Dr Shehab Ahmed, associate professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Texas A&M University at Qatar, won the Best Research Project Award for his work on power electronics while the Best Innovation Award was presented to Dr Adnan Abu-Dayya, executive director and CEO of Qatar Mobility Innovations Centre (QMIC) for Masarak- iTraffic platform.
The awards were presented by HE Sheikha Hind bint Hamad al-Thani, chief executive officer and vice-chairperson of Qatar Foundation.
Funded by Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), Dr Ahmed’s project focuses on the development of power electronics and systems for the integration of renewable energy into the power grid.
Masarak- iTraffic is an intelligent traffic monitoring and navigation application developed and deployed by QMIC in partnership with the Ministry of Municipality and Planning. QMIC, the first independent innovations centre in the region, is located at Qatar Science and Technology Park.
Dr Ahmed described the award as a 'great recognition for the hard work of the team' and said he is keen on translating the research to results. "So I have started my company at the Qatar Science and Technology Park. We have been able to get some field tests done.”
Dr Abu-Dayya, pointed out that QMIC team had developed the only intelligent platform in the country and the region. “We are focusing on intelligent mobility, traffic navigation and road safety. This platform has been available commercially. Since 2013, this has been adopted increasingly by government entities, private enterprises, and we have also delivered it to commuters through our mobile applications. So our iTraffic applications serve as the guide on the road.”
ARC’16, which concludes today, will feature a series of newly incorporated events. The announcement of the QNRF Funding Programme outcomes and the Path Towards Personalised Medicine, the ARC’16 Awards recognising the Best Student Poster Presentations, Regular Poster Presentations and Best Research Presentation in the fields of Energy and Environment, Computing and Information Technology, Health and Social Sciences and Arts and Humanities are to be made today.
