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M.Des Mobility Design 2009-2018

Batch 2012-2014
(27 items)


Batch 2014-2016
(36 items)


Batch 2015-2017
(28 items)


Batch 2017-2019
(39 items)



M.Des Mobility Design 2009-2018

2012-2014
(27 items)

Frugal Architecture and Design
by Alvin P Gopal
Housing is a basic need of human being since the beginning of mankind. Now a days building a house has become a more polluting and wasteful activity and causes many direct and indirect impacts to the environment. Common building practices give importance to form and image and trying to make big monuments with high spatial qualities, wasting energy and having a little or no relation with the tradition and culture of the community in which it has been built. In contrast, frugal architecture always design spaces by means of minimal and effective use of resources to meet the needs of the user or community, which is intended to serve. Three basic factors of frugality are reducing, reusing and recycling. Three basic factors of frugality are reducing, Uncontrolled exploitation of natural resources and resulting pollution, introduced a new trend of using products made out of recycled, reusable and eco- compatible materials. In a 1. Introduction country like India many people are poor and can’t afford a quality housing. Here, the principles of frugal architecture become more relevant. The buildings and spaces designed with frugal approach, are technologically advanced and economically accessible to even poor people as well. Nnnnnn frugal approach, are technologically advanced This report covers various aspects of frugal architecture through Ar. Laurie Baker method of construction, which holds the principles of frugality. I have done my research with the help of “COSTFORD” (Centre of Science and Technology For Rural Development) Thrissur, Kerala, an organization cofounded by Laurie baker and doing lot of construction activities across various parts of Kerala. The research part included various sites visits of building construction at different stages, and the details have been documented with the help of images.
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Summer Internship At SFO Technologies
by Alvin P Gopal
SFO Technologies, a NeST Group Company, is a diverse business group that provides manufacturing services, industrial design, engineering, software, and systems integration. The group has a presence across the globe. SFO Technologies provides innovative product development solutions for customers worldwide in the healthcare, communications, process control & instrumentation, and transportation areas. In addition to the new product development, SFO Technologies undertakes value engineering activities where a need for redesign arises for various reasons, such as component obsolescence, value addition, or cost reduction. I have done my internship at SFO Technologies, Cochin, Kerala. The duration of the project was from 10/05/2013 to 15/06/2013. During my tenure, I got a chance to work on their few live projects and some future ones. The whole experience of the internship has been good and helpful in understanding the different methods going on in the industry apart from the usual academic procedures. The people over there gave me enough freedom to explore the concepts and were keen to encourage and put their valuable feedback in proper time.
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Campus Bicycle for IIT Bombay
by Alvin P Gopal
The aim of this project is to make a unisex bicycle for IIT Bombay students. This bicycle can be used by male as well as female students of the campus. Project deals with an attempt to understand the current commuting pattern of the students within the campus periphery and to identify problems. The existing campus bus service is not enough to handle the increasing number students. As an institute of national importance, IIT Bombay has been encouraging more sustainable, healthy and eco-friendly mode of vehicles for campus commuting. Educational institutes abroad have bicycles being extensively used for campus commuting mostly through bicycle sharing system. Concept of campus bicycle is not very common in India, however, there is scope for such a product. The project have started with market research to understand the current trend and existing products. Next step was the user study, including questionnaire survey and observation. The target user is the student community of IIT Bombay. The user study helped to understand the 1. Abstract 1 various user needs and their current problems. The climatic factors were also considered as a part of design process. A basic study of material was also done, which gave the directions to finalize the appropriate material for manufacturing. The insights from research part were considered to formulate the design brief. Based on design brief, various concepts have made and conducted and an evaluation by various users. Based on the concept evaluation, the one which got maximum preference was selected as the final concept and made a 1: 1 working prototype. The designed cycle can be used as a part of campus bicycle sharing system as well. Project makes an attempt to understand the basic needs of the students including the functional and aesthetical aspects.
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Two Wheeled Delivery Vehicle
by Alvin P Gopal
Increasing urbanization and changing lifestyles have introduced a lot of new trends in the Indian consumer market. E-commerce and home delivery of fast food are two of the most promising and challenging business areas. These areas are still at a nascent stage in India, but they are growing at a very high pace. Considering these emerging businesses and their associated delivery systems, there is a huge demand for two-wheeled delivery vehicles that enable fast, easy, and safe delivery of cargo. Currently, cargo and food delivery are primarily urban-centric. In India, the major problem in urban areas is traffic congestion. A two-wheeler that cuts through traffic with ease can be extremely helpful in the current urban scenario. These aforementioned factors motivated me to take on this challenging topic in order to understand and solve the current problems faced by the delivery person. The project started with a market study followed by a user study, which helped understand the market trends as well as the user. The user study consisted of a questionnaire survey, activity analysis, and a thorough observation of the users. A design brief was created based on the findings of the preliminary research. After that, ideation was started on the basis of the design brief. Four concepts were chosen from the prepared sketches and evaluated based on a few keywords, including cargo handling, cargo comfort, cargo safety, comparison with existing products, and styling by regular users. The concept with the most votes was chosen as the final one, and a 1:13 scale clay model was created as the final product. 
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Merging High tech with Low tech
by Anand Anbu
Merging Hight tech and Low tech materials is like collaborating two traditions. The focus is to integrate highly optimized technology with low tech products in an efficient and effective manner. My project focuses on coming up with a FM radio in which the FM receiver circuit is open without any external form covering it. The project research ponders the following questions. Do we need a packaging cover design which encloses the functional elements? Is it possible to add aesthetic value to the radio just by showcasing the internal circuits without any external case desgin? Can the visual form be defined by the functional elements of the electronic circuit and still make the radio aesthetecally appealing? Is it possible to place the functional circuit elements in 3D space rather than a 2D printed board
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To design a high-end luxury inter state bus for JCBL Stand out as a superior product
by Anand Anbu
The Summer Internship was for duration of 40 days, from 13th May 2013 to 21th June 2013. Essentially, the idea of the internship was to gain experience by getting involved with an Industry/Firm/NGO and get exposed to their design work and processes. Further the objective of this project is to be part of the process where design is being implemented, contribute towards the process and learn from the situation based on my chosen area of interest
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Design of Taxi Interior and Seating Layout for the commuters of Mumbai
by Anand Anbu
In India, Taxis are the most used mode of Personalised public transport. Due to overcrowding in Mumbai trains, less frequency of buses and requirement for heavy luggage transportation, people prefer using taxis to travel within the city. With growing population and narrow roads, these taxis have to cater to different needs of the commuters. The scope of this project is to identify the issues that are specific to Mumbai taxi interiors. Further Interior design solutions are explored in order to address the issues of the passengers. The main focus of this project is on the seating layout arrangement within a given space taking the vehicle architecture into consideration. The needs of various Mumbai taxi commuters are also studied and different possible usage scenarios are created. The scenarios include luggage carrying commuters from/to railway stations and airports, and wheel chair-driven passengers. Based on these user scenarios, a suitable vehicle architecture is proposed. An interior space arrangement is explored based on the proposed vehicle architecture and an interior layout is finalized. After finalising the layout, the final design solution is derived by concept explorations and scaled mock-ups. A reconfigurable taxi interior space based on different usage requirements is also explored through various seat folding concepts
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Last Mile Personal Mobility Vehicle for the Urban Environment
by Anand Anbu
My project will focus on coming up with a concept which offers a compact single person electric vehicle that allows the user to commute freely without much hassles. The project has various scope such as addressing the last mile connectivity issue or it can be a compact leisure and fun vehicle or a personal mobility vehicle to be used within an environment (ex. academic campus). The major focus will be on designing a last mile personalised transport solution the connects the commuter seamlessly with the public transport systems. In the current scenario, the last mile vehicle which connects the commuter from his home/office to the public transport systems have lot of bottlenecks. The commuter like to use his own personal vehicle to connect to the local public transport networks. But the use of bigger vehicles occupies lot of parking space and lot of hassles. The project aims to come up with a electric bike as a solution for last mile. The main feature of the electric bike will be its carry-ability when not in use. Hence when the commuter uses the public transport like trains, he/she can carry his personal vehicle with him thus allowing larger portability and transportability. In this project, various compact electric vehicle possibilities will be explored and a design which addresses the user needs such as compactness, light weight will be addressed. A preferred riding posture along with the user requirements will be arrived at and a design which addresses the issue of portability of vehicle (when not in use) will be proposed with a possible mock-up of the final design solution.
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Ther - South Indian Chariots
by Harish Kumar P
‘Ther’, the South Indian chariots, also called as temple cars. These vehicles are designed to carry the temple idols by deities around the temple. The temple car is taken out once in a year, that is popularly called as Ther Thiruvizha (temple car festival). Usually belonging to Hindu temples, these have a lot of social impact too. These are made up of materials ranging from wood, stone to more expensive materials like gold and silver. The process of making these also depends upon the place, the practices they follow and the type of craftsmen available in that location. These huge moving art pieces are made by people who are not from any engineering, design or art background, but learn from their ancestors who had been making such structures generations after generations. How could they build such a huge and heavy structure which could move through the streets without any mechanical failures, how does it stay steady even when it is turned by people who doesn’t know how reliable it is. How the whole Ther is made? And who all are involved in it? Who all are involved in building it? How it get its identity? , and more. The project is about finding out answers for these questions, to look into the future and see how these will be made and how people will perceive these colossal moving structures.
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Summer Internship at Royal Enfield
by Harish Kumar P
The one-month internship programme at Royal Enfield ID Studio was a good learning experience. The main objective of this internship is to give an overview of motorcycle design and the process followed at Royal Enfield. The internship began with a quick overview of what was going on inside the studio, why the studio was set up, and a quick look at the line. Then, an overview of Royal Enfield's history and how the motorcycles have evolved to the present day. This was followed by a presentation on the overview of the process followed inside the studio and about the team structure. The team consists of six designers, an illustrator, a model maker, and a design engineer. A few exercises on concept development were given, with frequent feedback and presentations. It is followed by marker rendering techniques and a few tips on presenting the work. The last part of the work is a quick exercise in clay modeling. The internship came to an end with the feedback session. The feedback was very useful. Each and every designer gave their individual feedback.
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Adventure Touring Motorcycle for India
by Harish Kumar P
Motorcycle tourism in India is growing in a rapid phase. Indians when wish to go for long rides especially to unexplored terrains, they usually take existing vehicles to those kind of tours. On the other hand there are motorcycles designed for the sole purpose of adventure touring. And those are very expensive for many Indians to afford. The project is about designing an affordable adventure tourer motorcycle to enable more Indian people to go for such touring. The idea is to take an existing commuter motorcycle from India, change its ergonomics for the purpose of on road and off road touring, consider the equipment Indians would like to carry and position them on the bike considering the usage pattern. Further the styling should also reflect the character of adventure touring. Project 2 | IDC - IITB ADVENTURE TOURING MOTORCYCLE FOR INDIA The design process starts with internet study about the existing adventure tourers and the overall market of these kinds of motorcycles. Study on what Indians carry for touring and what is their view of an adventure touring motorcycle is done. Study of Indian two wheeler market and where does this segment fit in is analyzed. A design brief is made with all the insights derived during the research. In stage 2, Quick ideations and renders were made. A few interesting sketches were selected and developed to get some direction in the project. Ergonomics of the new vehicle is checked by building a rig. Different height users ranging from 5th to 95th percentile were selected and tested on the rig. The optimal positioning of the luggage was iterated using a 3D model. Using that as an underlay, more concepts were made and evaluated. In stage 3, the most promising concept is then taken for more detailing and detailed renderings were made. This was then taken to a tape drawing and 1:3 scale clay model was made.
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Medical First Responder vehicle for Chennai
by Harish Kumar P
First responder vehicles are specialized vehicles which are made to respond for any emergency purposes. They are usually used for fire breakouts, rescue missions, medical emergency, or even for emergency police patrol cases. Their main purpose is to reach the destination faster to take control of the situation even before the actual task force arrives. The project deals with medical first responder vehicles. These vehicles can reach the patient or victim even before the ambulance can reach the spot. This vehicle got to be fast and small enough to cut through traffic and reach the patient to give first aid. In medical terms, they call it the golden minute treatment, in which the patient is given immediate medical response. This immediate response is very critical in cases like Cardiac arrests, airway problems, insects or snake bites, accidents occurring on roads, at home or at workplaces. Paramedics treat the patients on the spot before the ambulance arrives. Mahindra Reva E20 was selected as the base vehicle and the main focus was on the interiors. The Design process starts with investigating the need and scope of the project by doing research on the existing projects and actual use of this vehicle in Indian context. The project is divided into three stages. The first stage concentrates on the need of such a vehicle: Research on the existing products, the users of the vehicle, equipment to be carried during in that vehicle. The vehicle that is going to be used as a base vehicle will also be looked into in this stage. A quick look into the scenarios, the city Chennai which is the target location of the vehicle, will also be touched upon in this stage. The stage ends with generation of inferences out of the user study and a design brief which states the requirements, the technical details and other must have points in that vehicle. Stage 2 starts with quick ideations on how the concepts might be. Quick renderings are also made in this stage. Then package exploration is made to understand how the equipment and the paramedics will be placed inside. Mockups of the equipment simulating the size and weight were made and the package was evaluated on an actual car. Using the selected package, various concepts were made and they were evaluated based on criteria’s like quick accessibility, securing the equipment. The selected concept is refined further and a 1:5 scale interior model was made.
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Nature and Forms: Emergency Evacuation Flight Suit
by Harsh Vardhan Tripathi
Nature has various interesting forms that have developed through thousandsw of years of evolution. They are not just interesting to look at, but also have some core functionality baked into them. This project aims to study these forms, choose one of them and develop the form into something that not only celebrates the form being studied, but also uses its functional properties. In this case, the form being considered is that of the winged seed of the maple tree. The structure of the seed, its reason of occurrence and properties were studied, and attempt was made to capture them into the design of a winged suit for emergency evacuation of skyscrapers. Skyscrapers currently don’t have efficient or fast modes of evacuation in case of emergency. This wing suit aims to solve that problem, through an affordable and easy to use solution, by leveraging the properties of the winged maple seed.
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Styling of Front and Rear ends of a City Bus
by Harsh Vardhan Tripathi
The Litebus project is aimed at creating a lightweight indigenous bus made out of aluminium. A lightweight bus made of Aluminium has many advantages, as outlined below: “The advantages of using aluminium in the bus industry are manifold. Aluminium can be extruded into complex shapes, allowing for intricate design and integrally strong structures. Modern buses with aluminium bodies are several hundred kilograms lighter than those built using conventional methods of construction. This increases the number of people that can be transported for a given maximum permitted weight and reduces running costs…” (world-aluminium.org, 2013) The body is to be made of an aluminium Spaceframe attached to sub-frames made of steel at the front and rear which carry powertrain and other subassemblies like powertrain, etc. The aluminium Spaceframe needs to be as light as possible for there to be a meaningful overall weight reduction. One way to do this is this is to have the frame to be stronger so that it needs less material.
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Design of Low-Cost Rural Public Transport
by Harsh Vardhan Tripathi
Public transport in rural and semi-urban India is largely privately owned, but suffers from the problem that the vehicles available in the market are designed with urban/semi-urban markets in mind. Hence, the owners modify these vehicles extensively to suit the rural requirements, which compromises the safety, comfort and integrity of the vehicle. Also, since the vehicles were not designed with rural markets in mind, they do not tackle the problems in Indian villages specifically. The project was to develop a vehicle tailored for the low end of the rural market, improving upon the existing autorickshaws, but being cheaper than the UVs. The focus, however, was on the interiors. Since the population under study was mostly illiterate and not very articulate, most of the study was done by observation, although a basic questionnaire was also used. An interior layout was prepared which was found to address the problems found in the best possible way. A digital model and a physical model of the same were also made .
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Designing a Micro Sports Car for India
by Harsh Vardhan Tripathi
As the younger earning class in India expands, there are more people with more disposable income. This means that they look for lifestyle vehicles. While this market niche is being effectively tapped by the motorcycle industry, the car industry lacks any suitable alternative, as such leisure vehicles, especially sportscars tend to be expensive imported vehicles. As a result, the users tend to buy either used imported cars or buy a regular car and invest in modifying it to suit their tastes and performance needs. The project was to develop a light and inexpensive sportscar that would cater to this market. By keeping the overall length under 4meters and using a small but powerful engine, it can take advantage of the tax breaks, and be available for a low price. The focus was on the form of the car which should excite the buyers and connect with them, as well as grab attention of onlookers.
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Vehicular Communication for Safety
by Saurabh Nimsarkar
Word safety in automotive sense does not mean safety of the driver but also of the passenger,pedestrian and environmental. Vehicle Safety is of paradigm importance. Safety augmented environment impact are two driving forces which propels the research and development in auto industry which eventually trickles down to the day to day vehicle we use. In India, the motor vehicle population is growing at a faster rate than the economic and population growth. The urge in motorization coupled with expansion of the road network has brought in adverse factors such as the increase in road accidents. Low-income and middleincome countries account for about 85% of the deaths According to the World Health Organization (WHO), road traffic injuries are the sixth leading cause of death in India. This is mainly due to lack of infrastructure,technology,policies and awareness. Vehicular communications includes exchange of information to boost efficiency, traffic safety, and occupant comfort. Latest studies, concludes that about 60% of roadway accidents could be avoided if the driver was warned just one-half second before the collision occurs. This report makes an attempt to study the existing safety and communication features and gives a detailed account of how accidents could have been averted if there had been safety and communication features.
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To design and manufacture a system competitive to TN9 shelving system which will be manufactured locally befitting Indian scenario
by Saurabh Nimsarkar
CAEM is a global company for manufacturing and services related to the shopfitting and retail industry. From its historical headquarters in Subbiano, Italy, the group is constantly evolving and includes several strong companies around the world, making Caem not only global but also local. CAEM India Shelving Private Limited was established in India in 2005 and has around 30-35 employees. CAEM has an office in the heart of India—Nagpur. The process which CAEM follows for Shop Concept Design & Consulting is: Brief from the customer to understand what the customer has in mind: what is the customer's retail business idea, key factors, and success factors Our designers will determine what you require from us and chalk down multiple concepts pertaining- • Cohesive Corporate Image: from the logo to shop signs, business cards to lettering, staff clothing to wall colors. • Concept Interior Design: Typical or actual store design with the most detailed material and detail definition. • Traffic, merchandising, and product visual display • Light technical design • Furniture Development: from concept to finished product from various suppliers • Make reservations for all of the above.a
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Redesign of Tipper Truck
by Saurabh Nimsarkar
Tipper truck/Dump truck is the most essential and necessary vehicle used in construction worldwide. Tipper truck are exposed to hostile terrain as it has to carry lose gravel soil over mountains and mines. There have been frequent incidents of toppling of tipper truck because of inadequate stability on une - ven terrain and drivers’ lack of visibility in unfriendly environment. In Indian sce - nario drivers work for prolonged period even in nights. This eventually causes fatigue and lack of productivity causing possible delay in subsequent loading and unloading cycles. Owner of the truck usually buys the truck considering cost of the truck, capacity and fuel efficiency for overall productivity often ignoring drivers need and comfort.Lack of rules and guidelines for safety augments drivers problem. A driver of the tipper truck faces serious problem of heat,vibration and dust inside the cabin which is claustrophobic and messy. There lack of visibility of dump bed and he does not get feedback of loading and unloading operation. Driver has to depend upon the helper for audi - tory feedback. Problem is aggravated when dump is not evenly distributed on the bed and may lead to toppling. Most Indian tipper are mounted on com - mon HCV chassis and often tipper spe - cific exterior essentials are often turned a blind eye. An effort has been made to mitigate problems and make tipper more user centric.
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ShareSavaree: Public Sharing Vehicle For India
by Saurabh Nimsarkar
ShareSavaree is a public sharing two wheeler for urban India. Pubic sharing system consists of fleet of vehicle of same type kept at self-serve unmonitored station. User can hire these vehicles from any transit station, may use it for desired duration of time and return the vehicle at any other transit station. This gives user the benefits of private vehicle with no cost of ownership and maintenance by paying the rent of the vehicle . Project explored the sharing systems of bicycle, car and electric bike around the world to arrive at a benchmarked system. This benchmarked system was pertaining to parameters like hire cost, proximity and reach of transit station, availability of vehicle in a transit station, system infrastructure, vehicle redistribution and overall user experience. Scenario of daily office point to point travel in Mumbai City and persona of urban technology oriented user above age of 18 were fixed to arrive at a design brief. Technology survey of personal mobility vehicles and product positioning were explored to arrive at a design. Ideation, exploratory sketches and renders were made and selection of final design was based on the criteria listed in the design brief. Cell phone, as an interface between user and vehicle, was explored to deal with user registration, payment, ticketing, vehicle booking, checking in and out of vehicle, theft and vandalism mitigation, and overall user experience. Vehicular concept and renders were made followed by Alias digital model. 1:3 clay model of concept was sculpted. ShareSavaree makes an attempt to conceptualise a future vehicle which will be used in a sharing system, enabling an alternative means of 'on demand travel', and would ease traffic and environmental problems
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Honeycomb Structures for Use In Automotive Industry
by Tanmay Ohri
Honeycomb structures are natural or man-made structures that have the geometry of a honeycomb to allow the minimization of the amount of used material to reach minimal weight and minimal material cost. The geometry of honeycomb structures can vary widely but the common feature of all such structures is an array of hollow cells formed between thin vertical walls. The cells are often columnar and hexagonal in shape. A honeycomb shaped structure provides a material with minimal density and relative high out-of-plane compression properties and out-of-plane shear properties. Man-made honeycomb structural materials are commonly made by layering a honeycomb material between two thin layers that provide strength in tension. This forms a plate-like assembly. Honeycomb materials are widely used where flat or slightly curved surfaces are needed and their high strength-to-weight ratio is valuable. They are widely used in the aerospace industry for this reason, and honeycomb materials in aluminum, fiberglass and advanced composite materials have been featured in aircraft and rockets since the 1950s. They can also be found in many other fields, from packaging materials in the form of paper-based honeycomb cardboard, to sporting goods like skis and snowboards.
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Designing an Electric Hybrid ‘SUV-Sedan’ Crossover Vehicle For Urban India in the Year 2020
by Tanmay Ohri
Looking at the current shift in the automotive industry towards the Electric Vehicles this decade is quite accurately being called the ‘decade of Electric vehicles’. It is very much possible that by the year 2020 there might be a plethora of electric automobiles well absorbed in the market. There have been many attempts made in this industry to establish the electric vehicle, but none of them succeeded. The current picture of the electric vehicle technology seems very promising, with its advancement in the technology as well as acceptability in the market. This shift towards the electric mobility for future by most of the key players of automotive industry ensures that Electric Mobility is here to stay. Equally interesting is the Compact SUV segment which has grown substantially and has established itself as a separate CROSSOVER segment. The people in urban areas have special fondness for this SUV-hatchback crossover segment as it provides the experience of an SUV without the hassle attached to its everyday use. The sedan segment on the other hand has also enjoyed a boom with numerous vehicles being launched by almost all the existing automotive brands due to the level of comfort, efficiency and practicality a sedan provides. It is quite needless to highlight the exceptional growth Indian market has seen in the automotive sector over the last few years. With the predicted future growth of auto sector in India, special focus on the demand of this market has to be put. The project aims at designing an SUV-Sedan Crossover vehicle for India in the year 2020 that runs on an Electric Hybrid drive technology. It deals with exterior design of the vehicle, slightly establishing the electric drive technology being used in it in the year 2020. The idea behind it is to provide the benefits of an SUV vehicle with added experience of a sedan, complete with an efficient electric hybrid drive system for India in the year 2020.
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Customization of SUV (Grand Vitara) with New Accessories Design for MGA
by Tanmay Ohri
As a recent trend, there is a growing need of customization of the vehicle. Since MSIL is the latest to enter this segment, it is needed to design and develop accessories that would change the physical appearance of the vehicle exterior. The accessories should be add-on parts on the OE vehicle and should not require chopping or elaborate modification of the vehicle.
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Tricycle for Paraplegic
by Unni Mohan
The project idea was suggested by Prof Nishant Sharma. Professor had previously used a standard tricycle. This experience of using trike, had encouraged him to come up with a design project for providing a better designed product for paraplegic .Quick research through the market reveled that model which are available have similar layout and found to be less involving to use.The project started with studying examples from India. After preliminary research ,for user study paraplegic foundation in Sion and fellowship of physically handicapped in Mahalaxmi was visited. Detailed study of videos from user study enriched the team with valuable insights. This was followed by a brain storming session to generate and group keywords. Design directions were compiled after brainstorming. These design directions were constantly referred for concept development. Initial stages of concept development was done with the help of wireframe models and CAD. Selected concept was taken up for prototype development. After two iterations a promising prototype was developed.
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Design of Tricycle for Paraplegic
by Unni Mohan
The project idea was suggested by Prof Nishant Sharma. Professor had previously used a standard tricycle. This experience of using trike ,had encouraged him to come up with a design project for providing a better designed product for paraplegic .Quick research through the market reveled that model which are available have similar layout and found to be less involving to use.
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Qudracycle
by Unni Mohan
To design and develop a human powered Qudracycle capable of carrying four people. Idea behind the project is to bring out a sustainable mobility solution, which brings people together (sociable). Qudracycle Four-wheeled human-powered land vehicle Sustainable transport Long-term goals of sustainable transport includes migrating transportation from fossil-based energy to renewable resources. Human powered mobility comes as an ideal sustainable transport solution and probably the most challenging . Sociable The vehicle can act as a platform to bring people together ,providing an opportunity to make ride interesting and interactive.
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Water taxi for inland water ways-Kerala
by Unni Mohan
There are 67 navigable rivers in the state of Kerala. A peculiar feature of Kerala: canals link the lakes and backwaters to form an uninterrupted inland water navigation system. The T S (Travancore-Shornur) Canal, built in 1880, was the main water transport route from Trivandrum to Cochin and beyond till the 1950s. It was the main trade route, especially for transporting spices and grains to the ancient port of Kollam. The per km cost of development of a waterway is insignificant compared to a rail or highway. The maintenance cost of a waterway is also lower. The time taken to develop waterway routes is negligible. IWT is more environmentally friendly than either road or rail.
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2014-2016
(36 items)

History of Automotive design in India
by Ajithlal C M
India is one of the biggest automobile market in the world, and it is the world’s fastest growing one also. It comes in as no surprise as India has the second largest population in the world, and a low base of car ownership (25 / 1,000 people) and a growing economy, India has become a huge attraction for car manufacturers around theworld. While automobiles were introduced in India as long ago as 1890’s, the manufacturing started only after 1970. The first mass produced car to be available in Indian roads is Hindustan Ambassador, which is based on 1950 Morris Oxford. Until1980’s, as Premier Automobiles, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Ashok and Standard Motors were the only manufacturers in India. The revolution in the automobile industry started with the introduction of a people’s car from Maruti Udyog, a state owned company. The result was Maruti 800. It became popular because of its low price, high fuel efficiency, reliability and modern features compared to its competition at the time. Tata Motors exported buses and trucks. The liberalization of 1991 opened up India for the global automotive giants like General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and others set up manufacturing plants. The economic growth resulted in high end automobile manufacturers to come to India like Rolls Royce, Bentley and Maybach.
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Redesign of the superstructure of speedboat 'Freedom'
by Ajithlal C M
The focus of this thesis is to create a new conceptual design for the redesign of the superstructure of the speedboat "Freedom." The speedboat Freedom is the most popular product of Samudra. This product is now 12 years old. It has not received any upgrades. It is losing its market share. Due to the old manufacturing method, it takes 11 days to make one of these. It could be reduced to 5 days if the seats could be integrated into the deck mould. This type of boat is usually primarily focused on aesthetic and practical aspects. However, there are customers requesting performance, which will be the main focus here. A supplementary task is to find ways to apply an engineering approach to the design of a recreational craft in order to help small craft manufacturers optimise their products’ performance. The resulting design is intended to fill the void of large, high-performance superyacht tenders with its lightweight hull and powerful engines. In Samudra, hulls are designed according to naval architect standards. Deck is designed and made in house according to user needs. For large boats, FRP ribs areused as stiffner.They have hull moulds in various sizes and uses them as per customerrequirements. For example they make water taxi with their 7 meter hull, and a force traveler body as a deck mould. So it is possible to use traveler windshield and glasses for the taxi, which is economical.
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Styling of Electric Commuter Motorcycle for Urban Youth
by Ajithlal C M
India is a young nation. 50% of India,s population are of under 25 years of age. Young people wish to express themselves through the things they own. Especially so in the case of vehicles. Even if India is the second largest motorcycle market in the world, it is dominated by commuter motorcycles. For youngsters who live in urban area, the choice is normally any of the mainstream commuter motorcycles, which is aimed at a larger demographic. The project is about styling an electric urban commuter motorcycle for the youth which reflects their lifestyle. Electric drivetrain is preferred because it allows more form exploration. Interviews with potential customers were conducted in order to obtain their insights. These combined with the pre research led to the formation of the concise design breif : ‘ Styling of an electrically powered commuter motorcycle for the urban youthof India’. A vehicle architecture was chosen after comparing and studying different motorcycles that can possibly fulfil the customer needs. Based on the chosen platform, the space and form arrangements are explored and arrived in a final design is derived after concept explorations and evaluation. The deliverables would be the project report, photorealistic renders of the finalized concept and a 1:3 physical model of the same.
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An entry level Royal Enfield
by Ajithlal C M
Royal Enfield is motorcycle company which needs no Introduction. It is one of the oldest, if not the oldest motorcycle manufacturers in the world. After moving into India in 1955, RE has managed to make a huge loyalist following due to its old world charm and emphasize on pure motorcycling. This project is about designing an entry level motorcycle for Royal Enfield. The word ‘entry level’ does not mean that it is going to be a cheap commuter motorcycle. It represents accessibility more than affordability. This motorcycle is going to be the stepping stone to the Enfield world for those who are intimidated with the ‘big bike’ feel of Enfield's. The project will consist of studies of brand, market and the user. A scale model, and final renders would be the deliverables.
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Behaviour of Human Eyes in Identifying Cars
by Amol Bhangare
Automotive styling plays important role in selling of a car or vehicle. How a car looks has always affected its purchase and perception of the brand. Its Visual Perception of an object that creates a desire and makes one opt for ‘whether to have the object or not?’ situation. Automotive visual elements and styling intent is always kept in a way that people can recognize the car, the brand, the model etc. from a distance. Thus studying how eyes see and perceive cars and what are the features that communicate barely enough info to identify a car becomes an important topic. The study may reveal some of the interesting facts about how people see and perceive cars and thus can help in styling.
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Application of TEC (Thermoelectric Cooler)
by Amol Bhangare
The intention behind this project was to study and analyse Peltier's effect and, based on the insights, create and realise an innovative application for the same. 1. About Peltier The Peltier effect is named after Jean Charles Peltier, who first observed it in 1834. The Peltier effect is a temperature difference created by applying a voltage between two electrodes connected to a sample of semiconductor material. Thermoelectric cooling uses the Peltier effect to create a heat flux at the junction of two different types of materials. A Peltier cooler, heater, or thermoelectric heat pump is a solid-state active heat pump that transfers heat from one side of the device to the other with the consumption of electrical energy, depending on the direction of the current. Such an instrument is also called a Peltier device, a Peltier heat pump, a solid-state refrigerator, or a thermoelectric cooler (TEC). It can be used for either heating or cooling, though cooling is the most common application. It can also be used as a temperature controller that either heats or cools. Typical Product Details TEC1-12706-Cooler-Thermoelectric-Peltier-92Wmax

• Type number: TEC1-12706;
• Couples: 127;
 • Vmax (V): 15.2V I maximum (A): 6A
 • Tmax (degrees Celsius): 67
 • Dimensions: 40mm x 40mm x 3.7mm
 • Max. power consumption: 91.2W
 • Ceramic Material: Alumina (Al 2 O 3), Bismuth Tin (BiSn)
 • Package Contains: 1 X Thermoelectric Cooler, 5 X Thermal Paste Sachet

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Bionics in Mobility Design
by Amol Bhangare
Nature has been a rich source of inspiration for design field throughout history. Bionic design can serve as a bridge between the modern design and the evolution of nature. Self-sustainability, efficiency, functional integrity and optimized forms are found in nature. Hence there is great potential of exploring the ideas that can help design better solutions in automotive design field.
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Future Autonomous Compact Transport
by Amol Bhangare
“Future Autonomous Compact Transport” is a P3-level mobility design project (Batch 2014-2016) by Amol Bhangare at IDC, IIT Bombay. It explores the concept of compact, autonomous vehicles—likely focusing on small-scale transport systems designed for future urban mobility. The report investigates how such transport could meet the evolving needs of cities: efficient space use, autonomous navigation, environmental impact, and user convenience. It combines design thinking with mobility engineering principles to imagine how compact autonomous vehicles might be integrated into future transport systems.
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Pottery & Ceramics in Gujarat
by Arjunkumar Bavalia
The pottery is can be synonym for birth, creation. In Hindu mythology also there is vast description of pottery. I chosen this topic as my research seminar because it has touched me. Whenever I use to go to some shopping place or malls and entering in any big shop selling beautiful ceramic pots which are very expensive I come up with an applaud and word’-”Wow”. But I also sometimes think about that who created it who is behind it. Why we have limited those pots for decoration purpose only. Why they are so expensive and very limited available. To answer certain questions arouse in my mind I took up interest and did some study from internet, books, travelling to some places in Gujarat, interacted with potters and their family. Tried different clays and got an hands on experience obtained from different places of Gujarat
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Design Improvisation of manually operated conoweeder for paddy field cultivation in Konkan and Goa Region
by Arjunkumar Bavalia
This is an internship report on the Design improvisation of manually operated conoweeder for paddy field cultivation in Konkan and Goa region. The project was carried under RuTAG office, IIT Bombay. Our country 2nd largest rice producing country after china and it contributes 21% of world production. Generally in most rice producing region of our country are given highly stessed to follow the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) system. This system is one of the factors which contribute to increase productivity within same area of land. The paddy cultivation require huge water source and labour cost especially for remooving weeds in the field. Under the SRI it is emphasize to use less amount of water and take weed as opportunity for productivity and hence reduce labour cost. In our country in many region like North east and Western Ghats the farmers have small part of land in which they grows rice. In that small part of land it is not worth to invest for labour especially for weeding which take most part of cost of production. Under SRI more emphasize is given by various agricultural research institutes to use conoweeder. There are lot of study is ongoing to make it user friendly especially for women labours in the terms of design, ergonomics, efficiency. Conoweeder is used to uproot weeds and again bury them under the soil. The buried plants increase the biomass of the land and hence productivity increase. It has been observed that in Konkan and Goa region the conoweeder is not giving it output effectively. The project was carried out to understand the problem and to study the related factor with the weeder. The journey starts with market survey in India over telephone along with studying various reports from various Agricultural research institues and university in India. Field visit to NGO situated at Narangi village in Raigarh district of Maharashtra, DBSKKV University, and NGO in Goa have been made. The visit comprises interaction with faculties, research team, NGO staff, and farmers. After considering all the studied and observed factors to come up with ideas and thereafter choose one direction to improvise it. The idea is not to solve the concerned problems in the product but to come up with a form in the product. Give a user friendly appearence touch and feel along with ergonomic factor consideration. The project ends up with a full scale CAD model after finalisation from ideation sketching and a half scale mock up model.
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Restyling of Tata SE ryck cab (Exterior)
by Arjunkumar Bavalia
Commercial vehicle is the lifeline of Indian economy. About two-third of goods transportation is handled by commercial vehicle with in the country and across the neighboring country. Commercial vehicle has remarkable contribution in the GDP of country. Commercial vehicle is classified into three major class i.e. light commercial vehicle, medium commercial vehicle and heavy commercial vehicle. Due to reforms by Government, Infrastructure development, mining sector, improvement in roads, hub& spoke model due to urbanization, and golden quadrilateral are main driving factor booming commercial vehicle in India. Especially M& HCV is the most important segment in the range (16 to 25ton) in Indian market. India has become a good market for commercial vehicles among emerging markets (BRIC) compared to triad markets. Most of the company has entered into the Indian market and competing with domestic leading manufacturer. Due to new entrants leading manufacturer’s like TATA, Ashok Leyland market share are decreasing. In Indian most of the domestic manufacturers have continued to sell their trucks in the cowl with chassis only. They have not given importance to the full body importance, aesthetic, essential features, safety, and ergonomics. And now the domestic players are also have started to enter into the international market either by adopting new technology, adding new features, or making JV with foreign players. This project is hypothetical which deals with the restyling of TATA SE truck. The product is chosen for restyling because the product has much potential in the market. The TATA SE is most popular truck still now in every sector like cargo, tipper, defense vehicle, rescue vehicle etc. compared to other models by different manufacturers. But still it requires some change by addition of new essential features, technology, and aesthetic. Which do not only make it sustainable for Indian market but also can increase it demand at International level. This project deals with creating new design language in truck segment for TATA which is exclusively based on styling of exterior cab.
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Dubai City Bus
by Arjunkumar Bavalia
When we say Dubai, few things starts to coming in our mind like a dream city, tall buildings, night life, desert, beaches, super cars, luxury hotels etc. And yes it is true that Dubai is one of the city in the world which has shown enormous amount of change within past 45 years which makes it unique in the world. Dubai is the place where the people from various countries comes as tourists or for employment. To cater their need in transportation Dubai is developing towards integrated transportation system which connects Metro to water transport through surface transport. In the surface transport the feeder buses caters the need for integration and connects entire city along with taxi. This project is a hypothetical academic based project to design a city bus for Dubai. It is not just a city bus but it is a city bus for Dubai. The bus should express Dubainess at the end of the day and which make it different from rest of the city buses running in other cities in the world. It is a 24+D city bus. It starts with the understanding about Dubai and find some design attributes for the design and study about few transportation evolution in the world like in aviation, rail etc. Background study of the users is carried out and on that basis persona decided which makes the research more comprehensive. The project phases and deliverable includes exploration, conceptualization of ideas, final concept rendering, a mock up scale model of exterior and a scale mockup of typical seating pitch represents key design aspects.
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History of Aircrafts and Innovations in Aircrafts
by Jinesh P Bhaskaran
The Wright brothers invented and flew the fist airplane in 1903, recognised as "the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight. Between 1867 and 1896, the German pioneer of human aviation. The Douglas aircraft company was an American aerospace manufacturer based in Southern California. It was founded in 1921 by Donald Willis Douglas, Sr. and later merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to from McDonnell Douglas. Douglas aircraft company largely operated as a division of McDonnell Douglas (MD) after the merger. MD later merged with Boeing in 1997.
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Application of TEC (Thermoelectric Cooler)
by Jinesh P Bhaskaran
The intention behind this project was to study and analyze Peltier’s effect and based on the insights, to create and realize an innovative application for the same. 1. About Peltier The Peltier effect is named after Jean Charles Peltier who first observed it in 1834. The Peltier effect is a temperature difference created by applying a voltage between two electrodes connected to a sample of semiconductor material.Thermoelectric cooling uses the Peltier effect to create a heat flux between the junction of two different types of materials. A Peltier cooler, heater, or thermoelectric heat pump is a solid-state active heat pump which transfers heat from one side of the device to the other, with consumption of electrical energy, depending on the direction of the current. Such an instrument is also called a Peltier device, Peltier heat pump, solid state refrigerator, or thermoelectric cooler (TEC). It can be used either for heating or for cooling,[1] although in practice the main application is cooling. It can also be used as a temperature controller that either heats or cools. Typical Product details TEC1-12706-Cooler-Thermoelectric-Peltier-92Wmax • Type number: TEC1-12706 • Couples: 127 • Vmax (V): 15.2V I max (A): 6A • Tmax (degree Celsius): 67 • Dimensions: 40mm x 40mm x 3.7mm • Max. power consumption: 91.2W • Ceramic Material: Alumina (Al 2 O 3 ), Bismuth Tin (BiSn) • Package Contains 1 X Thermoelectric Cooler 5 X Thermal Paste Sachet
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Adaptation of Driver Interface of VOLVO Trucks for India
by Jinesh P Bhaskaran
Trucks play a major role in smooth running of an economy. They are the base of inland freight movement. There are trucks which travel inter continent to supply goods. All perishable goods supply depends on trucks. But trucking in India is not so developed even the freight movement is plenty. Indian truck drivers spent up to a month in a truck cabin during their trips. Even though India is an emerging economy trucking in India is a cottage industry owned by families and poorly treated drivers. they never get amenities to sleep or take rest, there is no air conditioning and sometimes a kerosene stove is a luxury. With entry of brands like Daimler, Volvo, scania etc. into Indian market trucking going to experience drastic changes.
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Styling of Next gen. last mile people carrier
by Jinesh P Bhaskaran
While rapid transit solutions such as light rail, heavy rail, commuter rail, and bus rapid transit (BRT) are popular ways to increase a particular area’s transit network coverage, the fact that they stop only every mile on average to maintain a high average speed means that geographically most of an urban area will be beyond an easy walking distance to a station. The fact that many residences and businesses lay beyond an easy walking distance to a station is known as the “last mile problem”, and is a barrier to better utilization of a rapid transit network. This project is an attempt to comeup with a last mile people carrying solution for coutries leading commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland.
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Creating an Online Resource Dataspace on fine examples of Design and Craft in India
by Nikhil Kunnath
Bamboo is a wonder material given to the world by mother nature. It is also known for its capabilities of being the fastest growing biomass. I have been seeing bamboo being used in various art and craft specimens in life till now. Thrikkaipetta is a small village in Kalpetta, Wayanad where bamboo and bamboo craft is being promoted for a long time through an NGO called Uravu. My curiosity towards the material takes me to this village where i find out more about the wonder material and what people can do with this natural fibre. Paintings have its roots so deep in our culture. But her aren't much people who paint over bamboo. Here in Wayanad, there is a group of artisans behind BHAVM, a unit under Uravu and try to find answers to some questions about their art.
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Internship at Uravu Trust. Wayanad, Kerala.
by Nikhil Kunnath
Uravu was established in 1996. Uravu Indigenous Science & Technology Study Centre, commonly known as Uravu, is a not-for-profit bamboo-based developmental organization. Uravu Wayanad is a non-government organisation in Wayanad. It works in coordination with people, governments, and businesses to implement programmes for sustainable employment and income generation in rural areas. It is a charitable trust established under the Indian Trusts Act. It began by promoting bamboo and, as a result, providing employment to marginalised social groups through crafts. They provide skill training in bamboo processing, establish micro enterprises; marketing of bamboo handicrafts; cultivate bamboo; and promotion of eco-tourism.
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Bamboo Bicycle for Children
by Nikhil Kunnath
Bicycles have been in use around the globe for a long time now. They probably are the most affordable means of personal transportation available to mankind. Despite being so, the growth in number of people owning one is very less when compared to other motorized means of transportation like cars, bikes & scooters. One major cause for the slow growth rate is the rise in price in the recent years due to various supply chain issues. But despite the rise in price there still is a slow consistently growing demand for bicycles in the country both in urban and rural environments. Children being one of the major reasons for that demand. Bicycles are one of the most prized possessions a child can have which helps in their personal transport. The joy and thrill of motion is one fascinating gift which the bicycle promises. And children try to get them whenever a chance comes. The current bicycle industry is addressing the growing needs of the people in production numbers. But with more production numbers comes more unused & unprocessed wastage depositing up. These deposits will remain untouched in the environment for years as we experience it now, unless proper processing units come.
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Design of Law Enforcement Drone
by Nikhil Kunnath
For things to run smoothly in a country the government makes law and orders. But ensuring that the things are in order is a tough job. All humans have personal goals and agenda and there is always a possibility for clash of agendas which leads to problems. Hence the police force has been given the task to maintain Law and order in the country. To ensure that the task assigned to them is done, the police have to be in the run looking out for the good and the bad happening in their domain. To get that job done, transportation plays an important role and the vehicles in use must have the capabilities to aid the cops in doing so. This project looks into the vehicles which our police forces use and analyze the purpose for which they are used, to make appropriate design interventions so that the job of the cops are made better. A police officer should be a respectable personality in the community. And so do the vehicles which they use.
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Water Transportation
by Pankaj Kuli
• Water transport is the cheapest and the oldest mode of transport. It operates on a natural track and hence does not require huge capital investment in the construction and maintenance of its track except in case of canals. • The cost of operation of water transport is also very less. It has the largest carrying capacity and is most suitable for carrying bulky goods over long distances. • It has played a very significant role in bringing different parts of the world closer and is indispensable to foreign trade
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Photovoltaic Products
by Pankaj Kuli
Photovoltaics (PV) is the name of a method of converting solar energy into direct current electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon commonly studied in physics, photochemistry and electrochemistry. An organic solar cell or plastic solar cell is a type of polymer solar cell that uses organic electronics, a branch of electronics that deals with conductive organic polymers or small organic molecules, for light absorption and charge transport to produce electricity from sunlight by the photovoltaic effect.
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Bionics in Mobility Design
by Pankaj Kuli
Design inspired by nature, bionic design, biomimetic, biomimicry, or biologically inspired design have been a source of inspiration for design activities for a long time. Design endeavors in several technical disciplines may lead to groundbreaking new concepts when natural systems are considered as a source of inspiration. Despite the success attained in several cases from the use of this approach in design, the bio-inspired design approach may still have room for improvement, in order to become more systematic.
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Sports car for Le Mans 2030
by Pankaj Kuli
There is nothing like the Le Mans 24 Hours. The world’s greatest race has always been more than the pure pursuit of speed. Le Mans is the ultimate test of ideas, innovations, endurance, creativity and beauty. In recent years, Le Mans organizers have pushed for significant reductions in fuel, energy and tire usage. The open formulas available to achieve those results have made Le Mans the most relevant and exciting form of competition for manufacturers worldwide. This design project started out of my passion towards sports cars and race cars
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Pros & Cons of Autonomous Vehicle
by Rishi Soman
This report explores the positive and negative impact of autonomous vehicles on transportation systems and it’s effects on human lifestyle.
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Concept Electric Bike for Tork Motors
by Rishi Soman
This high performance electric street bike is proposed to be the flagship product for Tork Motors. A prototype of this concept would be built to be used as a proof of concept and to invite potential investors
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Restyling the BAJAJ CHETAK
by Rishi Soman
The Chetak brand was killed and hence it has not been imagined comprehensively restyled while the Vespa has come a long way in terms of styling and product. Hence, a restyling of Chetak makes sense. 1.2 Scope of the project Advancement in technology and materials mean newer and more efficient forms can be designed. Compact, newer IC engine drivetrains or even electric drivetrain can give much more freedom in design and packaging of the restyled vehicle. A new and contemporary interpretation of the classic design could give new character to the Chetak. Original Chetak had more of a work horse like character. Almost exclusively ridden my men, it reflected the strong patriarchal society of 80s & 90s India. The new design is ought to be a unisex design appealing both to men and women. Restyle will be challenging as the new design should respect the nostalgic values of the Chetak and also should be different from the current Vespa lineup.
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Design of a race car for LE MANS 2030
by Rishi Soman
Michelin North America, Inc. hosts the annual Michelin Challenge Design to support creative thinking and innovation in vehicle design. Michelin challenges the international design community, individuals, small and large companies and universities, to enthusiastically create innovative and aesthetically pleasing design solutions that will meet the theme requirements of the Michelin Challenge Design 2017. [1] 1.1 Challenge for 2017 The challenge for 2017 is “Le Mans 2030: Design for the win” Michelin encourages creative individuals to create a breakthrough race car to win the Le Mans 24 Hours in the year 2030. Entrants are encouraged to utilise future-looking technologies, innovations, and pioneering problem solving skills to design a car that reinforces the premium brand image of a company that is either famous for its historical successes, or ready to elevate its brand through a Le Mans 24 Hours win. 1.2 Aim of the project The aim of the project to is propose a competitive, winnable concept for the Michelin Challenge Design. The final proposal should be innovative in it’s use of technology and aesthetically pleasing in order to win the competition. 1.3 Scope of the project Designing a race car for Le Mans relevant to the year 2030, involves study of future technologies and process of the human civilisation. Le Mans being a prestigious endurance race, the study of it’s legacy should help extrapolate the future racing scenario. The project would embark on a futurist, conceptual journey, trying to understand the future of mankind.
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Visual Analysis of Hand Painted Lettering in Tamil
by Rohit Kartha
Hand painted street murals have been around for decades and are still found in and around the city of Chennai. Like Kollywood, Marine beach, sambaar vada and filter coffee hand painted tamil typa has become an integral part of the culture of Chennai. This project focuses on documenting analysing and categorising various types of hand painted murals.
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Kerala Boat Design Project
by Rohit Kartha
Alappuzha, also known as Alleppey, is the administrative headquarters of Alappuzha District in the south Indian state of Kerala. Alappuzha is the sixth largest city in Kerala with an urban population of 177,029. The different types of traditional Kerala boats found in the waters of Alappuzha can be broadly classified into these categories: kettu vallam (sewn boats), Shikara, house boats, large house boats, luxury house boats, small boats, Chundan Vallam (beaked boat), etc. The boats are made of natural products like bamboo, coir, and anjili tree wood, with cashew oil being used to waterproof the wood.
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Urban Personal Transportation for India
by Rohit Kartha
India is said to overtake china’s population by the year 2022, according to a study done by the United Nations. This not only means an overall growth of urban areas around the country but the expansion of existing urban areas. The city of Mumbai is currently the most densely populated city in the world and three out of 10 of the densest cities by population happen to be in India. With an urban population set to rise by more than 400 million people to 814 million by 2050, India faces the kind of mass urbanisation only seen before in China, and many of its biggest cities are already bursting at the seams. In such a setting of dense urban metropolises, transportation and transport networks form the lifeline of the system without which a gridlock is inevitable. This project will focus on understanding the needs of a modern day urban commuter in Mumbai and try to suggest a vehicle concept for urban personal mobility.
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Luxury Yacht Inspired from Traditional Kerala Boats
by Rohit Kartha
This project deals with the design of a luxury yatch inspired from traditional Kerala boats and Kerala culture and aesthetic. The yatch is intended to usher in a new era to Kerala tourism which will equipped to handle tourists expecting very high standarads of luxury yet want to be immersed in the experience that is Kerala. The project will follow the design process of identifying a market segment, a potential user, and the need for such a product. Research into tourism trends and papers on expectations and satisfaction of tourists and the essential factors of luxury hospitality will be studied. The desiagn brief will streamline the process in conceptualizing a yatch with interiors and an exterior inspired by Kerala aesthetics. The proposed design will be a culmination of various factors, studies and interactive concepts that does justice to the brief.
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Situation of Mumbai Public Transport
by Shreyas Ganesh Barve
In this study I looked at existing situation of public transport in Mumbai city. There are many factors which influences the public transport in Mumbai. It is very important to understand these key players which are affecting the public transport in Mumbai , to understand the route causes of the same. The city is said to be on the limit of its saturation. All the resources including water, land, train etc. are at their limits. The number of vehicles on road is putting the stress on the road network and eventually on the public transport.
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Design of Handle Bar for Tricycle
by Shreyas Ganesh Barve
With the use of three wheels, balancing is not required, but on the other hand, three wheels create more frictional force that the user has to overcome. Background Study Due to increased friction, the effort required to move the vehicle from a speed of zero is difficult with the existing cycling system. In the existing cycling motion, users apply pull force with one hand and push with the other. The same system in a tricycle can create some problems which can be associated with handling the vehicle, as the same hands used for handling are supposed to apply forces in opposite directions. Tricycles are the ideal and most frugal mobility solution for paraplegics in our country. It is provided with all controls easily accessible to paraplegic users. Tricycle is the ideal and most frugal mobility solution for paraplegics in our country. It is provided with all controls easily accessible to paraplegic users. Users use their hands to power the vehicle, maneuver the vehicle and to control other accessories like gears, brakes
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Restyling of Tata Winger
by Shreyas Ganesh Barve
The small commercial vehicle (SCV) is the largest segment within the Commercial Vehicle (CV) segment with 60 % of sales. SCV segment is dominating the commercial vehicle market which will account for 80 % of market share. The advantage of SCV is their versatility. These vehicles can only handle loads up to 2-3 tons but reach of these vehicles is impressive. Currently Tata Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra are the biggest player in this segment. The types of vehicles available are mini trucks and pick-ups. The use of commercial vans also known as transit vans in India is very limited in goods transport. Commercial vans are type of vehicles which can provide good comfort to the user and better product quality .This project deals with restyling the existing Tata Winger as a small commercial vehicle. The current Tata winger is based on Renault Traffic MK1 model ( 1995-2001). The Renault traffic was upgraded twice afterwards. Existing Tata winger follows design language commonly used in late 90s. So there is a need to upgrade the existing design of the Tata winger so that it follows current trends and design language of Tata motors. The expectations of user were briefly understood with the help of user study and study of reports depicting current situation of Indian commercial vehicle segment. The user study was useful in identifying the test of the user and its expectation from a commercial vehicle. As per the research the brief was set up to restyle the existing Tata Winger as a goods carrier with upgraded design following the design language of the Tata. Various design directions were explored to suite the test of the user. While exploring , rugged and Quintessentially simple are the keywords considered.
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Race car Design for Le Mans
by Shreyas Ganesh Barve
The competition started in the year 1923 at the Le Mans Race Circuit, France. The purpose of the event has always been to provide a platform for the car manufacturers to test their innovations in actual conditions. It also gave the opportunity for small-scale car manufacturers to show off their inventions and designs. Circuit de la Sarthe, also known as the 24 Heurus Circuit. It is a semi-permanent race track, consisting of local roads which remain open to normal traffic during most of the year.
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2015-2017
(28 items)

Mapping of Design Drivers (advancements post year 2000) w.r.t. the field of mobility
by Abhishek Gogoi
Human evolution, technological advancements, and our environment play a huge role in driving one’s design inventions in the field of mobility. Using these three factors and breaking them down further into varied subcategories, namely 19 factors, for the case of this project, post-2000, the developments and advancements that have happened were studied and analysed. This includes a wide variety of inventions and innovations, right from textile levels all the way to nanotechnological levels. For instance, one of the most evident changes happening in the recent past is the onslaught of electric-powered vehicles. We can see here that although these are primarily to target the issues of rising population and better economic output, they have also resulted in a new aspect of looking at vehicles because of the absence of a gasoline powertrain. Hence, one innovation can be connected to multiple factors.
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Form Design for a Jet-Ski by Samudra Shipyard Ltd.
by Abhishek Gogoi

Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd. is located around the Kollam-Kottapuram Waterways.

The project assigned was to design a new form for the deck of a water scooter or micro-boat made by Samudra Shipyard. In its initial stage, the project had three factors linked to it: not altering the hull of the boat; changing the propulsion from the outboard engine with an inboard engine with jet propulsion; and a sporty character sitting as a pillion rider with adequate storage space for freebies and life jackets.

After going through and studying the water scooter that Samudra Shipyard makes, a brief study on an existing Yamaha Jet-Ski was done. The Jet-Ski that was in the shipyard is a Yamaha SuperJet. It is categorised as a PWC (personal watercraft).

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Design of a Public Commuter Vehicle for Guwahati
by Abhishek Gogoi

The Advent of road transport in modern Guwahati as elsewhere in India, has developed during the British period. The first form of a vehicle used in Assam, was in the year 1942, at the WWII time; a military bus used to run through the heart of the city for their own use. Post-independence, new roads were constructed and major repair happened. 1947, the first city bus was placed on the roads of the city. It was a Ford-L Land Bus, named ‘Shuttle Service’, later renamed as ‘Navayuga’. By the year 1975, there were 8 city bus routes spawning over the entire region.

A decade ago, the popular means of transportation within the city were cycle-rickshaw, Auto-Rickshaw and City buses, city buses being the most widely used mode. It was however found that, even though the bus routes were widespread, it did not connect the localities thoroughly. There was still a large section which remained unconnected; narrow lanes were primarily the reason prohibiting the entry for buses. To tackle this issue, in 2003, Assam government came up with a new transport system – by use of a stripped-down Tata Sumo, naming it the ‘Trekker’ system. It received an overwhelming response from the crowd.

Over the course of development, the transport system in the city has developed a giant leap, with the government recently launching a fleet of 400 AC Volvo buses. Trekker service, has seen considerable changes since its establishment. But this hasn’t been addressed in depth, one of major concerns is overcrowding of the vehicle.

This project deals with the acute problems faced in the trekker segment and redefining it from grounds-up to make it stay updated to the current aesthetic and safety norms that ply on the road globally keeping the routes of Assam preserved.

As per the research, brief was set to design a new four-wheeler vehicle with ease and quick ingress/egress capability, weather protection and safety and humbleness in the design to suit to the Guwahati city context. Safety, modern, humbleness and welcoming were the keywords in shaping up the final design.

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Styling of a lifestyle three-wheeled motorcycle for avid elderly users
by Abhishek Gogoi

Motorcycling is one of the last freedoms available to those who want the total view, the total sound, and, very importantly, the total smell of our planet. Once an avid rider, he remains an avid rider. Also, with time, owning a motorcycle becomes more of a lifestyle statement. However, motorcycling and age don’t go hand in hand. As one ages and gets closer to retirement, motorcycling becomes more challenging.

The main intention of this project, was to design a motorcycle for such riders who can continue riding their passion, experiencing the same motorcycle feel minus the risks and certain difficulties that come with it. Another intention of this project was to style a trike, i.e., a three-wheeled motorcycle, as it provides a broader spectrum of safety and comfort. Secondly, the product was designed throughout to be viable in the very near future. And thirdly, it must connect to the emotions of the prospective users.

A brief study of the motorcycles of the classic era in India was researched, along with global trends happening in the three-wheeled motorcycle segment. A thorough user research helped in finding out what the prospective users really wished for while going motorcycle riding.

As per the research, the design brief was set to ‘Styling of a three-wheeled motorcycle for avid elderly users’, with certain parameters to work around: ease of access, luggage bags, and a new riding experience. The challenge was to design it in such a way that it doesn’t look as if it is a differently abled motorcycle. As the keywords that came out of the survey grand, classic,larger-than-life," and road presence, the final design helped in portraying these characters.

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Nature and Form: Use of Particle Swarms in Form Generation
by Ashwin R Krishnan

Designers, artists, and sculptors use several methods to create and visualise forms. Traditional methods involve using materials like clay, foam, metals, and so on to sculpt the desired shape. Modern methods like 3D printing are additive, that is, the sculpting is done by continuous addition of material. Even in the automotive domain, industrial plasticine is used to develop forms for vehicle exteriors.

The problem with these methods is that they are either too time-consuming or labor-intensive, or the process is not flexible enough. For instance, a 3D-printed model cannot be further modified. Foam or clay modelling requires specific tools and skill sets. Therefore, there is a need for a form development method that can be used to quickly create and visualise aesthetic forms.

Swarm behaviour in nature was studied for this. Birds, fish, and even mammals often travel in very large swarms, seemingly guided by an unknown force. They can rapidly rearrange and reorganise themselves to change direction, avoid threats, and so on. The mechanism of swarm formation was studied in order to understand and apply it in the context of form development. The existing applications of swarm-inspired technology were also studied in order to get context for the proposed solution.

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Design of Single-Bedroom Houseboat for Samudra Shipyard Ltd.
by Ashwin R Krishnan

The project was done as a part of an internship at Samudra Shipyard Ltd, based in Kochi, Kerala. Samudra Shipyard specializes on applying Fibreglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) technologies to build a wide variety of boats and related equipment for different purposes. Having an experience of more than three decades in this field, Samudra has also taken part in a number of collaborative projects with other organizations and the state government. The project was done as the preliminary stage of introducing a new product into the market, a single bedroom houseboat aimed at small families or couples. It provided an opportunity to learn about the various aspects of water transport and the unique challenges faced while designing solutions for water based mobility.

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Exploring Transformability of MPV into Ambulance
by Ashwin R Krishnan
Emergency Medical Service (EMS) systems in India are still largely uncoordinated and decentralised. The absence of any nationalised standards or regulations means different operators act on their own accord, resulting in widely scattered responses across different organisations and entities. They are the critical issues of accessibility and affordability, adding up to the fact that in many cases, the primary patient transport from the scene of an emergency to the hospital is usually done in other vehicles such as taxis, auto rickshaws, or private cars. Such vehicles are more ubiquitous and easily accessible than dedicated ambulances. So there is scope to adapt them into a patient transport vehicle. This is especially true for larger MPV taxis, which have enough interior room to adequately simulate the space inside an ambulance. Integrating an emergency medical service into an existing online taxi service (such as Uber or Ola) can lead to a more accessible, affordable, and trustworthy system.
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Exterior Styling for 2030 based on technology and human factors
by Ashwin R Krishnan

Throughout history, technology and culture have driven each other to progress. Technology is created out of direct and indirect human needs, while certain technologies create new needs. The result of this symbiotic relationship is what we generally call as ‘trends’. Like how the smartphone and internet technology have driven the whole trend of selfies and image sharing, we can find evidence of trends at any point in history.

The automotive industry, being highly capital-intensive, not to mention the fact that a new vehicle takes at least a few years to go from idea to production,relies a lot on setting and responding to trends. Since designers are always in the business of predicting the future, a thorough study of past trends can help as a tool to anticipate and predict future trends. The research part of this project is to attempt the same: unravelling the complicated relationships between technological and cultural progress and the trends that originated from them. Based on this study, the near future can be anticipated with reasonable accuracy, which serves as the basis for the design phase of the project.

Designing the exterior for a car to be launched in 2030 involves certain challenges. The design aims to be reflective of cutting-edge technology as well as the anticipated lifestyle and specific human needs of that era.

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Biomimicry in Nature: Swarms Inspired Shape Shifting Material
by Peddoju Deepak

With its 3.8 billion years of experience, nature has always been a great source of inspiration and information. Nature has evolved with time, adapting to various conditions and taking shape for optimum adaptation in a particular environment. Designers and engineers in search of new ideas always seek inspiration from nature. As we continue to observe and understand, nature continues to show us the best ways to handle various problems.

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Design of Electric Boat with Auxiliary Solar Power
by Peddoju Deepak

To understand waterways and the means of water transport in Kerala, we set out to experience them. As a part of it, we have travelled on different boats via national waterways. Mainly the districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam, Kollam, Ernakulam, and Kannur are well connected by inland waterways, which have frequent water transport facilities. The government runs different kinds of boats depending on the distance and the demand for the particular route at an affordable price. They vary from single deck to double-deck boats.

Apart from public transport, leisure boats are very popular in Kerala. Tourists from around the world enjoy taking these rides. Even local people show a lot of interest in leisure rides now and then. Shikara, hop-on, hop-off, and house boats are a few types that are popular for leisure rides within inland waterways. Samudra Shipyard has given us a chance to experience canoeing, rowboating, and an exclusive ‘Kopra Vallam’ day cruiser ride.

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Interior Design for a Personal Semi-Autonomous Vehicle 2025
by Peddoju Deepak

Earlier in the 1950s, people were dreaming about the future of flying and self-driving cars that would make transportation fast and safe. Fast forward to 2016, and there is no sight of flying cars; instead, roads are jammed with vehicles emitting harmful gases that are threatening to humans. Technology advancements over the years have reshaped our dreams about the future. Flying cars may take a couple more decades, but the future looks promising, as we are very close to seeing cars that can drive on their own. Technology advancements have proved that machines can be better than humans in certain areas. Which makes us believe that the future of transport is going to be safer with autonomous technology as it helps solve traffic problems, eliminate human errors, and also unlock new possibilities.

With autonomous vehicles on the road, possibilities seem endless. People can indulge in other activities if they are not in charge of the car anymore. Truly enjoying travel doesn’t seem like a dream anymore. All these possibilities change the way cars are going to be treated. This situation throws us a question: how do we treat cars if they are not meant to be driven or partially driven? Automotive industries are very confident about autonomous technology and have already started working towards it.

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Car Styling for the Year 2030 based on Technology and Human Factors
by Peddoju Deepak

Usually, the needs and demands of the users drive product designs. These needs keep changing every year, every decade, and so on. And many factors influence and change customer needs and demands from time to time. Technology and culture are two important factors that bring about change. As technology advances, it creates new needs, which could shape a new product. This product may have a cultural impact, which in turn drives technology forward. Things like this result in changes in needs, which are called trends.

The same is true for the automotive industry.In fact, it is more important to understand the user needs and demands in the automotive industry, as it is an expensive and long-term process. It takes 4 to 5 years for a vehicle to get into production from the initial phase of design. By the time the vehicle hits the road, the user may have new needs and demands, and the product may not succeed if it fails to address the new needs. So, to avoid such failures and produce appealing vehicles, designers constantly follow trends. Understanding the current trends in various fields would help designers predict the future trends that are used to design new products.

As the project aims to design a car for the year 2030, the research phase of the project aims to understand past trends and their influences on car design.

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Visual Grammar of Street Signs in Kanpur
by Lavendra Kumar Shukla
Understanding the principles of visual communication through street signage is very critical for enhanced design languages. An observational study was a better way to know the ideology of untrained artists. To understand their choices about selecting fonts, typefaces, and colours, I have observed several artists in Kanpur who have been practising for decades or more. I found that some of them were very talented at spotting the visual grammar. Every painter had their own design style without knowing any coding of typography.
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Facelifting of Eicher 485 Tractor
by Lavendra Kumar Shukla
Facelifting of Eicher 485 Tractor is a mobility design project by Lavendra Kumar Shukla, done in the 2015-17 batch. The Indian tractor industry is currently undergoing a significant transformation, with agriculture serving as the backbone of the economy, contributing 18% of the nation's GDP, 10% of exports, and providing livelihood for over 62% of the population. With only 42% of land effectively used for agriculture, the scarcity of farm labor, and increasing urban encroachment, there is a pressing need for better mechanized solutions to sustain productivity and ensure food security. Tractors, once limited to cultivation, have now expanded into versatile roles such as construction material transport, gradually replacing traditional methods. However, challenges such as low penetration in rural areas, high costs of advanced machines, and the dominance of medium HP models highlight the gaps in accessibility and innovation. Revamping the tractor industry through improved design, affordability, and technology integration is vital for attracting new generations of farmers, strengthening cultivation strategies, and sustaining India’s agricultural growth in the next decade.
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Redesigning of Wheelchair for Indian Context
by Lavendra Kumar Shukla

India is not a physically disabled-friendly country as compared to other countries. According to the 2011 census, 2.1% of the Indian population is physically disabled. According to the 2011 census, 75% of persons with disabilities live in rural areas, 49% of the disabled population is literate, and only 34% are employed. If we think of mobility aids for the disabled person, the public transportation system seems very discriminatory to disabled people. Most common modes of public transport don’t keep disabled people in mind, especially people using wheelchairs. Even if ramps are provided somewhere, a major complaint is that those ramps are not properly built according to the regulations, which makes going up and coming down the ramp a challenge.

The design of wheel chairs started with an Internet study to know the current scenario of wheelchairs. A market study was carried out to know the present manufacturers available in India. For a better understanding of the products available on the market, I have done comparisons between the existing products. An ethnography study was done by myself as a user to observe the problems of the existing product and to address the design gap in the existing product to meet the user's needs. The feedback that was taken from actual users and attendees was also considered for concept generation and design execution. The final output is a wheel chair that must provide ease of manoeuvrability to the user by providing better transportability and transferability.

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Designing of Wheelchair for Cerebral Palsy Patients
by Lavendra Kumar Shukla

Disabled children are of great concern to a family as well as to society. When disability is discussed, particularly in children, about a quarter of chronic childhood problems are neurological in origin. Cerebral palsy (CP) is the leading cause of chronic disability in children, making them physically and mentally handicapped and socially aloof.

The worldwide incidence of CP is approximately 2 to 2.5 cases per 1000 live births. In India, it is estimated at around 3 cases per 1000 live births; however, being a developing country, the actual figure may be much higher than the probable figures. There are about 25 lakh CP children in India, as per the last statistical information.

It is a symptom complex or syndrome condition rather than a single disease. It is an umbrella term encompassing a group of nonprogressive, non-contagious conditions that cause motor impairment syndrome, characterised by abnormalities in movement, posture, and tone. In short, it is a group of symptoms occurring due to the involvement of musculature, sense organs (i.e., vision, hearing, speech, etc.), and the mind, including intelligence at variable extents. It can be caused by any of the pre-natal, natal, and post-natal factors, and the primary eventual pathology is any type of injury to the developing brain. Due to the non-progressive nature of the lesion, historically it has been considered a static encephalopathy, which excludes all progressive neurological disorders. No effective treatment for the underlying brain damage has been formulated to date.

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Design of Electric Boat with Auxiliary Solar Power
by Prakash M. Sonkamble

To understand waterways and the means of water transport in Kerala, we set out to experience them. As a part of it, we have travelled on different boats via national waterways. Mainly the districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam, Kollam, Ernakulam, and Kannur are well connected by inland waterways, which have frequent water transport facilities. The government runs different kinds of boats depending on the distance and the demand for the particular route at an affordable price. They vary from single deck to double-deck boats.

Apart from public transport, leisure boats are very popular in Kerala. Tourists from around the world enjoy taking these rides. Even local people show a lot of interest in leisure rides now and then. Shikara, hop-on, hop-off, and house boats are a few types that are popular for leisure rides within inland waterways. Samudra Shipyard has given us a chance to experience canoeing, rowboating, and an exclusive ‘Kopra Vallam’ day cruiser ride.

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Biomimicry in Design: Nature inspired camouflage mechanism
by Rajkumar Kewat
Mankind has always used nature as inspiration while creating things. More often than not, solutions derived from nature have proven to be far more efficient and effective than our so-called clever ideas. Through this project, Prof. Nishant Sharma prompted me to look into nature and tackle the problem of camouflage. Cuttlefish are famous for their ability to blend almost perfectly with whatever environment they are in. By using their superior camouflage mechanism as inspiration, the aim was to design a new system that could actively adapt to the surrounding environment. Biomimicry is an approach to innovation that seeks sustainable solutions to human challenges by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns and strategies.
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LPG Transportation via Waterways
by Rajkumar Kewat
Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd. is a manufacturer and supplier of all types of watercraft, including house boats, speed boats, water scooters, paddle boats, canoes, etc. To understand the waterways transportation, public transport boats travel small distances; there are also some long-distance boats, like Alappuzha to Kollam, an eight-hour journey of 85 kilometres. We travelled in different kinds of boats, from public transport to private leisure boats. Each boat has its own feeling of ride and a different travelling experience.
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Interior of the police patrolling combat vehicle
by Rajkumar Kewat

Law enforcement in India is performed by numerous agencies. These agencies are controlled by the central and state governments. There are special forces to handle particular circumstances.

Police officers assist in maintaining public law and order 24 hours a day, seven days a week.Which involves patrolling specific areas as a daily routine. In addition to this, they act as first responders in an emergency. Patrolling troops with different vehicles are used based on the situation. These troops have different needs and carry specific equipment. But the vehicles provided to them are not specific, which in our case are mostly passenger vehicles. As they spend more than 12 hours patrolling, it is necessary to address their needs.

Even though troops use different vehicles for different tasks, there is a need to fulfil their specific requirements. This makes the problem challenging.

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The Technology of Star Trek
by Divyanshu Thakur

Star Trek is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. It is a cult television series that has received appreciation from all corners of the world. Created in the late 1960s, the timeline of Star Trek is based on the 23rd century A.D. The original series, which portrays the USS Enterprise commanded by Captain Kirk, shows the adventures of the ship around the galaxy as they meet new species, get attacked by hostile sentient aliens, and discover new technology.

This project tries to document the futuristic technology of the original series, which has become a normal part of people's lives in the future. The methodology involved was to thoroughly analyse each hour long episode to look for subtle and obvious ways in which technology interacts with the environment, the crew, and other organisms around the galaxy.

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Summer Internship at Vivek Amberkar Product Design
by Divyanshu Thakur

Cranial electrotherapy stimulation (CES) is a form of non-invasive brain stimulation that applies a small, pulsed electric current across a person's head to treat anxiety, depression, insomnia, and chronic pain. Electrodes are placed on the earlobes, maxilla-occipital junction, mastoid processes, or temples. CES has been widely used by dental surgeons in western countries, which helps the patient relax so that the surgeon can perform dental operations. In the United States, CES technology is classified by the Food and Drug Administration as a Class III medical device and must be dispensed by or on the order of licenced healthcare practitioners. The FDA indicates that there are 11 CES devices cleared for marketing in the United States.

One such device is made by Nucalm Technologies, a company based in the USA that produces and sells CES devices. Their existing product is sold as a package of separate devices that must be used by the patient. They want the new product to be an integral device that houses all the separate components into a single unit and looks appealing to the user. Since it will now be marketed to a wider audience, the redesigned product should also look stylish and have the feel of a premium product.

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Two Wheeler for Package Delivery People
by Divyanshu Thakur
Package delivery has become a large business in recent years in India. People order millions of products online on a daily basis, and these products are shipped to them at their doorsteps mostly by delivery boys on their two-wheelers. In recent years, the number of two-wheeler delivery boys has increased multifold due to the large demand for door-to-door delivery. However, there are a lot of issues with the way these people carry the packages. A lot of health issues have been reported by riders due to this delivery system. The riders often complain about a lack of security features and discomfort due to the occupation. But as of now, no significant solution has been implemented to reduce or eliminate the problems they face. It is high time, looking at the sheer number of delivery boys on the road and the risks they have to face due to this occupation, that a solution be implemented to improve their situation. This project aims to design a bike that would aid the rider in performing his job in an easier and simpler way.
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Fire Fighting Vehicle for Urban Crowded Areas
by Divyanshu Thakur

The Mumbai Fire Brigade has been operating with large first responders for quite a long time. Since the dawn of overpopulation in the city, the city is becoming more crowded, roads are getting narrower due to the encroaching of settlements, and it becomes difficult for emergency vehicles to pass through these roads in case of a disaster. Because the fire responders vehicles are so large, their response times are heavily affected by their own size. Most of the time, not all of the equipment that is placed on a first responder is actually needed at the scene of the disaster.

This project tries to understand what can be done to tackle fire-related disasters in the crowded urban streets of a metropolitan city. What causes inconvenience to the current fire fighting system, the kinds of fire fighting systems in an urban fire fighting system, and focusing on a particular kind of fire fighting system. The goal of the project is to come up with a concept for a firefighting vehicle that can perform all the vital functions of a traditional firefighting engine while being able to tackle the challenges of a crowded urban city.

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Mobility for Fun
by Umesh Ganesh Dinde

This project is mainly focuses on the fun and recreational vehicles. These vehicles are may be or may not be daily commuter yet they such vehicles invoke feeling of joyfulness, enjoyment and excitement while riding. ‘Mobility for Fun’ projects major aim to identify what makes any vehicle to raise such feelings and articulate them into more meaningful manner. This project will help to know how excitement, enjoyment etc. fun felling appealed through a vehicle.

Mobility is broadly understood as a medium of commuting from point A to Point B. This commuting process need not to be dull, boring or grey in nature. When fun element attached to any object it become as a game. Being human we love to play and enjoy, it is sort of recreational activity and mental boost to humans. This project is exactly probing into that area and tries to identify and explain what are those factors in mobility which create enjoyable experience. Going one step ahead this project also attempt to identify what are the aspects make mobility more enjoyable.

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Inland Water Ways
by Umesh Ganesh Dinde
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Design of Urban Commuter
by Umesh Ganesh Dinde
Automobiles are the most preferred means of transport in an urban scenario owing to their ease of use, freedom, and convenience. The increasing urbanisation due to the rapid development of the economy has resulted in an explosion of vehicles on the urban roads to such an extent that driving a car or wide-track vehicle is nearly impossible. The exploding traffic scenario poses a lot of problems, like congestion, air pollution, noise pollution, frustration, etc. The lack of adequate infrastructure and space also adds to the issues of congestion and increasing traffic jams in the cities. Protection from the elements like rain, dust, and smoke is another factor forcing commuters to drive big, inefficient vehicles to the workplace rather than riding a single-track motorcycle, which offers no or minimum rider protection. Also, the inadequacy of mass transport systems and a general perception of the vehicle as a necessity rather than a luxury are resulting in higher rates of vehicle ownership. All these issues call for a new segment of vehicle, which is for urban commuting, addressing the issues of rider protection, parking, pollution, and making vehicles fun to ride.
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Modular Mobility for Future
by Umesh Ganesh Dinde

This project focuses on an emergent modular design approach. It is an attempt to combine the advantages of standardisation and customization. The modular vehicle is a disruptive concept for future mobility systems.

Current vehicles are remotely modular within their brands. This project deals with the idea of modularity in vehicles. An alternate way of building vehicles in the future, where vehicles will not stay as they are for the entire product life cycle. At any given point, vehicles may be modified aesthetically or technologically. In that way, there will be absolutely no need to change the entire vehicle. This will result in the utilisation of a much smaller amount of resources to build a new vehicle. Secondly, the user can keep pace with ever-changing technologies; hence, he has the opportunity to update his vehicle by paying only a fraction of the cost.

A modular vehicle enables a user to build, modify, or upgrade this vehicle as per his personal preferences and evolving needs. This may also lead to an increase in the longevity of the vehicle.

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2017-2019
(39 items)

Recent advances in design innovation in mobility and vehicle design
by Anshuman Dixit
Public sharing and all other ridesharing organisations fail to answer users needs to ride in a simple, quick, and efficient manner from door to door because the two ends of the route remain problematic. The challenges include not just carrying an individual and moving from one place to another but also the portability of the device in busy places. Following are some examples of the devices that are recently known for the innovative idea used by a single person for last-mile connectivity. These vehicles are different from one another in many ways, not only in the way to ride but also in the type of fuel used and propulsion. The increase in these vehicles is seen in the significant manner which shows the need and interest people have to explore these vehicles. This interest leads to a lot of effects on society, transportation systems, nature and the environment. These vehicles provide a better solution for the problem of last-mile connectivity but not at the cost of environmental issues.
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Design of 12 m boat for Ganges retaining the regional design elements
by Anshuman Dixit
For the first time in India, fibre glass houseboats are being introduced by Samudra Shipyard, India’s No. 1 fibre glass boat builders. Having been into boat building for more than 3 decades, Samudra has been introducing lasting technological advantages on an ongoing basis. At present it is the only ISO 9001:2008 certified company in its field of activity. Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd. designs, manufactures, supplies and services composite (FRP) boats up to 34 m (111 feet) in length for travel, tourism, defence and fishing. We also manufacture water sports equipment, marker buoys and other marine-related products. A preliminary exercise was conducted in the Samudra shipyard to explore and sensitise the boat manufacturing and design workflow. Brainstorming was done with all the interns, and important aspects were taken into consideration, based on which further exploration was done with solid boat-shaped structures (fibreglass). Different shapes and packaging styles were tried out along with scaled-down human mannequins, leading to a substantial amount of ideas and prerequisites in the brainstorming session which was done further.
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Designing interior for a long distance private taxi
by Anshuman Dixit
Cars today provide decent comfort and convenience to passengers for them to go places, but when it's about travelling long distances, which could last for more than six to seven hours of continuous sitting in the vehicle, even the expensive cars are not good enough. Passengers face many issues and problems, like compact space to sit for long hours, lack of legroom, restriction of one particular sitting position, insufficient space to efficiently work or relax in a comfortable position, lack of luggage space, and quality and maintenance of cabs. This project aims to address the issues with various kinds of interior design problems occurring because of the conventional design of a personal car which later gets transformed into a taxi.
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Mobility solution for Indian Army in Siachen region
by Anshuman Dixit
Over the world’s highest battlefield, military personnel faces a lot of problems while moving in the glacier terrains, apart from Cheetal and Cheetah choppers (only allowed for a very few regions) and HAL Dhruv helicopter ,no other vehicles are able to perform. Siachen Glacier presents a unique set of environmental challenges for the human body. These include low oxygen, partial pressure due to reduced barometric pressure at high altitude (HA), extreme cold, high levels of ultraviolet radiation and low levels of humidity. Add to this the constant threat of enemy action, which requires man and machine to be fighting fit and alert 24/7. The extreme, harsh, cruel, body- and mind-numbing conditions at this height. Here, you are at risk of getting frostbite if your bare skin touches the trigger of your gun for more than 15 seconds. A person’s body cannot acclimatise to conditions over 5400 metres. If you stay at this height for long, you lose weight, stop eating and sleeping, and experience memory loss. Speech starts slurring. In short, the body just begins to collapse. In the last 30 years, over 850 soldiers have been martyred at Siachen.
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Participatory Research with Marginal Indian Farmers to Design Affordable Farm Tools and Equipment
by R. S. Mahesh
Agriculture is one of the main sectors in the Indian economy that accounts for 18% of India’s GDP and provides employment to 50% of the country’s workforce. India is the world’s largest producer of pulses, rice, wheat, spices and spice products and holds second rank in total farm outputs. There are various types of farming methods in India depending on farm size, geographical conditions, climatic conditions, etc. In that respect, Indian agriculture is highly dependent on monsoon rainfall. Additionally, different seasonal crops are rotated to increase the fertility of soil. To design affordable farm tools and equipment for marginal farmers, participatory design research through a mediated participatory toolkit was undertaken to gain farmers deeper insights and aspirations. A thorough understanding of current farming practices in the field led to the design of a sensitising kit – a pictorial representation of farming methods throughout the year and a miniaturised farm participatory toolkit. This project attempts to present elicited deeper insights gained from emerging participatory research done with four groups of farmers (four farmers in each group); their farming experience and knowledge towards exploring new farm tools and equipment. This research in the future would help focus design endeavours towards affordable, effective and context-sensitive farming tools and equipment.
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Internship at Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited
by R. S. Mahesh
TAFE – Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited, an Indian tractor major incorporated in 1960 at Chennai, with an annual turnover of INR 93 billion (2014-15). The third-largest tractor manufacturer in the world and the second largest in India by volumes, TAFE wields about 25% market share of the Indian tractor industry with a sale of over 150,000 tractors (domestic and international) annually. TAFE's partnership with AGCO Corporation and the Massey Ferguson brand for over 58 years is a stellar example of its commitment to building long-term relationships with its stakeholders through fair and ethical business practices. TAFE is also a significant shareholder in AGCO Corporation, USA – a US $8.3 billion tractor and agricultural equipment manufacturer.
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Design of Compact Vehicle for Nuclear Family
by R. S. Mahesh
In India, most of the nuclear families use two-wheelers as their family vehicle. A person driving a two-wheeler in a congested manner in the narrow street and traffic road with his wife on the pillion seat and a kid in front is a most common scene in India. Auto rickshaws are not as comfortable as cars, and cars are too wide for narrow streets. This "two-wheeler" family is slowly moving into the hatchback segment, which increases the traffic density, especially in urban cities, which need to be controlled. Also, riding with more than two people is not safe. This project has addressed those problems and tried to solve this problem by introducing a vehicle between a bike and an auto rickshaw.
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Design of Next Generation Tractor for Young Farmers In India
by R. S. Mahesh
Agriculture in India is one of the major sectors of the Indian economy, having 18% of India’s GDP. Farm mechanisation in India has reached 40 to 45%, in which tractors form an integral part of farm mechanisation and have a crucial role to play in increasing agricultural productivity. India is the largest producer of tractors. The technology and the aesthetics in the tractors are getting modern these days. Young farmers in India wanted to perform multiple applications with comfort using tractors and would like to see the tractor as a symbol of their lifestyle. Hence, this project is to design a next-generation tractor for young farmers satisfying their aesthetic aspirations based on the user research with a sample of young farmers in India.
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Products from popular science fiction movies
by Niketh SJ
Science fiction is a genre of fiction which deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts, inclusive of space exploration, advanced science and technology, time travel, extraterrestrial life, etc. It explores how different scientific innovations can affect the world. There were primarily three mediums by which science fiction and its influence grew – books, film and television. Of these three, science fiction films have been the most influential, as they paint a vivid visual imagery of the imaginative worlds which were conceptualised. Although television has a huge influence now, earlier this was not the case. If we look back to the number of sci-fi television shows which came out during the initial boom of sci-fi, it's very little compared to the films that were made. This study deals with the medium of films. Science fiction movies have always portrayed thought-provoking concepts by pushing the limits of human imagination. Movies like Star Trek, Star wars, E.T., Frankenstein, The Time Machine, etc., have all presented the audience with different scenarios of a possible alternate timeline or predicted a very interesting future. These visionary movies are usually visualised through highly imaginative settings, expert film production design, advanced technology gadgets (i.e., robots and spaceships), futuristic scientific developments, or by expertly crafted special effects. It is a genre that utilises predictions which are based on scientific theories but have not yet been accepted nor proven practical by science. These movies tend to explore themes like artificial intelligence, the human condition, survival scenarios, political, social and philosophical issues, etc. The technology and possibilities shown in these movies have turned inspirational in the development of real-world technology and have quite often changed the course of human history. The products showcased in these movies, like the touchscreen interfaces from Minority Report (2002), the wearable smart goggles from Back to the Future II (1989), and the video calls from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), have all turned into reality over the course of time. This project tries to collate technology and products that have been used in several popular science fiction movies (between 1950 and 1980) and develop a link between the context which led to its evolution, the product scenario predicted in the movies and the present real-world scenario.
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Design of A Catamaran Based Solar Tourist Boat for Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (Cift)
by Niketh SJ
CIFT had earlier sourced one solar fishing boat from Navgati. This is capable of carrying 4 fishermen and was exclusively used for fishing purposes. The boat has a catamaran-style fibre hull with solar panels mounted on the roof. The boat can be used in reservoirs, small rivers, and aquaculture ponds. This boat also can be used for recreational fishing activities. The boat is capable of running for 2.5 to 3.0 hours after complete charging and attains a speed of nearly 4.0 knots in calm water. Considering the 240 days of fishing in a year, the fuel saved compared to an equivalent diesel-powered boat is Rs. 48,000.
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Designing new experience of next-gen tourist houseboat for Kerala backwaters
by Niketh SJ
The state of Kerala has an extensive network of backwaters which has been used for transport and tourism for decades. An image which pops into our heads when we hear backwater tourism is that of a traditional Kerala houseboat sailing through a serene and rich environment. This calming experience is destroyed by the noise and vibration caused by the diesel engines. Along with this discomfort, it also causes high levels of air and water pollution. This project deals with designing a new experience for houseboat tourists, providing them with an array of luxurious spaces by which they can enjoy the serene scenic beauty without any disturbance and providing an alternative to conventional diesel-powered houseboats. For this purpose, extensive user research was done along with a co-design process to figure out the latent needs of the users. The insights from this exercise led to developing spaces for activities and experiences within the boat. The planning and layout of the boat were inspired by traditional Kerala architecture & art forms. These layouts were evaluated by users on certain criteria, and the most appealing one was further developed. The design features next-gen solar panel and battery systems which are much more efficient than conventional ones, thereby discarding the conventional diesel engine system. An in-depth study of the evolution of houseboats and subsequent form development led to the design of exteriors which drew its inspiration from the festivals and art forms of Kerala.
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Design of a Transformable E-Motorcycle for 2035
by Niketh SJ
Motorcycles have always been associated with the thrill and joy of riding. This experience varies with the type of ride or the segment of motorcycle which is being used. Presently, users have to buy or rent out different motorcycles to have different experiences – the thrill of a high-speed sports bike or the dominance and excitement of an adventure tourer. What if the bike transformed from one segment to the other on the go? What if the ride adjusted itself based on the user requirements? What if selecting different ride modes meant changing the entire geometry of a motorcycle while riding it? This project deals with trying to find solutions for these few questions. A speculative scenario for 2035 was developed after conducting studies on the trends and development of context, technology, products, transportation systems, users & their lifestyle, etc., in the possible future. This led to the generation of a persona and a storyboard which depict the user’s lifestyle and need for the product. The transformable motorcycle was designed as a tailor-made solution for users based on his/her ergonomic needs. A motorcycle which can switch seamlessly from an urban commuter to a racer or an adventure bike with a simple voice command. A design in which the surfaces react to stimuli and vary its geometry to give the user a different feel and experience every time he rides it.
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What Has Always Been More Fun?
by Nipurn Solanki
There are a number of games from ancient times that are still being played today through generations. A handful of them, though, have evolved into a more sophisticated version, e.g. Ludo is derived from the Indian game Pachisi from the 4th century. Though the time for playing outdoor games is diminishing and the addiction to the virtual world has brought many of these to the brink of extinction. This study is an attempt to find which are the most popular outdoor games amongst the elderly, middle-aged and youth. The work presented aims to identify the reasons and the commonality of these games, which have kept them fresh and relevant throughout, acknowledging the influence of various external factors.
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Design of a performance brat cafe racer based on Royal Enfield Continental GT500 platform for Rajputana Custom Motorcycles
by Nipurn Solanki
Rajputana’s work showcases influence from various aspects of Rajasthan weather, whether it be culture, architecture or art. Weather there has been very harsh, and one has to work hard to put a day's meal on the table. This has made people hard-working and polite at the same time, as this actually reciprocates to finer detailing in their work. Attention to detail is something to look up to. Koftgari, sword making and dagger making are the finest arts found in Rajasthan. The influence of Rajasthani miniature painting is very evident on their motorcycles. RCM collaborates with different artisans who master the craft of koftgari, silver inlay and gold inlay.
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Interior design of a personal autonomous vehicle enhancing interaction and experience
by Nipurn Solanki
Autonomous cars, electric mobility and shared mobility services are some of the cutting-edge technologies which offer a great potential to be explored. Any one of these alone would be an interesting development, but all three together is a tectonic shift. Electrification and autonomy will bring new technology which will affect the package and proportions of the cars. Where are we going to place the motors? How are the passengers going to sit? All of that is now open to new interpretation. In the future the unique selling point for cars is going to be the experience that an interior space offers. With autonomy, the notion of comfort will change. In the current scenario, there is a particular seat set up for driving, and the ergonomics are also set up for driving. But, with autonomous vehicles, when the use changes to an environment where people can spread out, relax, or even take a nap, then the environment should adapt accordingly. The project primarily focuses on exploring different such ideas of interiors for a personal autonomous vehicle.
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Design of A Motorcycle Concept for Year 2030
by Nipurn Solanki
Design always has been inseparable from the socioeconomic, cultural and technological factors, and therefore automotive styling has been influenced by it in many ways. Motorcycles, unlike their four-wheeled counterparts, had a moderate history of advancements, followed by sudden explosions of innovative engineering excellence. Without a solitary creator who can lay sole claim to being the innovator, it appears that the thought has struck various specialists and designers around Europe at around a similar time in the late 18th century. In spite of the fact that the essential structure continues as before, its appearances, function and the manner in which it has been used have changed drastically. This project focuses on studying trends, which in turn has helped in creating a scenario of the future. The concept electric motorcycle that is going to be designed is based on the predicted scenario and makes use of cutting-edge technology and human factors such as lifestyle and needs in the future. The research phase began with a comprehension of the motorcycle design evolution layered with numerous influencing factors in a chronological manner. Emerging technology and styling trends in the motorcycle industry were identified, and how these developments changed the overall form of motorcycles was also studied through silhouettes. Finally, the user profile was created to culminate the design brief and the subsequent steps, such as the creation of a mood board, ideation, and concept generation, were carried out based on the foundation laid by the research phase.
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History and analysis of vehicle graphics in India
by Onkar Khot
Art and design diversity and heritage in our country are a blend of various cultures in different parts of India. Every state here has different ways of communicating in various mediums like language, literature, art, design, architecture, etc. One of the ways of communication is vehicle graphics. It has been so influential that vehicles like trucks and buses without graphics are rare. Also, people like Cartist are showcasing the Indian art culture through cars and also supporting the artists across the country to showcase their talent. Truck art is the best example of creative graphic work. It replicates the background and identity of the person in a unique way. The body is not made by the OEM; it is handcrafted to fulfil the needs and aspirations of the driver or the owner. The people who make it possible are not art or design graduates; they are people with their own styles developed by a great amount of skill sets. This report includes documentation and analysis of various types of vehicle graphics on various segments of vehicles. Different events in the country, artist contributions in vehicle graphics are studied for graphic style, typography, messages, colours, location, artist, etc., which can be further developed and adopted for more meaningful uses. The possibilities that this project provides are so wide that it is not possible to achieve them in a short time span. Since the graphics on vehicles differ from region to region within a state and also from state to state. So in a broader sense, if all these are to be documented and analysed, it will prove to be a useful exercise.
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Design of front fascia of an electric bus, redesign of a sleeper bus, form exploration and alias surfacing of a bus
by Onkar Khot
'Abhikalp' means 'creation' in Hindi. This ethos forms the basic foundation of Abhikalp Design Studio. An industrial design consultancy based in Indore, India, dealing in all spheres of product design and development. Abhikalp is a team of industrial designers and engineers, experienced in solving clients’ problems at any stage of design. Their commitment to design is to satisfy the client’s requirements satisfactorily.
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Design of an E- shuttle for IIT Bombay
by Onkar Khot
IIT Bombay, a top-ranked educational institute in India, is facing the problem with first-mile and last-mile connectivity. Residents, students and visitors can reach the main gate by public transport, but after entering the campus they don’t have any vehicle to reach home, college or hostel. Also, staff and students who don’t have cycles or personal vehicles face inconvenience because there is no transport solution to reach work or college. They have to wait for an auto rickshaw. Also, at night, it is very difficult to get an auto rickshaw, so they have to walk 2 to 3 kilometres to reach their home or hostel. In the rainy season, the situation is even worse. Due to high demand, chances of getting an auto rickshaw are less. So, the last mile and first mile connectivity problem leads to an increase in the number of ‘personal vehicles’ on the roads of the campus, and this has become a major issue for road congestion and parking space. Rapid growth in the personal vehicles has become the prime reason for air and noise pollution in the campus of IIT Bombay.
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Design of 3 wheeled electric delivery vehicle for Strom Motors
by Onkar Khot
Strom Motors, an electric vehicle start-up company from Mumbai, unveiled an all-new electric car in April 2018 in India. It is a compact, two-door electric vehicle that uses a reverse trike configuration. The promotion of the vehicle is going on, and the initial response of the target customer, which is the urban commuter, is extraordinarily good. Because of the highly positive response and growing e-commerce market in the country, the company planned to design an all-new 3-wheeled, reverse trike-configured electric delivery vehicle on the same platform as R3. About the e-commerce market, India is the fastest-growing market for the e-commerce sector. Being driven by a young demographic profile, increasing internet penetration and relatively better economic performance, India’s e-commerce revenue is expected to jump from US$ 39 billion in 2017 to US$ 120 billion in 2020, growing at an annual rate of 51 per cent, the highest in the world. This supports the proposal to design the all-new electric delivery vehicle.
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How We Live Through Products We Use
by Parthkumar Chaudhari
We surround ourselves with different products every day. The choice of the product varies from person to person. This study focuses on documenting those products for different users of the same age group, doing the analysis of the same, and showing how this kind of documentation can be helpful in the field of design, like designing for the future, concept design, or generating a user persona.
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Design of Six Bedroom Houseboat for Varanasi
by Parthkumar Chaudhari
Established in 1991, Samudra Shipyard was the first company to introduce fibreglass houseboats. It’s an ISO 9001:2008 certified company that is a pioneer in designing, manufacturing, supplying and servicing composite (FRP) boats up to 34 m (111 feet) in length for travel, tourism, defence, and fishing. It is also in the business of water sports equipment, marker buoys and other marine-related products. The workshop is situated in Aroor, Alappuzha, in Kerala. From the design of the product to the manufacturing of it, it is done here. Before making any product, the design is made, the CAD model is prepared, and after approval of the naval architect, the wooden mould is prepared according to necessity. FRP is sandwiched with resin combined with hardener and then let to dry. A gel coat is applied as a last layer, which gives the part a better look.
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Design of The Delivery Vehicle for Online Grocery Portals
by Parthkumar Chaudhari
India’s e-commerce market is growing at a fast rate due to cheap & fast internet availability and penetration of smartphones. Last-mile delivery service is provided by most of the e-commerce platforms, including third-party delivery services like Delhivery and E-Kart, etc. Indian online grocery companies like Grofers and BigBasket are gaining popularity due to the ease of access and fast doorstep delivery. Online grocery portals deliver a wide variety of daily-used products that include perishable items like vegetables, fruits, dairy products, and frozen goods. These items need special care during delivery. At present, order items are packed in cardboard boxes and carried in the canvas bag. Since these bags don’t provide proper cooling and adequate storage, vegetables and fruits often get damaged or seem sufficiently not fresh. These products are returned to the companies, generating a significant amount of waste on a daily basis. This project deals with designing a new delivery vehicle for online grocery portals. For this project, a user study was done by visiting grocery portals such as Grofers and Big Basket to understand the current delivery system, problems faced by the delivery persona, and issues with existing delivery methods. The insights from this exercise led to developing a design brief, which led to the design of new concepts. These concepts were evaluated on specific criteria, and the most suitable one was further developed. The final design is battery-operated, has dedicated compartments for various items, has better ergonomics, provides security for the orders, and eliminates weight carried by the delivery person.
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Mobility Design Intervention for Paddy Cultivation In Small and Marginal Farms of India
by Parthkumar Chaudhari
Indian agriculture industries have seen significant growth in the last few decades. Agriculture and allied industries remain first in providing a livelihood to the Indian population. However, due to inheritance land law, the size of operational holdings has kept decreasing. Around 86% of total holdings fall under small and marginal farms. These farms are facing problems such as lack of implementation of new technology, proper marketing of agricultural products, infrastructure, and mobility for agricultural sectors. For generations, small and marginal farmers have been following manual land preparation methods because current machines are not suitable for their operational holdings. Even though India is the world’s largest manufacturer of agricultural machinery, it lags behind in providing a mobility solution for the small and marginal farms. This project aimed to design a new compact agriculture vehicle which can perform various agriculture practices such as ploughing, tilling, puddling, sowing, & harvesting for small and marginal farms. For this project, a user study was conducted by visiting small and marginal farmers in Gujarat and Maharashtra to understand their methods of farming, problems with current agriculture machines, and needs. The design brief was generated based on insights from this study and led to the generation of different concepts which can perform multiple land preparation activities in one go.
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What has always been more fun? (Indoor games)
by Roshan Kumar Sahu
There are several games from the age-old ancient times that are still being played through generations. There is a commonality in people’s mindset in choosing these games and commending them for playing on several occasions among the groups of different ages. The study shows the interest and popularity of the games played by grand elders (Gen-1), middle ages or the youth (Gen-2) and the children (Gen-3) and estimates the cause of the fun these games provide to the players to target their interests. This shows a direction to conclude the manner of simplified ancient games that are being played, and the direction of the games that are neglected is identified.
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Design of Eight-Bedroom Houseboat for Varanasi
by Roshan Kumar Sahu
Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd. Established in 1991, Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd. is India’s No. 1 fibre glass boat building company. It is known for its lasting boat-building technology. Unlike others, Samudra Shipyard designs and manufactures their composite boats up to 34 m in length for travel, tourism, defence and fishing. It also manufactures water sports equipment, marker buoys and other marine-related products. As Samudra is known for its composite boat-building techniques in manufacturing, we got an opportunity to take a closer look at how things are made. There are many ongoing projects like ‘Kopra Vallam’, a day cruiser fire-fighting boat for the Sri Lankan government, and many such other projects. FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) is widely used in manufacturing the boats. They design the boat, then make a mould out of wood which is later used for making the parts. FRP is sandwiched with resin combined with hardener and then let to dry. A gel coat is applied as a last layer, which gives the part a glossy look. Generally to save time and manufacturing costs.
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Motorised Vehicle for Paraplegic
by Roshan Kumar Sahu
The abrupt onset of spinal cord injury (SCI) is tragic and has a profound impact on the individuals and their families. In the Indian setup, as in most developing countries, very little is known about the exact incidence of SCI, as there is no national database. In India, approximately 1.5 million people live with SCI. Approximately 20,000 new cases of SCI are added every year, and 60-70% of them are illiterate, poor villagers. The majority of them are males in the age group of 16-30 years, signifying a higher incidence in the young, active and productive population of the society. People suffering from SCI manage to do everyday work without fail. But unfortunately they face lots of problems, and one of them is daily commuting to their workplace. A motorised vehicle is a lifeline; it not only saves time but also provides convenience and freedom to move anywhere. In the current scenario of India, paraplegic persons drive vehicles which are not designed specifically for them. The current design does not fulfil all their needs, and sometimes it creates problems. But with the design enhancement, their problem can be solved. The project would require a case study into the present vehicles for paraplegic persons. Find out all the shortcomings of the available design and rethink a completely new design. The new design will allow the driver a confident and hassle-free ride. Also, it will fulfil all basic requirements, like carrying crutches, wheelchairs, luggage, etc., which can be covered in the device. All this can be compiled into the final product, which would be the design of a motorised vehicle for paraplegics, along with a scale model.
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Designing electric bicycle for college student
by Roshan Kumar Sahu
Bicycles are a wonderful means of transportation that helps preserve the environment; they reduce air contamination, ecological footprints, and carbon emissions; they are healthy and very inexpensive. The electrical bicycle, or e-bike, is a traditional bicycle equipped with an electric motor to help with pedalling. They are more economical than fuel-powered cars and motorcycles and cheaper than buying an electric vehicle for the city. Interestingly, in the age of big-buck motor cars, electric bicycles appear to be increasingly adopted as a refreshing alternative because they have several advantages. College students use different modes of transportation to travel within campus. The available options for transport for students are personal bicycles, buses, shared cycles, auto-rickshaws, etc. They have to travel frequently between places within their large college campus. The most convenient mode of transportation for students in many institutions was found to be personal bicycles. The vision for the project is to provide an efficient solution for the mobility of college students from one place to another. The main intent is to research the problems with the existing mode of transportation and solve them to provide an efficient solution. The new design will be an option for students against expensive bicycles.
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Biomimicry in design: Approach towards smart farming technology
by Samyak Khobragade
In ancient Greek, bios means life, and mimesis means imitation. Biomimetics, or biomimicry, is the imitation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems. Biomim - icry is not a new concept; in fact, traces of the notion can be found in the past. For example, the rib structure of the Eiffel Tower (1884) was inspired by the human femur (thigh bone), and the Eddystone Lighthouse (1759), located in southern England, was modelled based on the shape of the oak tree. The structure remained intact for almost a century before it required repairs. John George Wood was an English priest in the nineteenth century; he devoted his life to writing about natural history. In 1885 he published Nature’s teachings – Human Invention Anticipated by Nature, in which he drew upon his lifetime of observations to produce a remarkable account of hundreds of human inventions and how they were linked to biological mechanisms. “It is that as existing human inventions have been anticipated by Nature, so it will surely be found that in Nature lie the prototypes of inventions not yet revealed to man. The great discoverers of the future will, therefore, be those who will look to Nature for Art, Science or Mechanics, instead of taking pride in some new invention, and then find that it existed in Nature for countless centuries” (J.G. Wood, 1885) The applications of biomimicry can be divided into four major areas, i.e., shape, surface, structure and production.
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Design of FRP catamaran for river taxi service on Brahamaputra, at Guwahati
by Samyak Khobragade
The project was done as a part of an internship at Samudra Shipyard Ltd, based in Kochi, Kerala. Samudra Shipyard specialises in applying Fibreglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) technologies to build a wide variety of boats and related equipment for different purposes. Having an experience of more than three decades in this field, Samudra has also taken part in a number of collaborative projects with other organisations and the government. The project was done as the preliminary stage of bidding on a tender issued by the Government of Assam: Design, construction, commissioning and supply of FRP catamarans for river taxi service on the Brahmaputra River at Guwahati. It provided an opportunity to learn about the various aspects of water transport and the unique challenges faced while designing solutions for water-based mobility.
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Design of Elephanta ferry service with new experience for tourists
by Samyak Khobragade
India has an incredible history, and that history has left its marks in the form of historical places. It is a gateway for us to connect to the past and learn from its glorious heritage. And over the years these historical places have become popular tourist spots. The current ferry service doesn’t contribute to the experience of a historical trip; it just connects the endpoints. The problem is that tourists visit Elephanta, but their experience is not so good because most of them barely know the facts, stories and importance of the sculptures. If this information is provided to them along with a comfortable journey, their experience of the actual trip will become rich. The current ferry service is obsolete in terms of technology and design. It does not have proper seating, wood is still used as the main building material, safety equipment is not accessible and proper sanitation is also missing. The government of Maharashtra has allowed private operators to operate ferry service between the Gateway of India and Elephanta in 2017. So there is an opportunity for this project to have an impact in the real world.
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Design of Charter Yacht Interiors for tourists in Mumbai
by Samyak Khobragade
Charter yachting is a vast field on its own, and it is growing rapidly in coastal cities like Mumbai, Panaji and Chennai. Mumbai is the business capital of India, and it is also one of the most popular tourist destinations; hence, a lot of businessmen and tourists pay regular visits to the city. The new trend of chartering a yacht for relaxation or gatherings is becoming popular amongst these national and international tourists. The existing yachts are designed for the purpose of personal ownership; however, significant changes will happen in the design of the yacht if it is designed specifically for the purpose of charter. There is an opportunity to design a yacht for the unique needs and aspirations of the users of Mumbai. To understand the scenario, a research of charter yacht agencies in Mumbai was done, and a qualitative user study was also conducted. The user study involved conversations with reputed people from the charter yacht industry in Mumbai and potential users. After the research, the design brief was created along with the basic exterior package of the yacht. Followed by the ideation process that explored different possible layouts on the designed package. Finally, a storyboard created around the target user for better understanding of the context and scenario, and a physical model of the interiors was created to visualise the spaces and flow.
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Promoting the Use of Helmets through User Centric Design
by Srinag K A
India has among the most unsafe roads in the world. In 2015, over 400 people were killed in road accidents every day. In the same year, two-wheeler accidents claimed 36,800 victims and left around 93,400 injured. Numbers that could have been significantly lower if riders had proper helmets. Between the years 2008 and 2020, almost 34 lakh people might die of motorcycle crashes. A figure that can be halved with appropriate measures. “As many as 14 lakh of those fatalities can be avoided with the proper use of safety helmets,” the study says. Since wearing helmets has been made compulsory for both the riders and pillions in most of the Indian cities, a user-centric design approach is needed to understand the consumer needs when it comes to the use of helmets and hence promote the use of helmets not only for two-wheeler riders but also for pillions.
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Design of saddle box for Royal Enfield Himalayan
by Srinag K A
Saddlebags were usually used for horse riding. In horse riding, saddlebags sit in various positions, on the back, side, or front of the saddle. Most attach to the saddle by straps and ties. They can be made from various materials. Although leather was the traditional material, it is heavier and requires more maintenance than many modern versions. There are several types: pommel bags (which sit in front of the saddle), traditional paired saddlebags (which lie on the hips of the horse, on either side of the cantle), and assorted smaller bags such as a cantle bag (a small tube-like bag that sits just behind the saddle) or a single small saddlebag that may be carried on the offside (right-hand side) of an English saddle. Pannier-style bags are sometimes fitted over a pack saddle used for packing gear on a horse or other pack animal (often, a mule or donkey) rather than for carrying a rider. In Turkish Anatolia, Iran and Baluchistan, saddlebags are traditionally woven in wool, with a front face decorated with Soumak and a plainer flatwoven back. Slits are left along the opening for a rope to close and secure the bag to the pack animal.
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Design of Interiors of An Autonomous Taxi for 2040
by Srinag K A
The increase in the human population and influx of people from the rural to urban areas is leading to congestion of cities. With cities expanding where the suburban areas are becoming part of the cities and the outskirts are turning into cities, the distance between suburban parts and cities is increasing, which in turn increases the time taken to travel. Due to the location of commercial hubs in the city mainland, the high prices of land and rent would force people to live in suburban areas. Lower rent rates and the presence of more space would convert suburban areas into residential areas. Due to a rise in population, congestion on the roads would increase. Since the city centres are commercial hubs to which people travel every day from their homes located in suburban areas for work, the traffic and distance would lead to wastage of time and lead to stress – especially for people who drive. Due to this, they might not get to spend quality time with families. When they have to spend quality time with the family members during the weekends by going to places of interest, recreational places such as parks, etc., the family members again have to drive. This again would be stressful to them, and the family time would be taken away due to traffic. This project aims to design the interiors of a taxi for the year 2040. The existence of autonomous taxis in urban areas in 2040 was one of the reasons for choosing this particular year. The interiors must be designed such that the experience of joy and fun of a family travelling together.
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Design of Push Cart for Municipal Solid Waste Collection In Residential Areas
by Srinag K A
India produces around 62 million tonnes of garbage every year, and 62% of it ends up in landfills. Since most of the disposed waste is recyclable, it is necessary for the waste to stay segregated till the recycling stage. Unsegregated waste makes it difficult to derive value out of it during the recycling process, as waste gets mixed in large quantities during the collection process. Therefore, the problem must be solved at the roots of waste collection and handling in order to prevent the mixing of waste. The pushcarts used by the pourakarnikas (household garbage collectors) of Bengaluru are the first mediums for the collection and transfer of waste. Through observation, it was noticed that the cart neither aids the process of carrying segregated waste nor is it easy to handle in terms of moving it, stopping it, etc. To understand more problems associated with the cart and see it in the perspective of waste management, field studies were conducted in and outside IIT campus. The studies include understanding the way waste is disposed of by the consumers, the identification and handling of waste by the collectors, and the transferring of the waste and the equipment used to transfer it from the source to the disposal unit. Studies also understand recycling and disposal of waste based on its type. Based on the study, the design brief was structured, and ideation was done. The ideation included creating scaled mock-ups to get a clear understanding of the concept. The agenda during ideation was not only to address the issue but also to make sure that the cart fits into the system. A 1:4 scale mock-up model was created to get a better idea of the design of the cart. And addresses all the issues mentioned in the brief.
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SKATOCROSS- Indias’s first Skatebike in collaboration with VIVRT Motors
by Sunil
The Skatocross concept emerged from the thought of having both a skateboard and a motorcycle. SKATOCROSS will be designed to be a new kind of integrated vehicle. The idea is to provide personal mobility for an individual and to establish a new kind of sport. For steering, users must rely on their own skill and the ability to lean for manoeuvring from one place to another; by implementing Gyro, the skill needed to steer can be eliminated.
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Micro Car for Youth and Couples In India
by Sunil
It is common for youth in middle-class families to demand a two-wheeler from their parents when they start going to college. Parents who cannot afford to give their children a four-wheeler then reluctantly buy them a two-wheeler. They are constantly worried about their children’s safety on the road. The time span in between, when a youth starts to go to college and when he gets married and has his first child, is usually 10-15 years. He usually rides a two-wheeler in this time span till he can afford a four-wheeler. The project is about designing a micro car for youth and couples that can bridge the gap between parents perception regarding small car safety. Final design gives the essence of the perceived safety of the vehicle through its overall form and volume. There is a need in the Indian market for a perceived safe, unisex, micro car for such users.
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Design of Next-Generation AC City Bus for BEST Mumbai Transport
by Sunil
The Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) is a civic transport and electricity provider in Mumbai. The story of BEST starts in 1873 as a tramway company called “Bombay Tramway Company Limited”. The company set up a captive thermal power station in 1905 to generate electricity for its trams and also supply electricity to the city. Their company rebranded itself to “Bombay Electric Supply & Tramways (BEST)” Company. In 1926 BEST also becomes the operator of motor buses. In 1947, the BEST became an undertaking of the Municipal Corporation and rebranded itself to “Bombay Electric Supply & Transport (BEST)”. In 1995, as Bombay was being renamed to Mumbai, then the organisation was renamed to “Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST)“. In addition to buses, BEST also provides ferry service in the northern reaches of the city.
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