不满前方司机不让路 超车又三度刹车 路霸副教授判坐牢

不满前方司机不让路 超车又三度刹车 路霸副教授判坐牢



被告王建良。（档案照）

不满马赛地司机不让路，南大副教授超车后，再紧急刹车三次，导致对方撞上。法官斥责，行为是公路路霸！

《新明日报》今年初报道，被告王建良（57岁）是南洋理工大学电子工程系副教授，他面对鲁莽行为危害他人安全、恶作剧与刑事暴力三项控状。受害人是60岁马赛地司机林永顺。

案情显示，前年3月16日傍晚5时50分左右，被告与受害人行驶在靠近裕廊西先驱北路，要进入泛岛高速公路的车道。当时交通拥挤，车辆行驶缓慢。

被告尝试进入车道时，受害人不肯让路，引起被告不满。他刻意加速，在路肩上超车，过后还在一分钟内紧急刹车两次。

随后，被告故意跟随受害人换车道，又突然第三次紧急刹车。这次，受害人来不及停车，撞上被告车子后方防撞杆。事后，被告要求看受害人的驾照，但对方要他依照车牌向陆交局查询，被告气愤难耐，对着受害人大嚷。当受害人回到车上，被告强行打开车门，强拉手臂。受害人推走被告的手，被告手机落地。

受害人过后上车锁门，被告发现无法开门，猛打窗户，之后也狂打引擎盖四次，导致凹陷，阻止受害人离开。受害人的马赛地维修费是4333元，虽然被告有意支付，但遭受害人拒绝。

庭上昨午（5月23日）播放两人车上的行车记录视频，身穿紫色上衣的被告情绪明显激动。法官斥责，被告违例加速又超车，车内外的失态行为构成公路暴力。（人名译音）

《新明日报》

NTU professor gets jail, fine and driving ban for road rage case, intends to appeal

NTU professor gets jail, fine and driving ban for road rage case, intends to appeal



A Nanyang Technological University (NTU) professor who collided with another driver before alighting and hitting the victim's car bonnet was sentenced to a week's jail and fined S$2,000 on Thursday (May 23).

Wang Jianliang, 57, was also given a driving ban of six months, which will take effect after he is released from prison.

The associate professor at NTU's School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering intends to appeal and has applied for a stay of execution.

Wang pleaded guilty to one count of a rash act endangering the safety of the other driver, 60-year-old Samuel Lim Yong Soon, and one charge of mischief for hitting Mr Lim's car.

A third charge of using criminal force on Mr Lim by grabbing his arm and pulling it was taken into consideration for sentencing.

The court heard that both men had been driving on a merging lane to enter the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) towards Changi Airport on the evening of Mar 16, 2017.

Traffic was heavy and moving slowly, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Sheryl Yeo. When Wang tried to filter into the merging lane, Mr Lim refused to give away, which "greatly annoyed" Wang.

He sped up intentionally and drove on the road shoulder in order to overtake Mr Lim's car. Video footage from both men's in-car cameras was played in court on Thursday.

With Mr Lim behind him, Wang abruptly jammed on the brakes of his car three times to show his displeasure at Mr Lim not giving way to him earlier.

On the third time, Mr Lim could not brake in time, and collided with Wang.

WANG HITS BONNET, DENTING IT

Both men stopped their cars in the second lane from the left of the five-lane PIE. Footage showed Wang and Mr Lim walking around the cars, gesturing at each other and taking photos of each other's vehicles.

Wang demanded to see Mr Lim's driving licence, but the latter refused and told him to check with the Land Transport Authority using the vehicle's registration number that he had photographed.

Wang flew into a rage and shouted at Mr Lim, who decided to return to his own vehicle. Wang tried to stop him but Mr Lim pushed him away, causing Wang to drop his phone.

As Mr Lim tried to drive away, Wang walked to the front of Mr Lim's car and hit the bonnet four times with force, causing dents that cost Mr Lim more than S$4,000 to repair.



The prosecutor sought a week's jail, six months' disqualification from driving, and a high fine, saying that Wang was "deliberate and persistent in his conduct", which occurred during peak hour on the PIE.

Wang had also been convicted in April 2007 for spitting at another person, the court was told.

His defence lawyer Eugene Thuraisingam said the traffic was moving slowly at the time and there was "no chance of anyone being injured, and no one was injured".

"He's now saying sorry and he won't do it again," said Mr Thuraisingam, pointing out that his client had offered to pay the victim for the damages to his vehicle, but the victim had declined the money.

Referring to the spitting incident, District Judge Christopher Tan said the road rage case was not Wang's first act of aggression. He added that there was a "high degree of danger" in this case, with the packed traffic on the highway.

"The accused accelerated illegally on a road shoulder and cut into the victim's path," he said. "After that, he jammed on the brakes not once, not twice, but three times.

"Looking at the video, the accused's behaviour when he got out of the car was as belligerent as it was while he was behind the wheel.

"I am left in no doubt that this is a road rage case and the principle of general deterrence and safety of our road users is called into play."

An NTU spokesperson said on Thursday that Wang has been suspended, pending the outcome of the university's disciplinary proceedings.

"NTU expects all members of its community to represent the highest ethical standards and to comply with the law at all times."

Source: CNA/l

NTU scientists invent hand-held device that can measure water quality

NTU scientists invent hand-held device that can measure water quality

Marrying biology with engineering, scientists at a local university have drawn inspiration from a process naturally occurring in the human body to come up with a hand-held device that measures water quality.

When heavy metals such as lead, mercury and arsenic are found in the blood, a natural substance known as the chelating agent is activated to identify the metals and bind to them.

The agent prevents the metal from interacting with other substances and the metal is then excreted from the body. Drinking water contaminated by heavy metals is harmful to health.

Two scientists from Nanyang Technological University's School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering replicated the process in the portable device.

They added a chelating agent into the device's sensor so that the agent will bind with the dissolved metals to find out the amount of trace metals in drinking water samples.

Only a few drops of water are needed for the test, which takes about five minutes to produce results.

"Using a chelating agent in the device ensures that its sensor is as sensitive in detecting heavy metals as the body's natural defence mechanism against metal poisoning," said Associate Professor Yong Ken-Tye, one of the two scientists. He was speaking to the media about the device at NTU on Monday (April 15).

The invention, which was published in scientific journal ACS Sensors last year, was funded by NTU's Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute and NTUitive, the university's innovation and enterprise company.

Given serious water pollution in parts of Asia such as China, Pakistan and India, the scientists are aiming to make the device commercially available in about two years.

"In remote areas, villagers can use the device to monitor the quality of water collected from the wells,"said Prof Yong.

It costs between $2,000 and $3,000 to build the device in the lab. With mass manufacturing, Prof Yong reckoned the price of each device could drop to between $800 and $1,000.

There are similar devices currently in the market, but as the water sample must be mixed with a buffer solution first, the test is more time-consuming.

Their sensors must also be used within 30 minutes because of sensitivity to air, heat and humidity.

In contrast, the NTU device can withstand high temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius.

It can also identify 24 types of metal contaminants, double the number of heavy metals that commercially available devices can detect.

The NTU team,which took three years to come up the device, spun off a company last year to commercialise the device.

The company, Waterply, is currently working with a firm in China to shrink the device to the size of a smartphone and to also include more functions such as measuring pH levels and soil moisture.

The scientists are also developing an app to store data from lakes and rivers in parts of Asia so that countries can track the changes in water quality over time.

"For instance, officials in India can test the water quality of a pond during the monsoon season," said Prof Yong.

"The data collected in the app will show a trend in the amount of heavy metals in the water body over the months. The trend will help them predict the water quality over the next few months and for the next monsoon season.

~News courtesy of Straits Times~

Award-winning NTU prof admits to shoplifting

Award-winning NTU prof admits to shoplifting

An award-winning professor at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) pleaded guilty to shoplifting yesterday after he was caught pilfering repeatedly from service stations he frequents.

The court heard that Er Meng Joo, 55, who is a professor in electrical and electronic engineering, shoplifted items worth $453.35 between Jan 9 and 29 last year.

Er, an elected member of NTU's advisory board from 2009 to 2012, stole items such as air fresheners and toiletries from two NTUC FairPrice outlets at Esso service stations in Bukit Timah and Dunearn roads. Er pleaded guilty to two counts of shoplifting items worth $225.15, with five other shoplifting charges involving items worth $228.20 taken into consideration during sentencing.

He was caught after Mr Lam Wing Kin, who manages both stores, reviewed closed-circuit television footage between Jan 28 and 29 last year and noticed Er behaving suspiciously while inside the Dunearn Road outlet.

One clip from Jan 27 showed Er taking some items, including a wall charger and two bottles of mouthwash, and leaving without paying.

A Jan 29 clip showed Er stealing items such as a power bank, two air fresheners and a micro USB cable.

Realising Er was a regular customer, Mr Lam tracked down his name and his car registration details. He lodged a police report on Jan 30 last year and Er admitted to the offences when police turned up at his home.

Yesterday, the court called for a report to assess his suitability for a mandatory treatment order (MTO).

An MTO is for offenders who suffer from psychiatric conditions. They must go for psychiatric treatment in lieu of jail time.

Er will be back in court on May 22.

Er, who has earned many accolades, served as a member of the university's Senate Steering Committee from 2010 to 2012, according to details NTU posted on its website.

He clinched the Most Zealous Professor of the Year Award in 2009 and five years later, the Outstanding Mentor Award.

Er has also won the Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES) Prestigious Engineering Achievement Award twice, in 2011 and 2015.

He also received the IES Prestigious Publication Award in Theory in 2001.

For each count of shoplifting, he can be jailed for up to three years and fined.

~News courtesy of Straits Times~

南大研发出快充长寿电池

南大研发出快充长寿电池


南大副教授陈晓东手中握着的，就是特制的二氧化钛胶状物，能够加快电池充电速度并延长电池寿命。（萧紫薇摄）

新加坡南洋理工大学科研人员研发出可以更快充电，而且延长电池寿命的方法。新科技让一般电池在两分钟内就能充电至70％，电池寿命也从原本的两年延长至20年。

厂商只需在制造一般的锂电子电池（lithium-ion battery）时，采用南大人员发明并获得专利的胶状物，就能达到这个效果。

目前，市面上的手机、平板电脑和电动车所使用的锂电子电池，平均需两小时才能充电满100％，充电和耗电的循环约500次，也就是说，若用户每天一次把电池充满电能，电池的平均寿命近1年半。

相比之下，采用新技术的锂电子电池充电速度更快，2分钟内就能充电至70％，充电满100％则不到1小时。电池的充电和耗电循环可以多达1万次，若用户每天充电1次，相等于电池的寿命可达至少20年。

领导研究的南大材料科学与工程学院副教授陈晓东博士受访时说，这项科技有望为各类电子商品的用户带来便利，尤其是电动车车主。

陈博士举例，三菱汽车今年推出的新款i-MiEV电动车，可以在30分钟内充电至80％，若改用南大研发的新技术，可在一般汽车添油的时间内，完成电动车局部充电的过程。

这款电动车的电池平均寿命约8年，替换电池的费用介于1万3000至1万8000元，若采用可以用上20年的新款电池，车主可以节省至少一次替换电池的费用。

~我报~

Way to help electric cars drive further on single charge

NTU scientists find way to help electric cars drive further on single charge


Mr Satheesh Kumar, a research scholar at NTU's Energy Research Institute (Eri@n), came up with the design for a 2-in-1 electric motor that can boost an electric vehicle's range by 15 to 20 per cent. -- PHOTO: ST FILE

Scientists in Singapore have found a way to reduce an electric car driver's worst fear: being stranded without power or a socket in sight.

Nanyang Technological University (NTU) scientists came up with an award-winning, 2-in-1 electric motor that can boost an electric vehicle's range by 15 to 20 per cent.

The invention, a collaboration with the German Aerospace Centre, combines the vehicle's electric motor and air-conditioning compressor, which are traditionally two separate units.

This opens up space in the vehicle for manufacturers to add an auxiliary battery.

~News courtesy of Straits Times~

Singapore’s first student-built space satellite

Little red dot in space with Singapore’s first student-built space satellite

Orbiting some 600km above Earth is Singapore’s very first student-built satellite, the VELOX-PII, created from scratch by students at Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

The student-built VELOX-PII satellite was launched on board a Russian RS-20B rocket from the Yasny Launch Base in Russia, just before 11pm (Singapore time) on Thursday 21 November, and began transmitting data some 24 hours later, indicating that it was fully operational.

While the VELOX-PII is keeping some students busy at a new NTU- built ground station on campus to control and monitor the satellite, others are busy with the VELOX-I, a 4.5kg nano-satellite undergoing its final stages of testing in preparation for launch early next year.

All this is part of NTU’s Undergraduate Satellite Programme, which involves second year engineering students onwards in developing and building real satellites.

The programme started in 2009 and managed by NTU’s Satellite Research Centre, is aimed at training highly-skilled engineers to support Singapore’s space industry.

“The successful launch of VELOX-PII marks yet another momentous chapter in our journey into space,” said Associate Professor Low Kay Soon, Director of NTU’s Satellite Research Centre.

“Our pipeline of bigger projects will not only train our future students for a career in the aerospace and space industry, it will also further strengthen NTU as an exceptional institution of excellence in satellite technology as well as realise Singapore’s ambitions to make a global mark in the space industry.”

The cubed VELOX-PII satellite that weighs 1.33kg will be in operation for the next 12 months, running tests such as using a fine sun sensor to determine a satellite’s orientation with respect to the Sun and maximizing solar energy harvest with a power management system.

The satellite technology being tested covers hardware and software built in-house by students as part of hands-on, multi-disciplinary and team-based projects.

“We are confident that this remarkable satellite project will spur greater academic interest in engineering research and development among undergraduates” said NTU President, Professor Bertil Andersson, who went on to describe the project as “a fantastic showcase of NTU’s strengths in research and engineering which augurs well for the future of Singapore’s aerospace and space industry.”

He added that the VELOX-PII proves that NTU’s engineering students have the aptitude and attitude to successfully apply what they have learnt in the sophisticated area of satellite-building, and that the university is “committed to push the frontiers in satellite research and further accelerate the commercialisation of made-in-NTU satellite technologies.”

The first university in Singapore to develop an undergraduate satellite programme, NTU plans to develop at least four nano-satellites in its 10-year road map.

This is NTU’s second satellite in space, following the maiden launch in April 2011 of the X-SAT, Singapore’s first locally-built satellite developed by the university and DSO National Laboratories.

In addition to operating the X-SAT which is currently in space, NTU’s Satellite Research Centre has also embarked on building the Singapore’s first weather satellite and Singapore’s first commercial remote sensing satellite, TeLEOS-1.

~News courtesy of Channel Newsasia~

南大师生研发大型触屏转换装置

南大师生研发大型触屏转换装置


在普通电视机上安装这片触屏，再也无需花上万元买触屏式智能电视机。（摄影／曾道明）

南洋理工大学的师生，研制出一种价格便宜的大型触摸屏幕转换装置，只要把它安装在50寸左右的平面上，一个普通的平面就可以被转换成用手指操控的触摸屏。例如：老师在普通的墙面装上装置后，就可把墙面当做有触屏的白板来授课。普通的桌面也可用来玩电脑游戏。

系统是通过平面上的多个声波感应器（acoustic sensors）和摄像机，来确定感应物的确切位置。这是全世界首个通过声波感应器及摄像机来定位的装置。

与目前市面上的智能手机或电视一样，系统允许人们用手指在屏幕上拖拽，或用2根手指进行多点触控（Multi-Touch），以放大或缩小屏幕上的内容。

由于制造这个装置所需的原料，价格较低，推出市场后零售价估计也只是数百元，如果在现有的电子产品屏幕上安装这个装置，将比直接购买具备触屏的电子产品来得便宜许多。

市面上售卖的55寸普通电视机，售价约2000元，但触屏式智能电视机可以卖到上万元。

这个技术目前较适用于50寸左右的大屏幕，手机屏幕等小过32寸的产品则不适用，再加上市面上的小型触屏价格不算贵，因此，研发团队瞄准的是大型屏幕市场。

团队目前正努力推广这项发明，争取在商场的电子展板上，应用这项技术。

公众预计在1年半至4年内，可在市面上买到这款产品。

这项装置由南大电机与电子工程学院助理教授邝伟雄，带领5名学生研发。他们前后花了5年时间才完成目前这个产品雏形。

～以上新闻转载自OMY～