We bring you the exciting news of the week!💌
In this card news, the field practice he participated in, while in school led to the start-up, and now the news of CEO Kwon Ryoon-han (Department of Computer Engineering / Class of 13), who won the Minister of Education Award as the representative of Pepeo Talk Co., Ltd. We have news from Myungseol Choi (Class of 18) and Ram Lee Ha (Class of 17) of the Department of Design!
▶ Growing from a field trainee to a representative of an institution of merit in field practice
PetpeoTalk Co., Ltd., a start-up founded by CEO Kwon Ryun-hwan, recently received a commendation from the Minister of Education for their participation in the Field Training Semester program. This program is a representative industry-university cooperation initiative that gives students the opportunity to explore careers that match their aptitude and nurtures talents that meet the needs of companies. Through this program, graduate students can utilize their field capabilities and participating companies can utilize excellent human resources.
PetpeoTalk is a company established with the goal of improving the lives of companions and companion animals through technology. The company provides a service that delivers companion animal data to caregivers. Specifically, it films a companion animal with CCTV, analyzes the video with artificial intelligence, recognizes the behavior of the companion animal, and provides the analyzed data. Since the establishment of the corporation in 2019, PetpeoTalk Co., Ltd. has hired field trainees every semester until November 2022, and a total of 21 students conducted field practice.
The reason CEO Kwon Ryun-hwan encourages on-the-job training is related to his own career. He also participated in field practice twice while in school to build up his practical skills, and that experience influenced his entrepreneurship. He conducted overseas field practice in 2017 and domestic field practice in 2018. He said, “I applied for field training because I wanted to gain practical experience while in school. At the time, I was interested in the knowledge of my major, but I was not confident in my skills. However, through field practice, I was able to participate in actual projects and gain confidence in my skills.”
The first field trip was held on a farm in the United States. It was a project using drones and IoT. Sensors were attached to drones to collect various data such as soil temperature, humidity, and weather from IoT devices installed throughout the farm. CEO Kwon said, “At the time, we developed a data collection node (Node, a passage that transmits data in the data communication network) from the sensor. When the drone gets close to the node, it is made to provide data remotely. As a result, it was like learning the technology to remotely transmit data by detecting the condition of a companion animal, an item that was founded. Also, it was meaningful to meet the co-founders in the first field practice.”
In conclusion, PetpeoTalk Co., Ltd. is a start-up that aims to improve the lives of companions and companion animals through technology. The company participated in the Field Training Semester program, which is a representative industry-university cooperation initiative that gives students the opportunity to explore careers that match their aptitude and nurtures talents that meet the needs of companies. Through this program, the company was able to hire field trainees every semester until November 2022, and a total of 21 students conducted field practice. CEO Kwon Ryun-hwan encourages on-the-job training as he also participated in field practice twice while in school to build up his practical skills and that experience influenced his entrepreneurship.
▶ Capstone design ideas realized through industry-academia cooperation
The Department of Visual Design at a university is currently working on an industry-university cooperation project called ‘Above the Sea’. The project was proposed by student Myung-seol Choi (Class of 18) and aims to create a tourism program for the fishing village of Seonjaedo Island, Incheon. The project, which is being developed under the brand name ‘Up to the Sea’, focuses on marine healing and includes activities such as meditation on the beach, yoga, Nordic walking, and seawater foot baths.
Choi Myung-seol came up with the idea for the project while visiting Seonjaedo Island and observing the seaway that opens up at low tide. He wanted to capture the feeling of walking on the seaside and incorporate it into the brand. Through interviews with the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries and fishing village officials, programs for the project were planned. The brand is expected to be implemented in 2023 as part of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries’ fishing village advancement project, which includes four themes. Before it is officially launched, a pilot operation was conducted in October to identify any difficulties that may arise.
In addition to the ‘Above the Sea’ project, the Department of Visual Design is also working on another industry-university cooperation project called ‘Coffee Jangsa’. The project was proposed by student Lee Ha-ram (Class of 17) and involves setting up a cafe in Jangjang. The cafe, which is located in Sokcho, Gangwon-do, aims to revitalize the fishing village by making use of the abandoned space in the market. Lee Ha-ram incorporated the name of the market place into the cafe and proposed to display the life of a fisherman as a work of art for visitors to experience. The project was included in the “Fishing Village New Deal 300” project and opened in December after a year of development.
Both projects aim to revitalize fishing villages and provide new tourism experiences for visitors. The ‘Above the Sea’ project focuses on marine healing while ‘Coffee Jangsa’ aims to bring life back to a declining fishing village. Both projects were developed through industry-university cooperation, with students participating in the planning and implementation process. This not only provides valuable experience for students but also brings new ideas and solutions to the industry.
Photos byungseong jeong.