An energy efficient stove and water heater developed by Vinayaka, a first year student of B.E. (Computer Science and Engineering) of Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) won a cash prize of Rs. 3 lakh at the INK Makers competition held here on Wednesday. He also won the title of ‘INK Makers 2015’
The INK Makers is a programme aimed at promoting maker culture among undergraduate students of Manipal University. It encourages creation of new devices and improving the existing ones.
A ‘Power assisted stretcher’ developed by a team of students called Team Spearheads, and a ‘Wearable sanitiser dispenser’ by Team Excelsior, were the runners-up, and bagged cash prizes of Rs. 2 lakh and Rs. 1 lakh, respectively.
By developing the ‘Energy efficient stove and water heater’, Mr. Vinayaka addressed the problem of indoor air pollution and wastage of energy in the traditional way of cooking using wood and fire in the rural areas of the country. He designed a device which consists of a copper pipe through which cold water is passed. The pipe prevents escape of heat from the burnt fuel and diverts it in turn to heat water placed in another container. Team Spearheads built a prototype of a power assisted stretcher for hospitals.
It is an electronic powered stretcher which requires only one person to manoeuvre it, unlike the conventional stretchers which required about four persons. It enabled easy driving as there are no prerequisite skills for its operation.
Team Excelsior comprising of Abhishek Mahapatra, Rajalaxmi Kamath, Tanisha Srivastava and Shanteri Kamath, developed a ‘Wearable sanitizer dispenser’. They designed a prototype of a contraption that dispenses sanitizing liquid when a little pressure is applied on it.
It can be worn as an accessory by medical professionals. It reduces the risk of transfer of infection from one patient to another.
