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| Bernard Bussy |
ENGINEERING students recently displayed 14 projects which can each improve the way in which we transport ourselves and our goods, at an open day held at the UKZN Howard College campus in Durban.
Bernard Bussy’s magnetic floating display was selected to represent the University of KwaZulu-Natal at the South African Institute of Electrical and Engineering national competition in Port Shepstone last week.
Using magnetic force to levitate one surface above another has numerous applications, from the
currently popular “floating” record players to trains that levitate on a frictionless “rail”.
Waste not want not
Electrical engineering students Akshay Ashokumar and Andries Makena designed systems to capture wasted energy to generate electricity. |
| Matthew de Neef |
Makena wants to generate power by capturing the unexploited energies in the impact of rubber on tar, heat from engines and friction, using various mechanisms.
Siyabonga Manana designed a system that analyses the power garnered from regenerative braking in hybrid power trains under varying operating conditions.
Staying in the field of energy generation, Gugu Shozi demonstrated a working PEM fuel cell together with an inverter to supply an alternating current, with the aim to power hydrogen vehicles and machines.
Out on the road
Matthew de Neef designed an automated security vehicle monitoring system that can track a security vehicle or security personnel escorting VIPs from one location to another using closed-circuit television cameras in an area.Thinking of busy workshops, Javed Muhammed came up with an automatic electro-hydraulic jack to lift light vehicles to a convenient height for mechanics.
Thinking of emergencies, Rowen Rungiah and Sizwe Mthabela focused on rescue vehicles. Mthabela designed a model rescue vehicle that combines a fork lift and an elevator to search for survivors in a burnt building.
Rungiah came up with a robotic metal detector that can find buried land mines and any other metallic object under ground.
Driving with data
Looking at data needs of modern transport, the students also designed systems that store photos and aid commuters.Computer engineering student Gerald Cele designed a local version of Uber aimed at our taxi systems. Drivers and passengers register their accounts on a system that links requests for rides with available drivers.
Thobani Mabaso designed a pollutant detection system that monitors and stores levels of airborne pollutants in an area in the cloud, which people can access to see if it is safe to go to an area. Cyclers and pedestrians in cities with high levels of smog can use this tool.
Rivash Mothilall’s idea is to create a smart city Internet-of-vehicles system to gather and distribute road, traffic, weather and tourism information for improved driving.
Thabiso Motsa used an effective algorithm to “fold” data, which enables gigabytes of photos taken daily on busy roads to be compressed and stored without image loss.
Theo Parker’s brainchild is a road sign detection and recognition system — similar to the Opel Eye — that detects and classifies road signs using a camera. The current speed limit and warning is then displayed on the vehicle’s dashboard.
Thineshan Govender had the needs of most young drivers in mind when he designed an FM modulator that used voice control to play music from a flash disk that is plugged into a vehicle’s sound system.
