An APU team from the Asia Pacific Center of Robotics Engineering (APCORE) — Thanigai Kumaran Muthukumaran, Kiew Zheng Wei, and Kevin M. Das — won First Place at the 2ND INNOMD: Innovation Pitching Powered by PERANTIM 2025 with their project, Tremor-X, a self-stabilising spoon for individuals with neurological conditions.

A brilliant trio from the Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation’s (APU) Asia Pacific Center of Robotics Engineering (APCORE) has clinched First Place at the prestigious 2ND INNOMD: Innovation Pitching Powered by PERANTIM 2025. 

The 2ND INNOMD competition, a key component of the International Healthcare Week 2025 (IHW 2025), is a highly anticipated medical innovation pitching event designed to spotlight and accelerate the commercialisation of cutting-edge Malaysian medical device innovations.

This triumph marks a significant milestone for the young engineers and highlights APU’s commitment to fostering ground-breaking innovation.

The winning team, comprising third-year Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Mechatronic Engineering students Thanigai Kumaran Muthukumaran, Kiew Zheng Wei, and Kevin M. Das, impressed judges in the Healthcare & Medical Devices category. 

This was their inaugural pitching competition, making their first place win an incredibly rewarding experience.

“Our project, Tremor-X, is a self-stabilising spoon specifically engineered to assist individuals grappling with neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Essential Tremors (ET), stroke, and age-related motor impairments,” explained Kumaran, speaking on behalf of the team.

Tremor-X is a marvel of accessible engineering. It incorporates a compact motion-sensing unit (IMU) to precisely detect involuntary hand tremors. 

A sophisticated real-time motor control stabilisation mechanism then works to counteract these tremors, ensuring a steady utensil. 

Designed with the user in mind, Tremor-X boasts a rechargeable battery, portability, and cost-effectiveness, making it an ideal solution for daily use.

Real-world solutions and invaluable learnings

Kumaran believes their victory stemmed from addressing a genuine clinical need with a robust, technically sound solution that boasts strong potential for real-world impact. 

“The judges were particularly impressed with our prototype demonstration, our clear scalability plan, and how well we articulated the problem-solution-market fit,” he added.

Participating in the competition offered invaluable learning experiences. 

The team honed their ability to communicate complex technical ideas clearly, gained a deeper understanding of end-user needs to inform their design, and significantly improved their pitching, prototyping, and commercialisation strategies. 

Crucially, they also benefited from constructive feedback from leading industry and healthcare professionals.

“It was an amazing platform to showcase our hard work, connect with fellow innovators, and gain invaluable insights from professionals in the medical technology space,” Kumaran enthused, reflecting on the vibrant atmosphere at MITEC. 

“The energy was truly inspiring. It absolutely added immense value to our academic journey, allowing us to apply engineering principles in a real-world context and reinforcing our skills in embedded systems, control theory, and product development. It truly exceeded our expectations in terms of exposure and learning opportunities.”

The ambitious trio is already making plans to further refine Tremor-X and enter more innovation, healthcare, and start-up competitions. 

They are also actively exploring potential clinical testing and partnerships to propel their commercialisation journey and bring Tremor-X to those who need it most.

The team was mentored by APU’s Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering (SoE) and Head of the APCoRE, Ts Suresh Gobee, and the project itself was advised by APU’s Chief Innovation & Enterprise Officer, Professor Ir Eur Ing Ts Dr Vinesh Thiruchelvam.

“APU is now a strategic university partner with Perantim. This partnership will enhance collaboration with industry stakeholders and provide valuable real-world feedback on the biomedical engineering innovations developed within APCORE,” said Ts Suresh Gobee.