On January 24, 2026, students from the Faculty of Engineering and Technology (FET) at Antonine University (UA) achieved a major milestone by winning first place at the IEEE CASS 2026 Student Design Competition – Phase One (Chapter Level), hosted at the Debbieh Campus of Beirut Arab University (BAU). Competing against 10 teams from universities across Lebanon—including BAU, Saint Joseph University of Beirut (USJ), the University of Balamand (UOB), and Rafik Hariri University (RHU)—UA’s team stood out with an innovative engineering solution addressing a growing real-life health challenge linked to modern desk-based lifestyles.

The IEEE Circuits and Systems Society (CASS) Student Design Competition is a worldwide initiative that encourages undergraduate students to design and implement projects in electrical engineering and related fields, with a clear focus on solving real-world problems using circuits and systems. The competition is structured into three phases. Phase One takes place at the chapter level, where teams present their work through a live demo and presentation, with only two teams qualifying to move forward. Phase Two is conducted at the regional level and requires the submission of a technical report and demo video, with only one team per region advancing to the final stage. The final world-level phase will be held during IEEE ISCAS 2026 in Shanghai, China, where four finalist teams from around the world will compete.

Despite the high level of competition, the FET team secured first place, earning qualification for Phase Two, scheduled for the end of February. This achievement reflects not only the strength of their technical implementation, but also the relevance of their concept and its alignment with the mission of IEEE CASS to promote impactful, system-based engineering solutions.

Representing the FET were eight talented students: Maya Younes, Rayan Abou Assaf, Roni Abou Dargham, Julien Matar, Jana Al Mawla, Martin Abu Hamra, Roy Khalifeh, and Charlie El Haddad, under the supervision of Mr. Khodor Ghayad. Their project, titled HeartGuard, impressed judges and attendees by combining engineering innovation with meaningful health impact, offering a practical approach to detecting stress-related risks without relying on wearable devices.

HeartGuard is a desk-based, non-wearable prevention device designed to passively detect early signs of chronic cardiac stress associated with long hours of desk-based work. Unlike traditional monitoring systems that require direct measurement of physiological signals through wearable sensors, HeartGuard focuses on capturing indirect but meaningful indicators of chronic stress accumulation. The device monitors prolonged sitting duration, workspace temperature, environmental noise levels, and non-contact breathing rhythm patterns that are often linked to stress. These signals are then processed locally and analyzed over extended periods, allowing the system to detect long-term stress buildup rather than reacting only to short-term changes.

With this victory, the students have proven their ability to compete at the national level and are now preparing to represent their chapter in the regional phase of the competition. As they move forward, HeartGuard has the potential to grow into a more advanced solution, combining stronger analytics, improved sensing accuracy, and broader real-world validation. This outstanding achievement marks an important step forward, and best of luck to the FET team as they pursue regional—and potentially global—recognition at IEEE CASS 2026.