Students of Lords College of Engineering have designed a three-wheeled solar and electric car that can be the answer to our environmental worries.
With Delhi set to start the odd and even rule for cars to combat pollution and Hyderabad mulling something along the same lines, city students too are doing their bit to help protect the environment.
Third-year mechanical engineering students from Lords College of Engineering have come up with a “solar car”. Their project has also been nominated for the Electric Solar Vehicle Challenge organised by the Imperial Society for Innovative Engineers.
Talking about the three-wheeled vehicle, Mohd Shahrukh says, “The car has a solar panel attached and runs on battery. So it works with a combination of solar and electrical energy. If the batteries are discharged, the solar panel will automatically charge them.”
Instead of the usual three-wheeled vehicles that have one wheel in front and two at the back, this car is the opposite. “We did it to ensure the compact size of the car. The car, once complete, will weigh a maximum of 190 kg. And it’s very comfortable for a single person,” says Saif Bin Abdullah.
The group of 25 has used a mono suspension system in the car. “We did a lot of research and realised that if we used a mono suspension system, it would help maintain the connections,” says Shahrukh.
The car functions with four lead acid batteries. Shahrukh says, “Instead of using just one, we used four batteries so that the power is equally distributed and even if one stops functioning, the car doesn’t stop running, it will just become slower.”
The basic design of the car, which took the team one-and-a-half months to complete, is being tested and by the end of February, they intend to have it ready.
“The car will have a maximum speed of 110-120 km/hour,” adds Md. Azhar Jaffer.
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