KANGAR: A 12-year-old pupil from Perlis has bagged the gold medal in the World Invention Creativity Contest (WICC) held in South Korea recently.
Muhammad Danish Syafi Mohd Azdikirana from SK Putra, won the competition through his invention, the ‘Solar Cat Feeder’.
Assisted by his sister Nur Marissa Maisara Mohd Azdikirana and his friend Amirul Haziq Mohd Shamsudin, both 11, he invented the product as a solution for cat owners especially when they are out of town.
With the Solar Cat Feeder, the cat owners no longer have to worry about their pets’ wellbeing or spend money on pet hostels if they have to leave their feline friend for days.
“The idea for the solar cat feeder was mooted by my father when my sister and I tried to find the best way to make sure our eight cats get enough food whenever we are not at home.
“Using sensory movement, the food box will dispense cat food at a fixed amount when it detects a cat approaching.
“It has a five-minute waiting period before dispensing another round of food if the same or another cat gets close to the box,” he said.
The Year Six pupil and his teacher flew to Seoul for the competition, which ran from July 20 until 30, on a RM10,000 sponsorship from Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP).
Danish qualified for the competition after his 'Solar Cat Feeder' won first place in the Perlis Engineering Research & Learning Innovation Symposium (PERLIS) 3.0 two months ago.
WICC, organised by the Korea University Invention Association (KUIA), serves as a research platform to enhance innovation and creativity skills among students worldwide.