Appropriate Technologies Design Team

ATDT is a group of engineering professionals who develop appropriate and sustainable design solutions for communities. We strive to empower communities by providing tools that facilitate local economic development and provide basic needs, local education, and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Comprised of engineers interested in design, construction, and implementation of appropriate technologies, we seek out and depend on collaborating organizations, established appropriate technologies, and our own research. We take into consideration individual communities’ needs and conditions, such as manufacturing methods and capabilities, locally available materials, and ecological effects. ATDT serves as an outlet for local members to design, construct, and implement appropriate technologies in developing countries. Below are listed our current projects.

Rock Crusher

The Need: Equipment to create sand media for bio sand filters

NGO Partner: A Single Drop based in the Philippines and about to expand to Africa.

Goal: Develop instrument to crush rocks into sand for water filtration.

Timeline:

  • Jan ‘08 Started
  • Jun ‘08 Designed
  • Aug/Sep ‘08 Fab & First Operation
  • 4nd Qtr ‘09 Target Installation

Current Project Needs:

  • Engineer to optimize Mill subassembly design

Project Details

  • Output to be used to filter water in households of 6 -10 people.
  • Each filter to use approx. 26 liters of 0.19mm to 0.38mm sand.
  • Desired Crusher output: 2 liters/hour.
  • Jagged particles filter better than smooth-round particles.
  • Target cost: less than $500.
  • 5 to 10 Rock Crusher deployed in the 1st year with more each year.
  • Fabrication and maintenance to be done local to village.

Wind Turbine

Personal alternative energy generator

The Need:

  • A reliable energy source for 12 V DC uses (LED lighting, cell phone charging, radio,etc.
  • An affordable product that will support sustained manufacturing at Xela Teco

Partners:

  • Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group (AIDG) — seeks to create self-sustaining, worker-owned businesses in developing countries.
  • XelaTeco, founded in Guatemala in 2005, is a micro-manufacturing facility based around the development of appropriate energy solutions for rural Guatemala

The Constrains/Objectives:

  • Vertical axis turbine
  • Low average wind speeds (~15 mph)
  • Small footprint (~ 2x3 ft)
  • 10-20 Watt system
  • Manufactured with local materials & skills
  • $100 US manufacturing cost

Current Project Needs:

  • Someone to help with Fluid Simulations

Solar Water Distillation

A simple still to produce drinking water from salinated wells.

Rural villages in India use water stills to supplement their inconsistent public water supplies to generate enough drinking water for daily family use.

The current design of the solar water distiller only produces about 1/3 of the needed water.

The goal of this project will be to create a still (or alternative water purification technology) which meets the needed daily water supply within the current equipment budget.

Partner:

  • Seghal Foundation is a trust committed to help reduce poverty and improve the quality of life in rural India.

Current Project Needs:

  • New team members (all are welcome!)
  • Anyone with experience in desalination stills

Recent Activity:

  • Distiller Research
  • Concept Brainstorming
  • Design, Build, Test Simple Stills

Farming Trellis

Design Trellis

The need: Trellis to be strong enough to support more grapes, thus boosting crop production by 2-3x. Select materials that are less likely to be stolen.

Partner: Roots of Peace, Afghanistan

Timeline:

  • Project began Jan 2009
  • Initial trial designed Mar 2009
  • initial design being tested in Afghanistan beginning April 2009
  • 4nd Qtr ‘09 Target Installation

Composting Toilet

Composting toilet design for rural, agricultural-based villages.
Current geographical focus — Los Alvarez, Nicaragua

The Need:

  • Create a low-cost, easy-to-maintain composting toilet design that can operate throughout the rainy season in Nicaragua without sustaining structural damage
  • The composting system must function with organic material locally available in Los Alvarez
  • The design(s) need(s) to accommodate single-family use and/or community
  • Cost target: $100-150/toilet

Partners:

Current Project Needs:

  • New team members — All are welcome!
  • Specific needs: project management, publicity (for fundraising and development of educational materials), design experience with composting toilets/sanitation systems

Timeline:

  • October 2009 — Project Began
  • Jan 2010 — Initiation of Prototyping at Garrod Farms
  • Feb — May 2010 — Fundraising Activities
  • April 2010 — Initial Site Visit
  • June 2010 — Fully-Functional Prototype
  • Nov/Dec 2010 — Initiation of Pilot Study in Nicaragua

Hippo Roller

Water transportation device

Background:

The Hippo Roller is a product used to improve water access in remote areas of southern Africa. Manual water transport consumes massive amounts of time and energy and has harmful effects on the health of those who carry out the task — often women and children.

Project Goal:

Redesign the Hippo Roller for greater shipping efficiency and reduced manufacturing cost to facilitate more widespread distribution of the product to areas in need.

Partners:

  • Project H is an industrial design firm assisting with concept generation and product development.
  • Hippo Roller International (South Africa), original creator of the Hippo Roller. They are responsible for soliciting donor funding as well as manufacturing and distributing the Hippo Roller.

Next Steps:

  • Tooling for RotaMold ~ $10,000
  • Project H is working on fundraising
  • Hippo Roller Int’l will work with toolmaker to produce the molds
  • EWB will stay engaged with process and provide any needed guidance and advice

Check out ATDT in the news:

Small wind turbines to help countries

Contact

For more info, send an email to: