Ever wondered how an emergency vehicle like ambulance can flaunt a green flag? Mumbai, the commercial island city of India boasts of an ambulance service, dubbed 1298. This fleet provides reliable 24×7 emergency medical service to the residents of Mumbai. However it’s the recent idea of fitting these ambulances with solar panels to power up the onboard equipment that has bought it under green lime light. These state-of-the-art ambulances, modeled on the London Ambulance Service make use of Global Positioning System (GPS) and Realtime Tracking System (RTS) to reach the patient in the minimum possible time. 1298 is one of a number of Acumen Fund investments that defies easy classification.
[Acumenfund] & [Worldchanging]
The first thing that most of us put in our baggage while packing for a holiday is a rechargeable battery charger. And if you have kids along then this one is a must as most of the toys run on the AA rechargeable batteries. Korean designers Ji-yun Kim, Soon-young Yang & Hwan-ju Jeon have stuck out a green Febot for the same purpose. Shaped like a torpedo with wings, this eco-friendly device grabs up the energy of wind to recharge a single battery. Simply stick it out of the window and pray that the wind blows. The trio have managed to shape up a green charging gadget that promises fully charges batteries on the go. But who will take care of the blowing the wind in its direction? I suggest that the designers should have also fitted the Febot with a solar panel that could at least make use of some solar energy in case of non-windy days!
Though a lush green lawn is everyone’s dream, the task of trimming a lawn is not believed to be the most favored chore. But you can cut your lawn chores down to one step with a fully automatic, solar powered robotic lawn mower, the Automower. Touted to be the best user friendly, green mower, it is designed to move about freely on a pre-wired green lawn. This will help to keep the robotic mower in check and ensure about the specification of area of grass to be cut. Programmed to give the lawn an even result and a carpet-like finish, even ‘Islands’ can be created by laying the wire around plants and flower beds. Getting its juice from sun’s energy, the solar panels on the Automower help to absorb the sunrays that in turn help to trim quarter of an acre of cutting for each 10 hours.
The need to conserve energy and water has been under prime focus in the recent past and in the present times too for an inhabitable future. It has become mandatory to inculcate conserving habits in every act of the day. UK designer, Jonathan Banton, has fabricated a simple yet green product that nourishes the idea of making the best out of the otherwise wasted energy while cooking. Dubbing it as Osmos, this concept resembles a raised lid or tray from the kitchen cabinet. Crafted out of bone china, it is shaped to stay on a cooking vessel and absorb all the steam and heat that is lost while cooking food. The top of Osmos houses tiny green herbs and plants that thrive on all the nourishment provided by the base layer. It is designed to recycle all the lost energy during the cooking process to grow more greens for further cooking.
Here is an outstanding time-telling DIY project for a geek with a green thumb. Darren from Engadget has bought to light a Wall Clock that has been wheedled out of old computer Hard Drives. So if you too have been accumulating such geeky stuff and a tiny e-waste heap occupies a corner in your den then dig in through the junk to grab a dozen hard-drives. Put your expertise to test with help of few tools and a tiny quartz machine to set the hands moving. A smart Instructable user has got hold of a drill, a kit of screw drivers and pliers to fix up about 12 of 3.5 inched cast off computer hard drives. To create the “face” of this clock, he has used aluminum washers or spacers that separate hard drive platters. You can also let your creativity loose and come up with unusual combinations. The geeky designer here has smartly used the number of rings to denote the hour on the face of the clock. That is three rings for 3 o’clock, 6 rings for 6 o’clock and so on!
This Christmas, light up the pathway to your eco-den with the latest wind powered out-door light. Designed by Tom Lawton, Firewinder not only makes use of alternative wind energy to light up the dark times but also turns clockwise to stir up the good spirits according to the Buddhism teachings. This spiral structure harness the endless energy of wind to dole out upward spiraling light every time the slight breeze blows. Setting it up in your backyard or lining up your patio with Firewinders can render unobstructed light show after the sun sets. The mesmerizing twirl of light also helps to unwind stressful thoughts at the end of the day. However such a design has its limitation as it cannot shed light when the wind refuses to be generous.
Intending to bring all the green features under one roof, folks from Sander Architecture have giving shape to Residence for a Briard. Spread over a 3,800sf, it is the first example of Hybrid House by the firm. Making extensive use of ecological and sustainable materials, systems and strategies, this abode is also honored as the greenest residences built in California to date. Determined to create an eco-friendly Case Study House for the 21st Century, the firm also focused on the prime aspect that is reducing the construction costs for custom homes. Making such eco dens affordable for eco-dwellers is much needed as it’s not only the green thumb but the size of the wallet that primarily decides the kind of house a person can reside in. Recycled blue jean insulation tops the list of the eco-friendly features of this structure. The rest green features include greywater systems, passive heating and cooling strategies, cistern to capture rainwater for watering landscaping, sunflower seed wall board, bamboo flooring, marmoleum, eco-resin panels, low-flush toilets, on-demand water heater and more.
Though all of us can step up our efforts for a cleaner environment by traveling about the city using public transport services, Londoners can do the same and score more green points over others. This is because 17 new hybrid double-decker buses have rolled into the city. Touted to be the first of its kind, such a green drive doubles up as an unquestionable eco-friendly public commuting system. The Transport for London and Metrobus have recently taken the delivery of this green version of iconic red fleet of buses seen on London streets. Built by Britain’s Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) and BAE Systems, the hybrid system uses a generator, an electric motor and lithium-ion battery storage along with a regenerative braking system.
While most of us simply waste the energy that we burn while working out at out local gym, environmentalist, Jay Whelan, chalked out an innovative technology to power up a gym by converting human energy into green electricity. Called as the Green Revolution, this out-of-the-box idea enables the patrons of Ridgefield Fitness Club to juice up their gym with clean energy. Being the first gym to apply such an eco-friendly concept, its cycling studio, comprising of 17 indoor cycles, is connected to the club’s electrical grid through an inverter. This allows the usage of human electricity throughout the whole club. Furthermore, any excess electricity can be tapped for other purposes. It is also estimated that a standard health club could produce enough electricity to light 72 homes for one month.
Apart from Obama’s victory, Americans have one more reason to rejoice. Though it has nothing to do with the elections or the president, the new Enertia Motorcycle scores high in the green blogoshpere by being touted as the first commercially available all-electric commuter motorcycle. Based in Oregon, Brammo Motorsports has designed and manufactured this ‘Made in America’ electric motorcycle for eco-conscious as well as style-conscious bike riders of North America. Ideal for short-distance and urban commuting, this green two-wheeler will help to relieve the bikers of the escalating gasoline rates. Freeing the users of their dependence on gas, the Enertia fills its belly by plugging it to the power cord. The six 12V Lithium Phosphate batteries, which are highly resistant to combustion render a running time of 2 hours on 80%, 3 hours when completely charged. The sturdy yet uber light carbon-fiber framework helps to zip from 0 to 30 in 4.3 seconds only!
