Student Car Design Will Eliminate Pollution

Student Car Design Will Eliminate Pollution
An electrical engineering student has been causing a stir at the University of KwaZulu-Natal with his development of a computer system capable of controlling an electric motor car.

Like many electric motor vehicles, the vehicle designed and built by James Ireland, does not generate emissions, conserves energy and reduces noise pollution.

Ireland is in the process of completing the car for his master's degree in electrical engineering and believes "the technology could be the solution to the world's pollution dilemma".

Ireland, who has been fascinated with inventions all his life, made his first electric motor when he was in Grade 2.

Ireland said electric cars have existed since the early 1900s, but he has developed a real-time computer, which was not commercially available.

The high-speed custom computer controller took Ireland about 18 months to develop and less than two months to build into a go-cart.

"This type of computer control system has enabled us to use cheap industrial motors that are relatively difficult to control in this type of application," said Ireland.

The computer system is not only dedicated to the electric vehicle application, but is also applicable to diverse academic and industrial projects, from specialised motor control to rural electrification.

But in developing his design Irela