Students from different parts of the country took part in the Asian e-bike challenge to develop green and energy-efficient models as an alternative to vehicles running on fossil fuels.
Aditya Institute of Technology and Management (AITAM) organised the competition that saw participation from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra and Punjab. Only models that passed tests on functioning of brakes, accelerator and engine during trials that began on March 1 were allowed to reach the final round on Monday.
As many as 23 captains of different colleges took part in the 100-minute-long final round, inaugurated by Dr.B.R.Ambedkar University V-C Kuna Ramjee and judged by automotive experts. AITAM Director V.V. Nageswara Rao said the best designs would be fit for getting patented.
Students of SSN College in Tamil Nadu, A. Naresh Krishna and A. Hareesh Kumar said getting the required speed with a battery-run bike was a challenge. Deepak Kumar of the Chandigarh Polytechnic College said his team focused on minimising expenditure with the usage of dry batteries.
“We have designed the bike to suit Indian road conditions. Comfort aspect has also been incorporated in designing the bike,” he added.
“Currently, vehicles with batteries could run for only four hours. With research, we must find ways of increasing the capacity of batteries so that bikes could go cover distances,” said K.N. Vijayakumar, professor at the DJ Sanghvi College of Engineering, Mumbai.