Bullock-cart wheel set to `light up' rural lives?
By Our Staff Reporter
A student demonstrates the model at the technical festival at Osmania University College of Engineering in Hyderabad.
HYDERABAD, FEB. 19. The symbol of rural transport can now produce power that can light up villages sans power bills. A group of engineering students from Adilabad district have designed a model that produces power using the bullock-cart wheel!
The model is based on the function that when the wheels of the cart rotate, the mechanical energy of the wheel is converted into electric energy using power transmission system and an alternator coupled to it.
The exhibit, which is being displayed at Techsonance-2005, the annual technical festival of the Department of Electrical & Electronics Department of the Osmania University College of Engineering, has attracted lot of attention given its earthy solution to generate electricity using the bullock-cart, widely used by farmers in villages.
Cheap energy
"The energy produced is cheap and can be conveniently used by villagers for domestic purpose," explains V. Paritosh Kumar, a student of Jatipita College of Engineering, Adilabad and a member of the group that created the model. Explaining the concept, Paritosh says in order to increase the Rotations Per Minute (RPM) from a mere 15 RPM of the normal cart-wheel to 540 RPM a rubber wheel of 4 inch diameter is fixed to the external surface of the rim of the cart-wheel. To further increase the speed to 1,500 RPM and get the desired 100W to 240W an hour, a power transmission system is fixed. This rotational energy is then converted into electrical energy in the form of DC by using a dynamo and charged in the battery.
So, if a bullock-cart moves for about six hours, nearly one KW of electricity is produced that can be used for bulbs, fans and small electronic gadgets. Farmers widely use bullock-carts for agricultural work and this electricity can be produced even as they are engaged in their regular work.
Though the students have spent nearly a lakh of rupees for developing the model, they say bulk production would reduce the cost to just Rs. 10,000.
They have already patented their product, but want to further improve it with the help of sponsors from the industry. Other students of the group are Prasanna Chandri, B. Sateesh Kumar and D. Naveen
By Our Staff Reporter
A student demonstrates the model at the technical festival at Osmania University College of Engineering in Hyderabad.
HYDERABAD, FEB. 19. The symbol of rural transport can now produce power that can light up villages sans power bills. A group of engineering students from Adilabad district have designed a model that produces power using the bullock-cart wheel!
The model is based on the function that when the wheels of the cart rotate, the mechanical energy of the wheel is converted into electric energy using power transmission system and an alternator coupled to it.
The exhibit, which is being displayed at Techsonance-2005, the annual technical festival of the Department of Electrical & Electronics Department of the Osmania University College of Engineering, has attracted lot of attention given its earthy solution to generate electricity using the bullock-cart, widely used by farmers in villages.
Cheap energy
"The energy produced is cheap and can be conveniently used by villagers for domestic purpose," explains V. Paritosh Kumar, a student of Jatipita College of Engineering, Adilabad and a member of the group that created the model. Explaining the concept, Paritosh says in order to increase the Rotations Per Minute (RPM) from a mere 15 RPM of the normal cart-wheel to 540 RPM a rubber wheel of 4 inch diameter is fixed to the external surface of the rim of the cart-wheel. To further increase the speed to 1,500 RPM and get the desired 100W to 240W an hour, a power transmission system is fixed. This rotational energy is then converted into electrical energy in the form of DC by using a dynamo and charged in the battery.
So, if a bullock-cart moves for about six hours, nearly one KW of electricity is produced that can be used for bulbs, fans and small electronic gadgets. Farmers widely use bullock-carts for agricultural work and this electricity can be produced even as they are engaged in their regular work.
Though the students have spent nearly a lakh of rupees for developing the model, they say bulk production would reduce the cost to just Rs. 10,000.
They have already patented their product, but want to further improve it with the help of sponsors from the industry. Other students of the group are Prasanna Chandri, B. Sateesh Kumar and D. Naveen
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