ITB Students Meet Vice President Gibran, Presenting Smoke-Detecting Drones
Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka received an audience with five teams of students and lecturers from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) at the Vice Presidential Palace, Jakarta, on Wednesday (09/09/2026). During the meeting, the Vice President expressed his appreciation for various student innovations that have the potential to address real-world needs across multiple sectors.
One innovation that received particular attention from the Vice President was Eaglesense, a smoke-detecting drone technology. This technology has the potential to be developed as an environmental monitoring instrument, including for detecting changes in air quality caused by smoke exposure, which can serve as an early indicator of forest and land fires.
Representing the Eaglesense team, Jhon Chritostomo Fausta Silalahi explained that the innovation integrates drones with a sensor kitbox equipped with several devices to measure air quality. The data obtained is then processed and sent directly to a database system to be displayed via a monitoring dashboard.
“The sensor kitbox contains five different sensors to measure air quality. The results are processed by a Raspberry Pi, which then sends the data in a specific format via 4G to a database, which is then displayed through a dashboard,” he explained.
The use of drones allows for air quality data collection across wider and more difficult-to-reach areas, while the sensor system and dashboard provide a faster overview of air quality conditions. Further development of this technology is expected to strengthen environmental monitoring capabilities and support early detection efforts for potential forest and land fires.
In addition to Eaglesense, four other teams presented innovations developed from various scientific fields. Intv-ML utilises machine learning to determine the optimal oil wells for well intervention. Meanwhile, Concorde Systems has developed a computerised management system for the maintenance of heavy assets and equipment.
Augie Widyotriatmo, a lecturer in Engineering Physics at the ITB Faculty of Industrial Technology, stated that the Vice President appreciated the various innovations presented by the students.
According to Augie, Vice President Gibran also encouraged that the innovations developed by students should not stop at the research and development stage, but should be continuously improved to ensure opportunities for wider utilisation.
“The Vice President’s direction is to continue development, and he will continue to provide support by granting access to relevant industries,” he added.