Some suggestions for Hong Kong’s innovation and technology (Part 1) (Dr. Yip Shing Fai)

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Contents

1. Assisting the development of smart mobility 2. Seizing the opportunities of low-altitude economy More articles by Dr. Ye Chenghui:Support EJ Tech

AuthorYe ChenghuiHe is the CEO of the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute and writes a column for EJ Tech.

Hong Kong’s innovation and technology development is in full swing. The SAR government is committed to consolidating Hong Kong’s position as an international innovation and technology center and stepping up efforts to promote new quality productivity. Hong Kong’s innovation and technology will shine in the near future. I have summarized some suggestions here, hoping to make some contribution to the future development of innovation and technology.

In recent years, the SAR government has launched a number of initiatives to support the construction of Hong Kong’s innovation and technology ecosystem. In order to promote the transformation and commercialization of scientific research results, application scenarios are very important. If the current regulatory laws and processes can be optimized, the pace of innovation and technology development should be accelerated.

1. Assisting the development of smart mobility

ASTRI has been committed to developing Internet of Vehicles technology to promote the safe implementation of CAV (connected autonomous driving) vehicles, but the progress of research and development is limited by Hong Kong’s road environment and application procedures. For example, road testing at the Hong Kong Science Park is currently limited to designated times and certain sections of the road, and Internet of Vehicles communication licenses need to be applied for every six months. These arrangements need to be improved.

I suggest that the government could follow the practices of the United Kingdom and Singapore and set up a special committee to focus on formulating long-term policies and planning roadmaps to ensure that relevant regulations and approval processes can keep pace with the times and be revised in a timely manner. At the same time, the standards of Hong Kong and the country on vehicle networking technology should also be consistent to help promote the synergy of cross-border cooperation and improve the cost-effectiveness of the R&D, production and commercialization process.

Autonomous driving will sooner or later become a major technological trend. We have already seen Baidu’s driverless travel service platform “Apollo Go” successfully landed manned tests in many cities in the mainland, and Wuhan plans to achieve city-wide coverage within this year. Therefore, if we can make plans for the next few years as early as possible, we can accelerate the application of scientific research results in a more systematic way.

Baidu’s Apollo Go has successfully carried out manned tests in many cities in the mainland, and Wuhan plans to achieve city-wide coverage within this year. (File photo)

2. Seizing the opportunities of low-altitude economy

The low-altitude economy is an emerging comprehensive economic form with promising development prospects. Guangdong Province is committed to promoting the low-altitude economy. Hong Kong can play its unique advantages as an international city and complement each other with cities in the province in the upper and middle reaches.

In terms of upstream research, Hong Kong International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world. The Civil Aviation Department and the Airport Authority have accumulated rich professional experience in the fields of air traffic control and navigation services. At the same time, ASTRI is developing advanced “synesthesia integration” networking technology to integrate perception capabilities into communication systems and build an efficient and collaborative network system. Combining mature air traffic control experience with innovative technologies can provide favorable conditions for Hong Kong to establish a regional low-altitude flight ground control center, and is expected to form a low-altitude traffic management system suitable for the “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area”.

Hong Kong International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world. The Civil Aviation Department and the Airport Authority have accumulated rich professional experience in the fields of air traffic control and navigation services. (Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Economic Times)

In terms of midstream services, Hong Kong has professional aircraft engineering maintenance personnel and advanced facilities, and the free port policy facilitates the import of key parts, providing broad development space for the maintenance and repair business of low-altitude aircraft. In addition, Hong Kong enjoys a good reputation in intellectual property protection and commercial secrets protection, and can also provide a full range of financial services for the low-altitude economy, which is conducive to attracting high-end technology companies to settle down and promote the continuous expansion of cross-sector industries in the low-altitude economy.

To accelerate the pace of development, it is recommended that the government set up an inter-departmental working group to comprehensively review the current regulations, optimize the drone management framework, and simplify the flight application process, especiallySmall Unmanned Aircraft Order (Cap. 448G)the weight limit for small drones should be relaxed from the current 25 kg. The Communications Authority should also review the existing spectrum allocation, reserve sufficient spectrum resources to support low-altitude economic activities, and conduct a feasibility study on the establishment of a “dedicated low-altitude communication network”. At the same time, the government should encourage scientific research institutions to develop auxiliary positioning technologies suitable for dense urban environments, such as visual navigation, laser radar, etc., to ensure accurate navigation of low-altitude aircraft in various environments.

The government may consider using outlying islands (such as Lamma Island, Mui Wo, and Cheung Chau) as pilot projects to carry out low-altitude economic activities such as air taxi services and express delivery, collect actual operating data, and provide a basis for future expansion to other areas. At the same time, when planning future development projects such as the northern metropolitan area and the artificial island of Kau Yi Chau, appropriate land can be reserved for drone take-off and landing and maintenance facilities.

The government may consider using outlying islands as pilot areas to carry out low-altitude economic activities such as air taxi services and express delivery. (Xinhua News Agency file photo)

In addition, Hong Kong can extend its experience to countries along the Belt and Road in the future, especially regions such as Southeast Asia and the Pacific island countries where there are many islands and the transportation network is not yet complete, to further enrich the application scenarios of the low-altitude economy and play the role of Hong Kong as a “super value-added person”, assisting local and mainland companies to export drone technology and products internationally, and using low-altitude technology to promote “facility connectivity”.

To be continued in the next issue.