Have you ever scratched your head in front of recycling bins with different colours, not knowing which colour you should aim your empty Coca Cola can at? Automatic Material Sorter (AMS), which won a superior prize at the 22nd “Feng Ru Cup” College Students Academic and Scientific Works Competition and a fourth prize at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) Greater China Region Design Competition 2012, promises to end that confusion once and for all.

Designed by students from UM’s Faculty of Science and Technology (FST), AMS stood out from over a thousand entries for its simplicity, practicality, high efficiency, and potential in energy conservation and environmental protection. It can accurately identify bottles and cans made of different materials and quickly sort them into where they belong.

Winning students said that they were very excited that these two large design competitions gave them a chance to turn their design ideas into something tangible and they treasured the opportunity to learn from the other contestants. They disclosed that during the design process, they devoted a lot of time and effort into making the recycling process and the circuit control system as simple and practical as possible. They also expressed gratitude to Prof. Tam Lap Mou, Prof. Wong Pak Kin, Dr. Lo Kin Ho, Dr. Xie Zhengchao and Dr. Wong Seng Fat for their great support and guidance that helped overcome the numerous challenges in the process.

Contesting teams came from around the world, including the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education, the City University of Hong Kong, Guangzhou College of South China University of Technology, Kogakuin University, Ritsumeikan University and Taiwan Yunlin University of Science and Technology.

澳門大學科技學院學生的環保系統設計“智能瓶罐回收分類系統”，以節能、高效等優點從逾千件作品中脫穎而出，奪得第二十二屆“馮如杯”學生學術科技作品競賽和創意大賽的優勝獎，並在第一屆英國機械工程學會大中華區設計比賽中榮獲第四名。參賽隊伍來自世界各地，當中包括香港大學、香港中文大學、香港理工大學、香港專業教育學院、香港城市大學、華南理工大學廣州學院、日立立命館大學、日本工學院大學、台灣雲林科技大學等。

得獎作品由機電工程系的四名學生叢姍、黎健祺、謝遠鋒及譚鵬廉所設計及製造，在該系導師譚立武、王百鍵、羅健豪、謝正超及黃承發的指導下完成。“智能瓶罐回收分類系統”以節能、高效、簡約而實用的優點，結合環保的概念設計而成，能準確地判別不同物料的瓶子及罐子，把它們快速分類到所屬類型的收集區，有助環保產業的發展。

透過此兩項大型設計比賽，學生把設計意念製成實物，並與世界各地的工程系大學生互相分享及切磋。得奬學生均表示，在設計“智能瓶罐回收分類系統”時須考慮回收物料過程和電路控制系統的簡單化及實用性。在研究過程中，幸好得到科技學院的支持及機電工程系各老師的悉心指導，才能逐一擊破難題。此外，參加比賽能加強與各地大學生的交流，獲益良多。

Winning students and their professors
指導教授與得獎學生合照