Bicycle Powered Projector at Tididiek School
27 September 2008
An ingenious solution to the lack of learning materials in Tididiek Primary School was test run by two University students from London recently. The prototype of a bicycle powered projector was flown in pieces to Uganda and transported to Kumi District for an electricity free slide show. The hope is that since many schools in rural Uganda have no electricity supply the projector could see widespread application throughout the country - all you need is the apparatus, slide material and a willing cyclist! The potential for use throughout the developing world is clear.
The challenge presented to Imperial College's Mechanical Engineering Department was to invent a simple, low-cost means of providing good quality, accurate and realistic illustrations in class. Developing Technologies (www.developingtechnologies.org), an organisation dedicated to providing technical support to development charities and agencies such as Build Africa, chose the projector because of its minimal cost, reliability and simple construction. As one of the engineers, Marcus Rafla, pointed out: "The projector is cost effective when compared with text books. It is interactive and dynamic, making long lessons and days at school more interesting. We certainly got the children's undivided attention".
We asked the engineers what technical problems they had experienced in the development of the projector. Zhifeng Lim explained: "The main technical problem was producing enough light with a limited amount of power....but maximum power production is sufficient at 30 to 50 watts. The equipment has reliability built in. The electricity is powered by pedal-operated generators and the light source is LED with a life-span of 10 to 20 years. The battery will last 2 to 5 years and a replacement can be bought locally. It is also easy to put the material on to 35mm slides as all you need is a computer with a printer." But both Marcus and Zhifeng believe that the real test would be to leave the apparatus with a school for a longer period of time to see how much the school utilises it. It will also provide a good test for the projector under long term exposure to the heat and dust.
What were their impressions of Uganda? Marcus: "The countryside was very different to how I had imagined it. When I think of Africa I think of savannah and grasses. Uganda was actually very green". And how was Tididiek? "The reaction from the community was overwhelmingly positive. The government officials were very excited: they suggested ways we could implement the project and wanted to test the projector asap!" Zhifeng added: "The people were incredibly friendly. You can see the children's excitement in the pictures we took. Because the community has built the school themselves I think they are taking more pride in the project and really want to make it work."