Vinh Long Province — newly merged from Vinh Long, Tra Vinh and Ben Tre — draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Mekong Delta each year with its historical sites, cultural heritage and local cuisine. Yet up-to-date information about the region’s destinations remains hard to access, and paper maps are bulky and quickly outdated. Ho Phuong Tram, a 16-year-old student at Tieu Can High School, set out to close this gap: an interactive, voice-controlled tourism map that combines artificial intelligence, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi connectivity and a mobile app.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
A layered foam-and-acrylic board represents the province’s geography, with LED lights marking each commune and district. Users pair their smartphone via Bluetooth and speak commands through the Smart Answer app to explore four themes — tourist attractions, heritage sites, local specialties and notable figures, and a district-by-district guide. An Arduino Mega processes the voice commands, lights up the relevant areas and responds with voice narration. A solar panel charges the onboard batteries, enabling outdoor use without mains power. AI tools supported code generation and data analysis during development. In surveys of over 500 teachers and students, more than 90% rated the map “satisfied” or “very satisfied” — and beyond tourism, it now serves as a STEM teaching tool that brings hardware, software and AI together in the classroom.
