NTU 90 Event: NTU-UIUC Forum on the Future of Smart Transportation

During September 20-21, NTU and one of its partner universities, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), cohosted a forum themed “Smart Mobility, Autonomous and Connected Vehicles” on NTU’s main campus. This forum was one of the activities in celebration of NTU’s 90th anniversary. At the forum, UIUC and NTU professors presented their latest research findings and developments of smart transportation, exchanged their visions of future transportation and mobility, and urged for further collaborations.

The forum was opened by NTU Executive Vice President for University Affairs Ta-Te Lin (林達德), followed by addresses from Deputy Vice President for International Affairs J. Bruce H. Shyu (徐澔德) and Forum Chair Jia-Yush Yen (顏家鈺). Subsequently, Forum Co-Chair Imad Al-Qadi from UIUC read a letter of greetings from UIUC Vice Provost for International Affairs and Global Strategies, Prof. Reitumetse Obakeng Mabokela, to the audience.

After the opening, Prof. Al-Qadi introduced UIUC’s latest research programs on autonomous vehicles and smart transportation. These include the launch of the Smart Transportation Infrastructure Initiative and the establishment of the largest autonomous vehicle testing field (270 acres) in the United States, which used to be an air force base in Illinois. The field will provide continuous testing for large vehicles, allowing tractor-trailers to travel continuously at 70 miles per hour without speed reduction. Prof. Al-Qadi expected to see more international exchanges and collaborations between NTU and UIUC on the studies of autonomous vehicles and smart transportation.

This forum was attended by nine eminent UIUC speakers specializing in various areas, including civil engineering (Profs. Imad Al-Qadi and Yanfeng Ouyang), mechanical engineering (Profs. Geir Dullerud, Naira Hovakimyan, and Srinivasa Salapaka), computer science (Profs. Sheldon Jacobson and Alex Kirlik), aeronautics and astronautics (Prof. Cedric Langbort), and industrial engineering (Prof. Richard Sowers). The speakers from NTU were Profs. Kuei-Yuan Chan (詹魁元), Han-Pang Huang (黃漢邦), Pei-Chun Lin (林沛群), and Jung-Ho Cheng (鄭榮和) from the Department of Mechanical Engineering; Prof. Feng-Li Lian (連豊力) from the Department of Electrical Engineering; Associate Prof. Hsin-Mu (Michael) Tsai (蔡欣穆) from the Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering; and Prof. Jen-Hwa Guo (郭振華) from the Department of Engineering Science and Ocean Engineering.

The 16 speeches covered a wide array of topics ranging from land, sea, and air unmanned vehicles to smart transportation, which familiarized the audience with the latest solutions and findings that are both practical and forward-looking. The forum was organized primarily by NTU’s Department of Engineering, with joint financial support from the Office of International Affairs and the College of Engineering. The forum was chaired by former Dean of Engineering Jia-Yush Yen and Director Mei-Jiau Huang (黃美嬌) of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, while Associate Prof. Kang Li (李綱) and Prof. Jung-Ho Cheng served as session chairs.