TECHNOVATE

Problem Statement 1: Self powered devices

How many times have our mobile phone batteries run down when we were
in need to make an urgent call? How many times have we forgotten to take our
chargers with us? Would there be an innovative idea to charge our portable
devices without the use of messy wires and chords?? We know that there are
many energy sources available in the environment such as solar, thermal,
vibration, Radio Frequency (RF) which could be harnessed although they are not
continuously available. But if we could collect as much energy as we can from the
environment when it is available, store it and use it wisely then perhaps we could
eliminate the need for charging by wires.

Your challenge is to conceptualize, design a feasible system to charge

batteries with the available sources of energy in the environment without
compromising on the size. Your work should involve identifying the available
sources of energy in the environment, design energy efficient conversion
electronics to take the raw electrical signal from the source and convert it to a
usable battery voltage, choose suitable energy storage mechanisms and highlight
the amount of energy that could be delivered to the batteries by assuming some
available sources. Also find the maximum power that could be delivered to the
batteries from the available sources. You can also develop solutions that could
tap energy from many sources simultaneously so that power delivered to the
batteries is more. Bonus points will be given if the system is scaled down without
compromising on the efficiency of energy conversion.

Problem Statement 2: Accident Prevention System for Trains

There have been several incidents of train collisions in India in this decade
alone with thousands of lives lost. Since human lives are precious it is important
that a feasible solution for this problem is developed. 86% of all train accidents in
India are caused either due to human error or failure of Auxiliary Warning
System (AWS). The remaining 14% of the train accidents are caused due to
cracks or blasts in tracks and due to unmanned level crossings. What if we could
develop an Accident Prevention System (APS) for trains saving precious human
lives?

What are the primary things that you should consider while designing an
accident prevention system for trains? Whenever a train is moving in a particular
track it should be able to detect the number of tracks to which it can move from
that track. It should detect if any other train is present on these tracks by a
suitable mechanism like GPS( Global Positioning System) or any other means . It
should also be able to detect the status of the train (whether the train is
stationary or moving) so that a buzzer alarm goes off along with the indication of
track number to alert the motorman of the impeding danger in that track. If the
motorman has failed to act within a specified time (4 seconds) then emergency
electro pneumatic brakes should be applied automatically until the train comes
to a halt. The system should also check for any other vehicles (due to unmanned
level crossing) or cracks in its existing track using a suitable mechanism.
The following ideas are just suggestions, to help you in proceeding further. You m
ay choose to implement the following ideas, or modify them or use your own new
brilliant ideas and then implement them.

Your challenge is to conceptualize, design a feasible system for preventing

accident of trains .The solution you develop should clearly be able to detect an
oncoming or stationary train on the same track or any other tracks which the
train can branch to. The module developed should also be able to detect whether
the oncoming train is stationary or moving and the time to collide with that train
at the current speed. Your working model should sound an alarm in case of an
imminent collision and should also stop the trains without any collision. The
closer your solution is to actual implementation the more bonus points you get.

Problem Statement 3: Greener homes

Every single home contributes about 6.5 tonnes of CO2 each year by its
consumption of electricity through coal based plants. Yet, just switching off lights
in unoccupied rooms could save 2.2 tonnes per household. With greenhouse gas
emissions in sharp focus around the world, the time has come for everyone to
take action to economise on energy use by the intelligent application of
technology to bring about energy efficiency. A study indicates that 30% of energy
savings in 2020 could avoid construction of 1000 new power plants. We have to
act now to have a sustainable future.
Your challenge is to consider a typical urban Indian home and develop solutions
to optimize energy usage. Your solution should clearly indicate the amount of
energy savings that can be achieved. The cost savings and payback time(Return
of investment) should also be calculated. The key to controlling energy is the use
of technology. You can achieve energy efficiency by using simple lighting
controls, energy saving lamps, better heating controls etc. You are free to make
any assumptions regarding the consumption of energy but at the end your
solution should indicate the energy efficiency attained. You will receive bonus
points if you have an excellent marketing strategy for your solution.

Problem Statement 4: No holds barred

For all those who feel that the challenges mentioned above aren't
sufficient to showcase their technical know-how, you are free to innovate. The
sky is the limit! Come up with your own socially relevant problem and give us a
feasible solution. Problems that have more social significance will be preferred.

Event format:
All interested contestants must send in the abstract before 11.59pm on
December 25, 2010 to technovate@kurukshetra.org.in. Your selection to the
final round will be purely based on the abstract so make sure your team’s idea is
well in it.

Contents in the abstract:

Subject of the mail: Technovate report

File name: Technovate _<statement number>_<team name>

Eg: Technovate_4_techwizards
File type: .pdf or .doc

1. The first page of the report must contain only the following details :

a. Names of all the team members and the name of your team.

b. Institute roll numbers , departments/branches and institute names of

each team member.

c. Contact details ( email ID and/or phone number ) of each team member.

2. Brief Description about the idea.

3. Proof of Concept.
4. Any reasonable assumption made and justification for the same.

5. Detailed explanation of the design and implementation of the proposed system

with relevant block diagrams and circuit schematics.
6.References.

Contact:
Feel free to write to us at technovate@kurukshetra.org.in for any queries.