A high school student from Wuxi won the gold medal at a prestigious international design expo held in Tokyo on Aug 6, after impressing the judges with his ingenious idea for a pair of internet of things-powered metal detecting shoes.

Xu Yijie's design was selected for the top prize at the World Intellectual Property Organization and International Youth Invention Contest from among more than 2,000 entries from more than 20 countries and regions.

The Nanjing High School student's innovative shoes use high-frequency oscillators, GPS and internet of things chips to detect metal in the ground nearby and locate it accurately.

The low-cost, easy-to-operate invention could be used to detect landmines in warzones, or could be used to locate dangerous items during anti-terrorism operations.

Chang Jianqiang, Xu's teacher who accepted the prize on his behalf, told reporters that judges raved about Xu's invention and that they believed that the shoes could play an active role in combatting international terrorism and in reconstruction efforts in warzones across the world.

It took Xu just three months to design the shoes despite having no experience with circuit boards and programming before beginning the project, according to Chang.

But the Wuxi teenager takes a keen interest in the military and design, and he sought help from a number of specialists to turn his idea into reality.

Xu said that he hoped his invention could help improve security for civilians and soldiers in turmoil around the world.

It is not the first time the young prodigy has won recognition for his design skills. He has previously won third prize in a national innovation contest for his "gas stove powered by temperature difference".

He has also already been granted two patents for his own inventions, with several more applications still pending.