomplishments of the awarded inventions are expected to provide additional motivation to new inventors and inspiration to the young generation, while concurrently raise awareness among the local community about the bright prospects that innovation and technology development can deliver. Though representing long-term investments, ongoing innovation and technology advancement will be crucial for building a diversified economy in Hong Kong.

List of Awardees of the 40th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva

HKSTPC’s Partner Companies/ Incubatees
Company	Project	Award
Ckicom Technology Limited	CAREase Inductive Diaper & Integrated Wetness Care System	- Gold Medal
Cypress Systems Limited	Carrot - Wireless Home Automation System	- Gold Medal -“Lucian Blaga" University of Sibiu ROMANIA Awards, special prize as a sign of honour, - Recognition and Appreciation for Scientific Creativity and Originality to Inventors
Green Power Industrial Limited	Solar Powered Air-conditioning System for Vehicles (SAV)	- Gold Medal (congratulations from the jury)
Kalloc Studios Asia Limited	Instant Preview Game Engine	- Gold Medal (congratulations from the jury)
Rehab-Robotics Company Limited	The Robotic Hand of Hope	- Grand Prix Du Salon International Des Invention De Genève - Gold Medal (congratulations from the jury) - Romanian Association for Nonconventional Technologies, Bucharest, Romania, Special Award for the Invention - Prix of the Federation of Cosmonautics of Russia - Mawhiba Award by the Secretary General of King Abdulaziz and his Companions, Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity "Mawhiba", Saudi Arabia

 

PolyU’s Projects
Principal Investigator/ Department	Project	Award
Dr Wong Ka-hing, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology	Preparation of Selenium Nanoparticles with Strong Anti-Tumor Activity Using Tiger Milk Mushroom	- Gold Medal - The Prize of the Chinese Delegation
Prof. Zheng Yongping Inter-disciplinary Division of Biomedical Engineering	3D Ultrasound Imaging for Spine Scoliosis	- Gold Medal - Mau Award for the best Educational Innovation from Mehr Alborz University in I.R.IRAN
Professor Marcus YUEN Chun-wah & Dr Joanne YIP Yiu-wan, Institute of Textiles and Clothing	Hygienic Socks with Antifungal Microcapsules for Patients with Tinea Pedis (Athlete's foot)	- Gold Medal - Special Prize – Gold Medal from Association “Russian House for International Scientific and Technological Cooperation”
Professor CHAU Foo-tim, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology; Dr Daniel SZE Man-yuen, Department of Health Technology and Informatics	A Novel QPAR Technique for Extracting Valuable Information from Herbal Medicine	- Gold Medal
Dr ZHENG Guang-ping Department of Mechanical Engineering	Lead-free Ferroelectrics Based Microrefrigerator	- Gold Medal
Dr Kinor JIANG Institute of Textiles and Clothing	Functional and Decorative Textile Products through Sputtering Technology	- Silver Medal - Special Award from Romanian Association for Nonconventional Technologies, Bucharest Romania
Professor YANG Hong-xing,Mr Chen Jian, Dr LU Lin, Department of Building and Services Engineering	A Novel inline Hydropower System for Power Generation from Water Pipelines	- Silver Medal

About Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTPC) is a statutory body set up by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

HKSTPC provides innovative and technology driven infrastructure and support facilities which include market focused clustered laboratory services enabling Hong Kong industries and services to be more competitive; it provides a full-service incubation programme for technology start-ups, and fosters partnerships and collaboration between industry and universities/applied research institutes through consulting, training and research programmes. HKSTPC offers advanced facilities and support services for high technology companies that include an IC Design Centre, an IC Development Support Centre, a Materials Analysis Laboratory, a Wireless Communications Test Laboratory, an Intellectual Property Servicing Centre, a Solar Energy Technology Support Centre and a Biotech Centre.

More information about HKSTPC is available at .www.hkstp.org。

About The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) is a university with a proud and illustrious history. Formerly known as the Hong Kong Polytechnic, the Institution assumed full university status in 1994. The University prides itself on its quality application-oriented academic programmes and research and close ties with business and industry. It is the largest publicly-funded tertiary institution in Hong Kong in terms of number of students, with 28,000 full-time and part-time students, and a vast pool of more than 300,000 graduates.

The University's teaching units are grouped under six faculties and two schools, namely, the Faculty of Applied Science and Textiles, Faculty of Business, Faculty of Construction and Environment, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, School of Design, and School of Hotel and Tourism Management.

PolyU website: www.polyu.edu.hk

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