Team UPES creates economical and energy-efficient e-vehicle

The electric vehicle, U-BAHN, has been developed in nine days on the campus with a cost of Rs.2 lakh. It can travel at a speed of 25 kms per hour and will be embedded with an IoT-based system to help the driver know about the pickup and drop location

Automotive analysts had predicted that 2020 is going to be the year of electric vehicles. This came in the backdrop of a renewed awareness to cut down carbon dioxide emissions across the world. UPES students, too, contributed towards this global effort to protect the future of the planet.

The university’s Mechanical Engineering students Manas Jaiswal, Abhinav Dhaka, Annirudha Das, Dharnidar, Archit Saroha, Chetan Saini, Nishant Verma, Nitish Raj, Prashant Kumar, Priya Singh, Pankaj Kumar, Mayank Dahiya, Prabudh Sanket, Prakhar Khandelwal and Aditya Katariya recently designed and manufactured an E-vehicle to be used on the college premises.

The complete prototype of the electric vehicle called U-BAHN was made in the college workshop under the guidance and support of faculty and lab in-charge. The e-vehicle will be embedded with an Internet of Things (IoT)-based system, which will help the driver to know about the pickup and drop location. The user can call for a service using an application. The power train of the e-vehicle has an 85AH battery, which is capable to propel the vehicle from a standstill position and take the vehicle to a speed of 25 kilometres per hour. It is also assisted by a brushless DC motor which is of 48 V. The exterior bodywork will be designed using High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS) and the roof of the vehicle will use polycarbonate material.

This vehicle is capable to mobilize a quartet within the campus. MacPherson Strut type suspension is used in front of the vehicle whereas in the rear leaf springs are used to support the passenger’s weight. Also, a trunk is provided at the back of the vehicle to carry the passenger’s luggage. The vehicle looks elegant and has a compact steering assembly that provides smooth movements of the tyres while taking turns.

Generally, golf carts cost around Rs.7 lakh, but E-BAHN was made with a compartively meagre fund of Rs.2 lakh without compromising on the quality, making it economical, simple, reliable, and competent.

Swapnil Sureshchandra Bhurat, from the School of Engineering, says “Coming up with U-BAHN within a short period was a team effort. Mechanical Engineering department came up with the idea of developing an e-cart with minimum cost and power rating motor. The vehicle was developed on the campus within nine days. Golf carts generally have six kilowatts power rating motor, whereas the one in U-BAHN has 1.2 kilowatts. There is a gear reduction system incorporated in the vehicle to provide a torque. In the future, we will install a solar panel roof, which will help charge the battery, which will further increase the run time without battery loss. I thank the Dean, School of Engineering, Dr. Kamal Bansal, and Head of Department, Mechanical Engineering, Dr. Ajay Kumar for their kind support. Everyone involved in the project burnt the midnight oil and gave a proper shape and added to the aesthetics of the cart.”

Mr. Siddharth, faculty, School of Design says, “The main concept behind this design was to make it simple, airy, open and easy to step-in and step-out. In terms of modularity, we added LED lights in front and at the back with a transparent sunroof. Soon, we are also thinking about making the design more feasible to be used by the locals. In the process, we worked with different materials such as HIPS, plywood, and roof polycarbonate sheet. We came across some challenges such as pipe bending and stitching leather, which eventually became a learning lesson. In the end, I would like to thank Dean, School of Design, Ms. Manisha Mohan who was open to this idea from the very beginning.”

Another faculty, Mr. Ram Kunwer (Assistant Professor-SG), Mechanical Engineering Department from the School of Engineering, took the responsibility of vehicle fabrication. Technicians Ranjit and Sushil worked day and night on the product.

“This futuristic and technologically advanced e-vehicle will be both environment and user friendly. With a high market potential, there are all possibilities of scalability,” says, Dr. Githa Hegde, Dean, School of Business.

Kishore, faculty, School of Design, says, “I was fortunate to have worked on the styling part of the Campus Utility Vehicle (CUV). Working on the design, especially bending circular steel pipes and HIPS sheets to desired angles and radii was exciting. Working on this project helped me enhance my knowledge in materials and prototyping, the two important areas of Transportation Design.”