leapfrogging

I’ve had a few conversations with people about an interesting mode of technology diffusion called “leapfrogging.”  I don’t know that it is an accepted technical term or anything.  and I say “technology diffusion” not because it is a conscious means of rolling out new technology, but simply because that’s how it happens.  “leapfrogging” is the phenomenon where something skips from an old technology, over a middle technological invention, to a more advanced one for the same purpose.

a perfect example is cell phones.  in the development of communication, as a culture, we’ve gone from letters/telegraphs/no long distance audible communication to telephones connected via landlines and then to wireless cell phones.  what’s interesting about this is that in developing areas, for the most part people skipped right over the old telephone/land line model.  they went right from no “phone”-type contact to cell phones in one jump.  there was too much investment in laying land lines throughout far flung and rural and poor areas for it to be profitable or even feasible in many cases.  while there may have been a market as far as desire went, there was no market as far as money went.  what would be the use of having a phone if you were struggling to maintain your home and family adequately?  and particularly, what would be the use if everyone else didn’t have one?  or in a place where most things are within walking distance?  even if someone had the means and desire for a land line telephone, the structure just wasn’t there, nor would anyone be putting it there.  with the widespread use of cell phones, using limited infrastructure (just the towers) and hardware that is so inexpensive it’s almost disposable even in developing areas, there was an instant solution.  many, many people in poor areas have cell phones, and they do not cost as much as you would think.  I could have gotten a Guatemalan cell phone, with minutes to the states, for about $10 while I was there.  sure, that’s a lot for someone who lives on $2 a day, but for someone who makes a little more or for whom contact is a part of their income-generating activities, it is do-able.

another example of leapfrogging can be seen in my post on Shad and his farming techniques and philosophy.  once upon a time, farming was an individual thing, done on a relatively small scale to provide for the family.  even when it was not used simply for feeding the family or immediate community and changed into focusing on growing crops exclusively to sell, it still was very much done by individuals or families.  although the history and my retelling of it is vastly oversimplified here, bear with me.  eventually this relatively small-scale farming gave way to industrialized or commercial farming.  large corporations that harvested large tracts of land and focused on production pushed many small and medium farmers out of the arena.  most people get their food from supermarkets, supplied by these large and specialized producers.  organic and locally-grown fruits and vegetables are pretty much a niche market, though one that is growing.  there is a move for sustainable farming, organic and local farming, CSAs and more grass-roots type of farming.  permaculture is gaining steam, as is producing for your community and making a profit on varied, symbiotic crops.  and this is very much the model people are implementing where they can in developing areas.  farming in some areas has skipped right from personal, individual farming to a sustainable small-scale community food supply, without taking that large infrastructure step in the middle.

then there is light.  in the developed world, we went from kerosene and candles (fire-based) lighting to electrically-supplied light bulbs (again requiring significant infrastructure).  because we have this infrastructure already and it is relatively inexpensive, the transition to more natural sources for lighting power, such as solar or wind energy, has been stunted.  not so in the developing world, where once again there is a very clear leapfrog happening.  as i will discuss in the future, kerosene and other fire-based lighting (and cooking!) are dangerous, bad for people’s health, and actually relatively expensive.  solar lighting systems, though requiring an up-front investment, are subsequently free to use, do not require infrastructure, are available on an individual basis, are safer, do not produce harmful emissions, and can even be used to charge the ubiquitous cell phones.  many NGOs and companies are working on or already providing solar lighting to poor people around the world.  similarly, power in general has followed much the same route.  mechanical-based power such as human or animal labor gave way to fossil-fuel energy (electricity, gas, gasoline) which will hopefully give way to more natural sources of energy such as solar.  this is already happening in developing areas (though certainly the use of fossil fuels is also widespread).

how many other examples of leapfrogging can be found?  computers/internet which have gone from hard lines to modems to wifi (or even internet access through phones that skipped computers altogether)?  health care, where we’ve moved from the model of a local town-based doctor to large regional hospitals and specialists?  in impoverished areas, teams are working on portable high tech diagnostic tools that connect a local doctor to specialists in urban areas.  perhaps this is another leapfrog beginning to happen.  environmental solutions?  waste treatment?  vehicle power alternatives?

certainly, there are limitations to this.  in a future post:  the case against leapfrogging.

food dryer

in many parts of the developing world, there are two distinct seasons:  the growing season and the dry season.  during the dry season nothing can be grown and families must live on what they have saved and what they can afford to buy from market.  often, this is less nutritious since fresh fruits and vegetables are either not available or are very expensive.  for people who can hardly afford to feed their families, losing nutritive value can be devastating.

ironically, during the growing season, people can be inundated with fresh fruits from local trees.  mangoes and other fruit grow in the wild and are so plentiful that they cannot all be used.  every year, fruit ends up rotting on the ground.  then in the dry season, there is none to be found.

mangoes, in particular, are very nutritious.  just one dried mango can provide 20% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A and 3% of vitamin C.  it also provides 10% of calcium and 6% of iron. 

in a spring 2012 class taught by Dr. Brian Thompson, ME491 International Development, a student team developed an inexpensive, easily-built mango dryer.  although targeted for Kenya and mangoes, it can easily be used to dry fruits and vegetables of all kinds.  it is ATC’s plan to provide this design along with our other designed solutions for improving life in developing communities.

there are significant benefits to a mango dryer:

·    -- provides the community access to nutrient-rich mangoes year-round, in contrast to a typical three month harvest season.

·    -- extends availability of vitamins and minerals, beneficial for childhood development and reducing malnourishment.

·    -- provides additional possibility for generating income.

·    -- improves the overall quality of life and helps develop a sustainable community.

the construction is quite simple.  it’s basically a box painted black with reflective surfaces, plexiglass, and a tray for the fruit.  but like with so many of the technologies ATC and partners develop, that simple implementation could be life-changing.

the team that developed this particular design were Haley Orr, Marcus Cannon, Michael Trotter, Nick Schooley, and of course the inimitable Dr. Thompson!

maker fair...

... or maker's fair ... or maker faire

whatever you call it, the "Maker Faire" is something i was introduced to just a few years ago.  have you heard of it in your region? 

the ann arbor mini maker faire is where i first ran into ATC almost a year ago.  i had asked an acquaintance who also went to MIT if he ever felt like he was wasting himself in the auto industry.  his answer was a little more optimisitc than mine, but never mind that.  he directed me to some really (really) cool workshops opening up in the area, like Maker Works (more on that in a later post), and told me about this mini maker faire happening in ann arbor - free, near home, and on a saturday on which i had nothing better to do.  i don't know what actually got me there -- i didn't really have any intention of doing it -- but i did, and the rest is history.

so what is a maker faire?  a few years ago, the Henry Ford was hosting maker faire detroit, a mile or less from my office.  it seemed like a very big deal and i asked around as to what it was.  here is what they say:

Motor City to Maker City, meet the Makers! 300+ exhibiting makers, demonstrations & hands-on workshops. 
Robotics, electronics, rockets, food and fashion finds. If it’s made, it’s displayed at Maker Faire Detroit. The most happening event in Detroit, don’t miss this two-day, interactive and family-friendly event that takes arts, crafts, engineering, food, music, science and technology projects and the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset to the next level. It’s a celebration of unbridled creativity and discovery that will blow your mind. Only at the home of innovation, The Henry Ford, July 27th and 28th.

the Maker movement is all about creating, tinkering, hacking, making and playing.  workshops like Maker Works and others are popping up all over the country where your average creative person can go to build, test or create anything from metalshop items to crafts.  the faires include demonstrations, hands-on activities, and PLAY for everyone.  seriously, it can range from "music and fire arts" (yes, FIRE) to new inventions, from sustainable living solutions and green technology to making musical instruments.  do you know what a 3D printer is?  you can find them here.  wind activated lights?  an all-electric motorcycle?  DIY cotton candy machine?  (NOW you're talkin'!)  home automation?  mini-robots?  light-up textiles? 

just the mini faire was a marvelous experience.  i can't wait to go to the detroit one!  oh, and if you're in the area, stop by at either:  ATC will be at both and i will probably be staffing the exhibits at some point!



Ann Arbor MiniMaker Faire:  sat, june 8th, morris lawrence building at washtenaw community college

Maker Faire Detroit:   july 27-28, the henry ford, dearborn

MSU design day

april 26^th was Design Day, the culmination of the term for Michigan State engineering students taking design classes, where they present posters and show off their projects.  it was a big day for all three of the design teams in the ME478 Product Development class, including the two sponsored by ATC.  the treadle pump team, the clean stove team, and the rope pump team all brought their operating prototypes and also showed off their posters summarizing the projects.

the treadle and rope pump teams each pumped water and the clean stove team actually cooked hot dogs for participants!  see this video for a compilation showing all three projects in action together:

unfortunately, I didn’t get to see Design Day in person, since the humanitarian symposium presentations were more significant for me to attend.  but it sounds like a big, cool science fair kind of setup.  I would have loved to see other teams’ projects.  maybe next time…



Design Day poster from the Rope Pump team



rope pump team output

the output from the rope pump team was quite impressive.

their design yielded a base rope pump that costs – here in the U.S., at our prices – less than $72.  they also created an optional bike-drive attachment for just under $65.  but in developing areas, the materials are usually less expensive and many can be salvaged from scrap materials.  items that can easily be found from old bikes or junkyards could reduce the price of the pump below $60, and the steel for the bike frame is often easily salvageable as well.  this is critically important, as people who live on less than $2 a day must be careful in how they invest the little money they are able to collect.

for another, more detailed video, see HERE.

in addition to a full report on the project and a detailed instruction manual for building both the pump and the bike drive, the students also provided a full-scale model, shown in the video above pumping water up from a pool to a high dive platform.  also shown, below, is a picture of their working mini model.  they produced this as a traveling show-and-tell to illustrate the use of a rope pump in prospective communities.  (incidentally, I think this was brilliant!)

mini model for demonstrating how a rope pump works

the instruction manual shows how the mechanism works, how to assemble and install the pump, how to operate it, and how to maintain it.  it also contains tables for sizing a rope pump to different well depths.  this allows anyone to make such a pump specific to their own unique situation.  the report also provides mathematical analyses of water weight and volume, pipe and rope sizing, drag forces, piston sizing, and leak rates.

at the end of the semester, the team presented at a humanitarian engineering symposium just as the other two teams did, and also participated in Design Day, an event where engineering students across the school present posters and show off their design projects.  and the rope pump prototype has already moved south to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.  from there, the project sponsor (from MSU 's Institute for International Agriculture) is taking the prototype to Honduras or Guatemala. 

the students on the rope pump team were Austin Tokarski, Daniel Kenny, Jonathan Shapiro, and Tyler Rumler (who provided me with all of this information).   you can see all of their work, videos, etc. at this website:

MSU Rope Pump Team

what is a rope pump?

“A rope pump system is a type of pump where a loose hanging rope is circulated down into a well and drawn back up through a long pipe with the bottom of the pipe immersed in water. On the rope, round disks or knots matching the diameter of the pipe are attached to the rope which pulls water to the surface.” – students’ Project Definition from their website

 

there are four main components to a rope pump:  the drive wheel, the rope, the guide box, and the riser pipe.  these can be seen in the schematic here.  the rope hangs in a loop, driven in a circle by the drive wheel and circulated through the water at the bottom of a well.  it’s threaded through a guide box at the bottom and a pipe on the way up.  knots or washer-type elements on the rope create a seal in the pipe and pull up slugs of water, pouring it out at the spout on top. 

this student team investigated multiple options for driving the rope, and a couple different concepts for the pump outlet.  since the pump is human-power driven, they looked at various ways of making the drive mechanism as efficient and low-effort as possible. In addition to the simple option of a hand-cranked wheel, they investigated various types of drives powered by bicycles.  this included those where the bicycle was removable and still usable and those where the bike is a permanent part of the pump.  both have pros and cons, of course, and the team used a decision matrix with their design criteria to come up with the best concept.  but there is nothing cheaper and easier than a simple mechanical hand crank made out of an old bicycle wheel.  in the end, they designed the system with such a hand crank and also designed an optional bike-driven add-on for those who could afford it (or build it from scrap materials).

for the base structure of the pump, they went with a modest a-frame construction, reducing the amount of material required overall.  the simplest outlet design is a single pipe , perpendicular to the rising pipe.  through experimentation, the team found there was wasted overflow at the top of the pipe and added a second outlet pipe which allowed full collection of the pumped water.  the frame was made from steel and all of the piping was PVC, both readily available and long-lasting.

rope with knots and seal

the suggested rope material is polypropylene, but polyester, metal cable or hemp rope would also work.  the key is that the rope must not absorb too much water (making it both heavier and more prone to bacterial growth) and must not stretch too much when wet or under tension.  while knots sized roughly to the inner diameter of the pipe work, the addition of simple washers and rubber (see picture) make the pump even more efficient and are relatively inexpensive to add.

guide box

the purpose of the guide box, at the bottom of the rope down in the well, is to redirect the rope from its way down back up through the riser pipe.  typically, a simple wheel in a box could accomplish this function, but that requires underwater installation.  this team’s solution is shown in the picture below:  a guide box made completely of PVC pipe.  the large pipe serves as a housing while the smaller pipes, which are flared, guide the rope into the box, give it an axle to turn around, and connect to the riser pipe as the rope goes up.  by attaching the riser pipe, this arrangement allows the guide box to be lowered into the well, without requiring special installation.

the design of this pump allows people to access aquifer water for safe drinking and efficient farming, at an amount they can reasonably save and invest.

the rope pump team

there was actually a third team in the engineering class where I mentored the clean stove and treadle pump teams.  they worked on an interesting project as well, and since they were kind enough to share their results and documents with me, I would like to do a couple posts about them too.

like the treadle pump team, the rope pump team concentrated on ways of getting clean water to people for drinking and farming.  on average, a human being can only survive 3-5 days without water, but in many developing areas, there is little safe drinking water.  therefore people will drink whatever is available, including dirty rivers, contaminated open water, standing water and other sources rife with water-borne illnesses.  worldwide, more than 1 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water, and water-borne diseases are estimated to cause more than 2 million deaths annually (2007, American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene)

"Millions of people all over the world, especially in rural Africa, live many kilometers from a reliable source of clean water, leaving them vulnerable to cholera, dysentery, and other water-bourne diseases.  We have all seen pictures of women and children in developing countries carrying heavy containers of water, mostly on their heads; this labor invariably causes many neck and spine injuries." -- Rolling Water, Design for the Other 90%, 2007

 

imagine using a simple rope to move water up from under the ground.  tie a few knots in it and stick it in a pipe.  circulate the rope through the pipe, and the knots draw up water for drinking or farming.  that’s the basic premise of a rope pump.

the students on this team developed a rope pump design that is easily built and maintained, and has clear available instructions so that anyone can create it.  their design goals were to be able to pump at least 5 gallons per minute from up to a 20 meter depth, for less than $100.  key parameters beyond the usual safety, quality, and reliability of a well-engineered product included low operating effort so that women and children would be able to operate the pump, and minimal maintenance. 

next time:  what is a rope pump, exactly?

very small hiatus

still no reports or updates from the clean stove or treadle pump team.

but i am working on a few other items for you...

do you know what a rope pump is?
what do you do with too many mangoes?
what was the exhibition that started this whole thing for me?

those and more to come.

more mentees next year!

i'm so excited!  it looks like i'll be able to mentor more students next spring!

Dr. Thompson, the professor we worked with for the class this spring, is going to offer a different class next spring, despite being overloaded himself on his schedule for teaching.  this year's class was "Product Development," which he made into a design class along the way.  he wasn't scheduled to teach it again, though, which was disappointing.  BUT!  he is proposing a "Humanitarian Engineering" class to the dean that will have design projects for developing areas!  hopefully, they'll let him do it.

he's thinking 16-20 students, for 4-5 teams.  of course i jumped on the bandwagon right away, saying i would love to do it again (and sort of assuming ATC would agree).  John (from ATC) does, in fact, agree and says we should be good for 2-3 of those projects!

great news all around.  i can't wait to see what projects we come up with!