The impact of COVID-19 on industries in Taiwan varied, some were hit harder than others. In the post-pandemic era, Taiwan’s industries can stand out faster from global competition only by changing existing thinking and practices. The 2021 Taiwan Innotech Expo, organized by more than 10 units including the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), was held from October 14th to 16th at the Taipei World Trade Center Hall 1 and online simultaneously. More than thousand outstanding research results were exhibited to provide research and technology support to the industries to help companies transform and create new situations and opportunities in the market.
Out of the three themed pavilions of the 2021 Taiwan Innotech Expo, the Innovation Pilot Pavilion showcased innovative technologies covering six areas: smart manufacturing, discovering technology treasures, digital transformation, smart living, advanced healthcare, national defense and aerospace. Exciting events such as conferences and technology presentations were also planned. Innovative Applications of Unmanned Vehicles in the Post-Epidemic Era Conference, which is under the charge of the Department of Industrial Technology, MOEA, focused on social needs and technological progress to drive automation and unmanned smart transportation. Unmanned vehicles have become the focus of global development for sea, land, and air, providing companies in Taiwan with the opportunity to widely utilize unmanned vehicles and speed up industrialization in the post-pandemic era.
Dr. Kuang-Shine Yang, Assistant Chief of MIRDC, was invited and participated in the conference. He shared technological achievements and R&D applications related to MIRDC’s cultivation of unmanned vehicles through technology projects. In terms of applications for marine, introducing underwater unmanned vehicles for non-destructive inspection & testing and seabed structure and topography analysis is conducive to the development of wind energy. For land applications, utilizing all-direction automated guided vehicle technology for disinfection for pandemic prevention and warehouse transportation keeps pandemic prevention personnel safe and improves the productivity of production lines. Last, for air applications, unmanned aerial vehicle technology for inspecting wind turbines and power in mountain areas not only makes inspections more efficient, but also ensures the stable supply of power. Moreover, related research and development results were recognized globally by the R&D 100 Awards or Edison Awards.
Dr. Chiu-Feng Lin, President of MIRDC, said that seven technologies, including all-direction automated guided vehicle and unmanned aerial vehicle technologies, were showcased at the 2021 Taiwan Innotech Expo in 2021. In addition to continuing to strengthen R&D capabilities for unmanned vehicles, MIRDC will actively drive industry-academia-research partnerships, utilize the function and value of the hub to systematically integrate R&D for innovative technologies and industrial chains, and actively strengthen the development of patents with the support of MOEA and in collaboration with the 5+2 industry innovation plan in the future, hoping to provide the industry with total solutions to help the industry advance towards high-value development and increase added value.