ZERO

A RETROFITTED AUTO-RICKSHAW FUELLED BY SOLAR, ELECTRIC AND HUMAN POWER

BY: VALERIE MAIS & MICHAEL SWIFT UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

Presentation Overview
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Identifying a sustainable transportation issue Selecting an alternative Investigating human factors The final product Next steps

1. Identifying an Issue
y By 2025, 2/3 of the worlds population y

y y

will reside in urban areas Currently, almost 3/4 of the worlds megacities are located in developing countries All major residential areas of Delhi, India have air quality levels classified as CRITICAL Transportation accounts for 72% of Delhis air pollution Auto-rickshaws are fuelled by diesel and contain a 2-stroke engine

2. Selecting an Alternative
y Auto-rickshaws have the potential to run on renewable

sources of energy, but which one(s)?

Wind Battery Score 0.6 1 0.25 0.45 0.5 1.25 4.05 Rating 3 5 3 2 5 5 Score 0.6 1.25 0.15 0.3 0.5 1.25 4.05 Solar Rating 4 5 5 4 4 5 Score 0.8 1.25 0.25 0.6 0.4 1.25 4.55 Rating 3 4 5 3 5 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 0.2 0.25 0.05 0.15 0.1 0.25 Total

Biofuel Rating 1 1 2 4 1 3 Score 0.2 0.25 0.1 0.6 0.1 0.75 2

Hydro Rating 1 4 5 3 5 4 Score 0.2 1 0.25 0.45 0.5 1 3.4

Geothermal Rating 1 4 3 4 1 3 Score 0.2 1 0.15 0.6 0.1 0.75 2.8

Objective Weight

y Solar power requires low installation costs, very low maintenance costs,

is easy to maintain, is suited to the environment of most third world countries, is a very well developed technology, and leaves no negative environmental impact upon implementation y Therefore, solar power meets all of our objects to a high degree!

Selecting an Alternative
y But what happens during

monsoon season?
Days

Average Number of Wet Days per Month

20 15 10 5 0 0 5 Month 10 15 New Delhi Jakarta Bangkok Dhaka

Delhi has the shortest monsoon season and least amount of rain out of all megacities where autorickshaws are most commonly used

y Electric batteries placed

below the vehicle can be recharged via the solar panelled roof and the dynamo located in the front wheel

3. Investigating Human Factors

y Questionnaire
{

How safe do you feel when travelling via autorickshaw?

What do you want to see improved in the design of auto-rickshaws?

Investigating Human Factors

y Indirect Observation { Online videos { Amal (2007)

4. The Final Product (What)

Solar-panelled roof Ergonomic seats with seatbelts Secure, lockable doors Rechargeable electric batteries Pedal-powered dynamo recharging unit

The Final Product (How)

y Non-for-profit organization creates auto-rickshaw

retrofit kits containing:

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Solar panels Batteries Dynamo Bicycle wheels

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Ergonomic seats Seatbelts Foot step Vehicle doors

y Retrofitting stations will be set up within megacities

where ZEROs are to be distributed, providing jobs for local civilians

5. Next Steps
y Follow-up with survey participants { Does ZERO sufficiently address the safety and comfort issues you have with the current auto-rickshaw model? y Determine solar cell efficiency and power

requirements y Build a prototype y Perform testing

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E.g. Usability, performance, etc.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS?