On the occasion of the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 41st National Teachers’ Day, and to thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, solidly advance the construction of an educationally strong nation, and actively respond to the call to promote the spirit of educators in the new era, the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology specially showcased teachers who received university-level or higher awards and honors in the first half of 2025. By displaying their practical achievements, the aim is to further cultivate a culture of emulating excellence, foster perseverance, inspire courage to overcome difficulties, and inject stronger spiritual impetus into the high-quality development of the Institute.
I. Group Honors
Advanced Grassroots Party Organization: Party Committee of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology
Since its establishment, under the strong leadership of the university’s Party Committee, the Institute’s Party Organization has adhered to the high-level guidance of the ‘trinity’ of education, science and technology, and talent. This has resulted in the Institute being rated ‘Excellent’ in annual university assessments for 6 consecutive years, and the Party Secretary’s performance review for Party building receiving a ‘Good’ rating for the past 3 years. The Party Committee has fully played its core leadership role in ‘setting direction, managing overall affairs, and ensuring implementation,’ leading teacher Party members to achieve ‘big results with small teams.’ This includes two national-level scientific research platforms, 18 projects worth tens of millions, 900 million in research funding, over ten million in corporate donations, and 9 provincial/ministerial level scientific research awards. Concurrently, it successfully established the ‘Unmanned Systems Science and Technology’ discipline, cultivating the nation’s first master’s and doctoral students in this field. The employment rate of all graduates has remained 100%, and in the past three years, it has achieved a ‘grand slam’ of collective honors in graduate scholarship and evaluation, winning nearly 200 awards in high-level disciplinary competitions. This represents leapfrog development from scratch to excellence, making it a key example of the university serving national strategic needs and deepening its defense characteristics.
Advanced Collective for ‘Three-Dimensional Education’
Under the university’s leadership, the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology, guided by national defense needs, centered on the ‘Chief Designer’ talent cultivation culture, and driven by major national scientific research projects, has established an all-staff, all-process, all-round education system from ideological guidance to capability building. In recent years, student employment competitiveness has continuously improved: it has cultivated the nation’s first master’s and doctoral students in ‘Unmanned Systems Science and Technology,’ with a 100% employment rate for all graduates, and over 70% employed in national defense units. Competition awards continue to break records: students participated in ‘three major competitions,’ accumulating nearly 190 awards (58 national-level, 71 provincial/ministerial-level). Scholarship and evaluation honors continue to be swept: for three consecutive years, it achieved a ‘grand slam’ of collective honors in the graduate scholarship system (only 4 in the entire university) and individual awards, and in 2023, it achieved a full ‘grand slam’ of collective and individual honors (the only one in the entire university), with a social scholarship award rate of 90%. It continuously contributes the strength of unmanned systems to the university’s ‘Double First-Class’ construction and the nation’s educational and scientific development.
Advanced Student Party Branch: First Student Party Branch of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology
Established in 2021, the First Student Party Branch of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology has 37 Party members, with Professor Huang Hanqiao, a Party Committee member and key young faculty, serving as Secretary. Under the strong leadership of the Institute’s Party Committee, it focuses on cultivating ‘Chief Designer’ qualities among Party members. In the past 3 years, master’s and doctoral Party members achieved a 100% employment rate, with over 70% joining national defense units. They have produced over 40 high-level academic papers, 19 invention patents, 16 science and technology competition awards, and over 30 individual honorary titles. In 2025, it was approved as a model student Party branch for ‘Three Innovations and Three Strengths.’ Branch members, as core team members, won the 2024 Party Flag Relay Race and successfully defended their university tug-of-war championship, continuously contributing to the Institute’s development.
Advanced Collective for Scientific Research: Intelligent Perception and Cognition Team
The Intelligent Perception and Cognition Team consistently focuses on major national needs, conducting research on cutting-edge theories and equipment technologies for intelligent perception and cognition in air, land, and sea unmanned systems. They have overcome numerous technical challenges in areas such as cross-domain target recognition for air, land, sea, and space, autonomous navigation in denied environments, and airborne game-theoretic decision-making. Their research findings are widely applied in unmanned equipment such as drones, unmanned vehicles, and cruise missiles, supporting the development of various types of unmanned equipment, participating in multiple exercises and training missions, and significantly enhancing the intelligence and automation levels of existing unmanned equipment. The team adheres to the ‘Chief Designer’ talent cultivation culture to guide talent development, encouraging students to deeply participate in scientific research and innovation competitions. They have achieved multiple national and provincial/ministerial level awards, and their supervised students have received numerous honorary titles such as ‘Outstanding Graduate Student’ from the university, sending a large number of excellent graduates to work in military research institutes.
I. Individual Honors
Northwestern Polytechnical University ‘Ten Educators’ Advanced Individual: Chang Min
Chang Min, Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, National Young Talent, and Vice Dean of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology, is dedicated to interdisciplinary integrated design research for cross-domain special unmanned aerial vehicles. He serves as Deputy Chief Designer for multiple UAV projects, has led over 10 projects including those for national defense innovation and basic research, and received 2 provincial/ministerial awards. Professor Chang Min emphasizes cultivating students’ ‘engineering awareness’ and ‘systems thinking,’ enabling them to master methodologies for solving complex engineering problems in unmanned systems. Through a combination of internal simulation testing and external flight trials, students ‘grow in battle’ and ‘discover truth through practice,’ fostering ‘Chief Designer’ type innovative talents in the unmanned systems field.
Northwestern Polytechnical University Rising Star in Science and Technology Shen Jungo
Shen Jungo, Tenured Associate Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, and Secretary of the Second Student Party Branch at the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology. He is dedicated to research in artificial intelligence, computer vision, and multimodal large models, with achievements empowering intelligent national defense equipment and smart city development. He has led over 10 national-level scientific research projects, participated in 2 provincial/ministerial-level teaching reform projects, edited 1 monograph and 1 textbook on edge-cloud intelligence, formulated 1 local standard for Shaanxi Province, and promoted 5 technology transfers. He has won 2 first prizes for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching achievements at NPU. Professor Shen Jungo upholds an educational philosophy focused on ideological guidance, foundational teaching, practical empowerment, and research-driven skill development, aiming to cultivate ‘chief engineer-type’ talents in unmanned systems with both patriotic spirit and innovative technical abilities.
Northwestern Polytechnical UniversityOutstanding Young Teacher (Wu Yajun Award) Chen Zhiwei
Chen Zhiwei, Associate Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, Shaanxi Provincial Young Talent, and Head of the Design and Evaluation Department at a National Key Laboratory. He is dedicated to research on the reliability and resilience of unmanned swarms/equipment systems, swarm intelligent games, and the reliability and safety of complex systems. He has published 2 monographs and textbooks as first author and led over 10 scientific research projects, including NSFC General Programs. In his teaching and research, Professor Chen Zhiwei emphasizes the integration of knowledge and practice, having led 2 teaching reform projects and guided students to win multiple national-level competition awards and national scholarships.
Northwestern Polytechnical UniversityAdvanced Worker Ji Bowen
Ji Bowen, Associate Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, and Shaanxi Provincial Young Talent. His research focuses on implantable/wearable smart brain-computer interface sensors, microsystems, and their applications. He has served for three consecutive years as a Technical Program Committee member for the top international conference IEEE MEMS 2024-2026. His research achievements have been applied in the world’s first minimally invasive wireless implantable brain-computer interface microsystem, enabling brain-controlled grasping, cursor movement, and wheelchair control for high-level paraplegic patients, which was reported by CCTV. As Assistant Dean, Professor Ji Bowen assists with undergraduate teaching and faculty training, successfully established the ‘Intelligent Unmanned Systems’ micro-major, and actively contributes to curriculum development, education, and high-level talent recruitment. He also upholds the educational philosophy of ‘mutual respect, mutual learning, and common growth,’ guiding graduate students to win university-level outstanding master’s theses and innovation funds, serving as a dedicated mentor.
Outstanding Communist Party Member Huang Hanqiao
Huang Hanqiao, Professor, Director of the Unmanned Systems Development Strategy Research Center, Party Committee Member of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology, and Secretary of the First Student Party Branch. Comrade Huang Hanqiao consistently addresses major national strategic needs, striving for scientific and technological excellence. He led his team to establish one of the first national high-end think tanks and jointly demonstrated the ‘Jiutian,’ China’s largest flexibly configurable multi-purpose heavy-duty UAV, which garnered significant attention. He emphasizes moral education, fostering students’ patriotic commitment to scientific research, and has led students to study and practice at key national defense research institutes. Many of his students have won honors in major national competitions and national scholarships, and all have joined key national defense and military industrial units, continuously contributing to national defense technology development.
Northwestern Polytechnical University Advanced Individual in Management and ServiceLeng Bing
Leng Bing, Director of the Institute Office, is fully responsible for office management and assists leaders with faculty and staff recruitment and management, payroll, high-level talent, discipline construction, cultural development, and cadre assessment and selection. In her service role, she closely aligns with the needs of faculty and students and the institute’s efficient operation, coordinating to ensure smooth transitions for all affairs, thereby providing strong support for the institute’s overall progress. Professor Leng Bing maintains an efficient and pragmatic work style, addressing faculty and student needs with solid service, setting a service benchmark for the office team, and empowering the institute’s high-quality development.
Northwestern Polytechnical University Advanced Worker in Cybersecurity Wang Dian
Wang Dian, Cybersecurity Officer of the Institute, assists the university with cybersecurity inspections, rectification notifications, incident investigations, and public education for the institute. Since taking on this role, he has thoroughly studied and implemented General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important thoughts on building a strong cyber nation, diligently researched cybersecurity regulations, and integrated them into daily management. He meticulously organizes cybersecurity training, conscientiously completes system self-inspections and risk reporting, and actively cooperates with university inspections and rectifications. With a strong sense of responsibility that ‘cybersecurity is no small matter,’ he has built a robust cybersecurity defense for the institute, achieving remarkable results.
Northwestern Polytechnical UniversityAdvanced Individual in Confidentiality Wang Junrui
Wang Junrui, Confidentiality Officer of the Institute, assists leaders with managing classified personnel, supervising classified information carriers, and handling confidentiality-related affairs. In daily confidentiality management, he has successfully completed multi-year, full-process confidentiality tasks, ensuring the smooth progress of hundreds of classified projects, and repeatedly cooperated with superior departments for inspections and audits. Professor Wang Junrui consistently adheres to confidentiality principles, being meticulous and rigorous, implementing every requirement with a professional and responsible attitude, thereby actively strengthening the institute’s security and confidentiality defense and safeguarding the smooth progress of scientific research.
As the 41st National Teachers’ Day approaches, we extend our sincerest respect to all faculty and staff of the Institute of Unmanned Systems Technology. With fervent passion, you traverse mountains and seas; from a three-foot podium, you nurture pillars of society. In the past year, you have delved deep into scientific research, overcoming numerous technical challenges, while upholding your original mission of education, illuminating students’ growth paths with the ‘Chief Engineer Cultivation Culture.’ In the future, may everyone continue to use innovation as their pen and responsibility as their ink, anchoring the vision of ‘NPU for the world, leading in aerospace, navigation, and marine engineering,’ to write more brilliant chapters for the innovative development of the institute in unmanned systems, for the university to cultivate more talents for national defense and military industries, and for advancing the construction of an educationally strong nation!
（Text/Photos: Wang Junrui, Rong Wei, and relevant faculty. Reviewed by: Xu Xiaofeng）
