For all of you who work in tropical regions and for poor (predominantly) rice-eater beneficiaries, here is some interesting news:
As you may know, solar cookers have been manufactured in India for about two deacdes (www.renewingindia.org would give some figures) and marketed under various developmental and subsidy schemes, while I understand that a few have been exported to other developing countries under some package or manufacturers' initiative. Most of the fabricators have been small / one-man-show industries, as preferred by the policies, who start by buying drawings from our government's Nodal Agencies and have little scope for product improvement or R&D. Taking keen initiative in this situation is the Industrial Design Centre of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. They have improved on all existing designs and are able to attain a temperature as high as 150 DEG Celsius with sufficient DIRECT COOKING capacity for a small family. It needs 3-4 hours in shadow-free tropical sunlight. Using superior yet locally sourced materials like FRP, PTFE and toughened glass covers for protection and enhanced insulation, the aesthetics and finish are pleasing too, a smooth, attractively coloured, aerodynamic oval. This design has also done away with the mirror, making it acceptable in windy areas as well. The design is available to micro-entrepreneur development agencies, NGOs as well as manufacturers. Please feel free to write to Prof K Munshi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> at IDC, Mumbai or me for any further information or assistance. Regards Udit Chaudhuri **************************************************** IDC SOLAR RICE COOKER Salient Features 1. Single dish design, suited to direct cooking, adapted to most tropical cuisines. 2. Cooks for 4 persons at a time. 3. Ideal for rice and lentil preparations - Khichri, Pullao, Kheer - ample scope for local improvisation. 4. Also roasts potatoes, other root vegetables, fish, meat - to temperatures as high as 150 deg. Celsius. 5. Healthful, slow cooking - a typical meal is ready by 12 Noon if loaded by 9 am. 6. No supervision is required after loading the cooker. 7. Hygenic - Teflon coating on cooking vessel and finished FRP exterior easy to clean. 8. Tamper-proof design - double glass cover, 4 tight clamps and no mirrors to distract or re-adjust. 9. Supplements conventional cooking, just like your pressure cooker, electric oven or rice cooker. 10. FUEL SAVING and environment-friendly - burns no wood or gas, smokeless cooking. 11. Tested & proven at Mumbai, also in winter. 12. Special recipes for solar cooking and are producing a solar cookbook. 13. Improved performance compared to commonly available box-type solar cookers - very high ratio of energy reception area to heat loss the area. 14. Balanced design function and performance, aesthetics and durability - all kept in mind. 15. Portable - just 6 Kgs, unladen. 16. Pleasant to display on the dining table and easy to carry from kitchen to the Sun-deck (balcony). For further information, please write to: Director INDUSTRIAL DESIGN CENTRE, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai 400076, INDIA Contact Person: Prof K Munshi, IIT Bombay Telephone (Direct): +91-22-576 7822 (EAPBX) +91-22-572 2545 Ext 7822 Fax: +91-22-576 7803 +91-22-572 3480 e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------ ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, an NGO that is a GKP member*** To post a message, send it to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: <http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/>
