The SolaRain

Part 1: Drawing key lessons

• The problem and solutions are well described and provide a clear insight into the teams thinking and solution finding process.

• The 2 in 1 concept of water storage and charging station is unique and shows thinking outside the box.

• The presentation slides are well done, with the information clearly presented.

Areas of improvement include:

• The design of the is interesting but the up-turned umbrella will provide poor cover for those sitting underneath it during both rain and shine. unless it is bigger than what is depicted. This brings another issue, in that water is heavy and collecting lots of it would require a stronger material than is currently used in most umbrellas.

• Storing the water is another issue. This would need to be drained often. As the water fills the tank and reaches maximum, the run-off would travel up the inlet pipe and could cause an overflow issue. There should be a sensor powered by the solar panels that detects the water level and closes off the inlet to the tank once its full.

Part 2: Exploring Possibilities

Existing solutions:

• I prefer the solar panel idea alone as that would be simpler and would help solve the problem of people needing to charge their mobile devices often given the increasingly heavy usage of these devices. This provides an environmentally friendly solution that both locals and tourists.

• SolaRain might be a solution that can be looked at in countries where electricity and water are in short supply. So do not give-up on the idea.

Possible areas to explore:

• The use of solar power that is environmentally friendly.

• Rain water storage in filtration for countries where clean water is issue.

• Perhaps these 2 issues can be looked at separately as well.