Fan blade daigram

Model of the ceiling fan

Tackling the problem

Sudipto collapsed ideas and put Shaun, Vidur and me into the same group. We all had similar ideas, to do with modifying the blades of the fan. To maintain the shape of the fan we decided to use a canvas glove on all the blades. This would retain water and remain damp for long. Now we needed to find a way of transporting water onto the blades. Shaun had an idea about using centrifugal force. If we put a container of water onto the rotating shaft, that is connected to the shaft and has small holes leading to the blades, it will force water out onto the blades when the fan is in motion. To facilitate that movement, we also decided to drill holes in the fan blade itself. 

The problem with the sponge idea

Later, I realized that the fan becomes slower with the sponge on it. It doesn't throw out as much air as it should. So it was cooling, but a very small area and over a long period of time. I tried to tackle this problem by making the sponge thinner. It was still taking very long to cool. Sudipto suggested that instead of trying to attach things to the fan, I should make blades from water absorbing material. This way the shape of the blades will be maintained. 

Testing the ceiling fan

First I made two fan blades out of plastic coated cardboard. I then stuck thin long pieces of sponge on the edges. I realized that they were okay as prototypes but they were not functional.

Since we could not experiment on a ceiling fan, we bought a table fan and dismantled the cage. I cut up long thin pieces of the yellow “scotch brite” and stuck them in a line on the edges of the fan on both sides, the back and the front. I used a paint brush to dampen the sponge slightly and then turned it on. It worked. 

Materials for the ceiling fan

I had to decide what kind of sponge to use on the fan. The sponge needed to be tough to survive through being damp and turning at high speed for hours. It also needed to absorb water well and become wet easily without the use of too much water. It also had to hold onto this water well without dripping. And my last but so important criteria was that it shouldn’t take too long to after the fan was turned off. This way there was less chance of algae, etc.

 I chose 3 sponges to test on. I cut small thin sections of them and then dropped droplets of water on them and shook them vigorously (at this point, I did not have access to a fan). I counted the number of drops I needed to damp the sponge. While shaking it, I checked whether the water dripped or not, and finally how long it took for the sponge to dry.

Green sponge- The green sponge was tough and thin perfect for putting on the blades of a fan. Except it water porous and didn’t hold water.

Pink sponge- the pink sponge was extremely durable and but very thick. Even a thin section of the sponge did not allow penetration of water. A lot of water was required to dampen it.

Yellow sponge- was the softest and most delicate sponge therefore it was not durable at all. But it absorbed water really well, held it and then dried up very quickly as well.

I am going to use the yellow sponge. It reduces chances of rusting or algae because it dries up very quickly but might need to be changed every now and then. This should not be a very big disadvantage because the sponge is very cheap. 

Ceiling fan cum desert cooler

We were asked to take inspiration from a desert cooler and make changes in the ceiling fan such that its blades held moisture and helped make a room cooler. I decided to use sponge on the blades of the fan to hold moisture. But if I covered the entire blade in sponge, the purpose of the blade being thin and able to cut through air would be lost. So I decided to put sponge only on the two long edges. Then I had to figure out how to dampen the sponge. So I decided to put create some sort of dripping system from the motor itself. Water would drop from the down through a thin pipe, into a container in the rotating shaft. That would have a second pipe that infiltrates the sponge and keeps it damp. The two pipes had to be separated because otherwise they would get very tangled when the fan rotated. 

Narayanapura

Narayanpura is a potter's village on the outskirts of Bangalore. We went there to see what assets these people had. How we could sell this village to outsiders. We spoke to several people there. what we found out was that most people there were potters. the fact that this place was a "potter's village" helped bring tremendous amounts of business in. So even though pottery was a dying art, it didn't seem to affect them. they don't have many facilities available but the ones they need are close by. There is a school, a hospital and they source their clay from close by. Being situated near the Jog falls, the largest plunge waterfall in the country, helps provide almost stable hydro-electricity. Water, unfortunately is only available on alternate days. All villagers are well connected with the outside world and most of them own cell phones. What I found very strange was that women were not allowed to sit at the pottery wheel. They used other techniques for making pots, most women grew crops. Also, most of the potter's children are moving away from this profession. 

Creating a personna

  We did an exercise where we made up excuses for why we did not come to school on a certain day. I have a pet lizard and my excuse was that I had mistaken his hibernation for death. And had not come to school because i wanted to give him a funeral. Later he woke up and I realized that he wasn't dead. Sudipto then talked about how you could get information about the kind of person someone was by just that simple story.
  He asked us to observe and talk to a community of our choice. My group decided to study a group of construction workers. We were then asked to create a personna using the qualities that these construction workers had. Our imaginary construction worker was a woman called Shilpa. She had two children who she could not afford to send to school and bought along with her to work because there was no one else to take care of them. She risked her professional hazards on them as well. Her husband was a garbage collector. 

Designing lunch boxes

   Our target audience were people who use cycles to commute everyday. They have difficulties carrying their lunch to work everyday because there is no place to keep it. We designed a lunch box that can be attached to the front rod of the cycle. Since indian food is messy and a little difficult to eat out of a lunch box we also attached a stainless steel plate to the bottom of the lunch box that can be peeled off and used. Since it fits below the box, it gives space for a spoon and fork to be stored.
  Another feature our lunch box had, was that some of the compartments were detachable. The side compartment is divided into three but these divisions can be played around with or removed completely.
the lunch box was square and was made of soft, flexible plastic. This lunch box could then be attached to the front rod of the cycle with nylon straps and stainless steel buckles.