The University of Birmingham Student Paper Competition 2023 was held on the 8th November at the Old School of Engineering Building of the University of Birmingham. Four competitors participated in this event and a total of 24 academic staff and students attended this event.

To start the event, Mr Zixuan Jia, the Vice-Chair of the UoB IEEE Student Branch, warmly welcomed all attendees and provided a concise overview of the event. He then proceeded to introduce the agenda and host the subsequent sessions.

In the SPC session, Ms. Jiaao Niu, a student in electrical power systems, gave the first presentation with the topic of “Multi-Objective Economic and Battery Energy Storage Optimization of Micro-grid using GWO Algorithm”. During this presentation, Jiaao described the application of Grey Wolf Optimization (GWO) algorithm, which could significantly reducing the overall cost of the micro-grid and enhanced BES capacity.

The second speaker, Mr Haoyue Zhang, is an undergraduate student in Electrical Engineering. His presentation focused on “Synergizing Machine Vision and Augmented Reality: Bridging Real and Virtual Worlds”. During this presentation, he explained in detail the machine vision and augmented reality. 

The third speaker, Mr Yi Wang, is a student in Mechenical Engineering. His presentation focused on “Electric Vehicle Longitudinal Dynamics Modelling and Related Environmental Factor Analysis”. During this presentation, he explained in detail the effect of the three parameters (rolling resistance, drag coefficient and windward area) on SOC.

The fourth speaker, Ms. Kelwalee Jutipsnya, is a student in Civil Engineering. Her presentation focused on “All Consequences Calculator of Roadworks and Streetworks Design Options”. During this presentation, she provided a comprehensive explanation of the roadworks and streetwork, detailing the functionality of the all consequences calculator.

Each presentation lasted for approximately 15 minutes, followed by a 10-minute Q&A session. The audience were actively participated in the Q&A session, fostering valuable discussions between the speakers and the audience, enhancing the overall benefit of the presentations.

At the end of the SPC session, the assessors provided valuable feedback on both the papers and the oral presentations. Following the assessment, the scores of the four speakers were closely contested.

Mr. Zixuan Jia and Mr. Shuailong Dai collected feedback from the judges and tallied the scores. As a result, the first-place winner was Ms. Kelwalee Jutipsnya secured the first-place position, Ms. Jiaao claim first-place-place spot, and Mr. Yi Wang and Mr. Haoyue Zhang earned the third and fourth places, respectively.

Finally, the winners‘ certificates as well as the gift cards were awarded to the winners by Dr Daniel Donaldson and Dr Weiqi Hua. And the event ended with a warm social networking with refreshments.

We would like to thank Dr Daniel Donaldson and Dr Weiqi Hua, the assessors of SPC, and Professor Xiao-Ping Zhang, the counselor of the UoB IEEE Student Branch, for their valuable comments and support. Meanwhile, thanks to the UoB IEEE Student Branch officers and members for their help and support in organizing this event. We sincerely thank the IEEE Region 8 (SAC) and IEEE PES UK&I Chapter for their sponsorship and support.

By Yixin Li

Secretary, UoB IEEE Student Branch