Sunway Library Enters a New Chapter in Technology with a High-tech Shelf-reading Robot

The Tun Hussein Onn Sunway Library is widely regarded as the first Malaysian library to implement Facial Recognition for entry/exit back in 2019 to assist its student community with easy access day and night. Now the pioneering library team has launched its very own high-tech technology shelf-reading robot, to further improve library operations and enhance the user experience.

The inspiration behind inventing a library shelf-reading robot was to automate and expedite the time-consuming manual checking of the accuracy and organisation of the library bookshelves. The ground-breaking idea was to create a robot that could efficiently scan library shelves, and detect misplaced or misfiled books, whilst allowing librarians to focus on customer-facing initiatives that will continue to improve the overall efficiency of the library operation, much to the convenience and benefit of its significant student community.

Dato’ Lee Weng Keng (Dr), CEO/Advisor, Education Division of the Sunway Group shared, “To support and encourage our students and staff in creative works involving robotics, we have designed, built and installed a state-of-the-art robot for our library. Developed and built by our own School of Engineering and Technology, this new Shelf-reading Robot will expand our network of touch-points for students and staff while boosting library service efficiency and experience.”

Stocktakes, that identify books that need to be replaced or re-ordered can now be carried out more frequently, thereby maintaining the library’s full book collection, one which also includes a unique Harvard Collection whilst also increasing book availability. The shelf-reading robot can also be used to improve quality control issues as it will automatically identify missing or misplaced items.

The Research Centre for Human-Machine Collaboration (HUMAC) at Sunway University are the forward-thinking inventor of the robot for the Tun Hussein Onn Sunway Library. “HUMAC Research Centre is proud to present the library robot to the library users by developing and applying effective, innovative technologies and solutions to address real-world needs. The centre aims to be a prime research centre linked with industry and Centre of Excellence for world-class research in Human-Machine Collaboration，” said Professor Yap Kian Meng, Head of HUMAC.

Whilst some institutions have bought automated library assistance off the shelf, Sunway University took the brave move to create its very own robot, bespoke to the needs of the library and more importantly help meet the needs of the student. And this new dynamic state-of-the-art addition to the campus community is just the beginning of the journey into artificial intelligence at Sunway.

“Kudos to Professor Yap and his team at HUMAC. It is great to have our very own robot created particularly for our library. This is a step towards revolutionising our library operations, enabling more efficient and accurate quality control. By leveraging on this high-tech solution to handle routine tasks and automate processes, the library team can better focus on the human side of their work which is fostering meaningful connections with our students,” said Professor Dato’ Elizabeth Lee, CEO, Sunway Education Group.

To the delight of students and much to the reassurance of parents and the greater commercial world, Sunway University has implemented Facial Recognition Procedures which must be confirmed as accurate before entering the exam hall. This new measure has been implemented to protect all students taking exams, maintain the integrity of the result and guarantee the examination process is fair to all involved.

This project was driven by postgraduate and undergraduate students: Herrick Yeap Han Lin, Chew Zhe Zhi, Tay Jun Sheng, Lilian Ung Wei Fang, Brandon Choo Wee Kheong, Chua Yong Qi, Low Mei Jun. The students were guided by Ir Dr Steven Eu Kok Seng, Prof Yap Kian Ming, Dr Richard Wong Teck Ken, Prof Lau Sian Lun, with Mr Tony Lee, as the ICT Advisor.

This was published in Business Today, 19 April 2023.