SmartGrow @ CyNex: Cultivating Innovation Through Student-Led IoT Projects

Built in 7 weeks by 76 students, SmartGrow fused IoT innovation with agile teamwork and software assurance practices.

Abstract

As part of the course WIF3002: Software Process and Quality (Semester 2, 2024/2025) led by Dr. Raja Jamilah Raja Yusof, 76 third-year Software Engineering students from Universiti Malaya embarked on an ambitious journey to design, develop, and deploy SmartGrow—a modular IoT system for automating the care of home-grown plants. Organized into 16 coordinated groups, the students delivered a high-fidelity working prototype within just seven weeks, complete with integrated sensors, ESP32 microcontrollers, and real-time mobile and web dashboards. Their system not only functioned technically but also sustained real chili and eggplant plants—a living outcome of teamwork and engineering innovation.