The proliferation of innovative new businesses in Kenya is illustrative of the country’s latent intellectual potential. Paul Waweru developed a battery-powered motorcycle that runs on discarded laptop power packs.
Background
Paul Waweru teaches at Mwihoko Mixed Secondary School in Ruiru, Kiambu County, and his subject areas of expertise include mathematics, physics, and computer studies. The math instructor grew up in Ol Kalou and has been fascinated by electronics ever since. To satisfy his insatiable curiosity, he would take apart whatever piece of electronic equipment he could get his hands on.
My mother will speak to the fact that I have broken numerous home electronics, including radios and televisions. In fact, he told the Standard, “I didn’t quit until I became a boarding student in high school.”
He attended Kalou Secondary School for his secondary schooling before continuing on to Kenyatta University, where he earned a Bachelor of Education in mathematics and physics.
Invention of an Electric Motorcycle
Waweru’s curiosity was piqued when the five batteries in the electric motorcycle he had purchased failed. A physics educator, he considered approaching the battery issue in an independent fashion.
In an exclusive interview with KTN News, he said, “After several trials, I produced the first prototype, which I then tested and it worked above my expectations, travelling for almost 50 kilometers.”
He links together almost 190 separate battery cells for laptop computers, stacking them in a square formation. In order to conserve the battery, he buys various equipment from China, such as a battery management system (BMS). The battery can be charged in about 3 hours and has a range of 50-60 kilometers, depending on the pace of the driver. Mr. Waweru estimates that the motorcycle consumes about 4 electric units.
An practically full battery can be charged with 2 units, a halfway charged battery with 3, and a completely dead battery with up to 4 electric units. He elaborated, “You don’t have to use electricity; this battery can be charged with solar energy.”
Waweru said that his technology will significantly contribute to ending the environmental damage caused by gasoline and diesel-powered cars. The electric motorcycle is silent compared to traditional motorcycles, which helps lessen noise pollution. According to Waweru, the fuel scarcity situation in Kenya may be alleviated if his technology were adopted. In return for his innovation, Zetech University has provided him with funding and a platform from which to market and improve upon his creation.
A Variety of Other New Creations
Waweru created an electric, automated hand washing system in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Power from the grid isn’t always stable because of blackouts, so I started considering alternative power sources for the device,” he told the Standard.
His laptop had stopped working, so he took apart the power supply to figure out what had gone wrong. Once he opened the battery, he saw that it was made of lithium-ion cells. According to his investigation, if a laptop battery suddenly stops working, it is most often due to the failure of a single cell. He ran tests on the cells to establish their health and found that the vast majority were healthy and functioning normally. To power the hand washing device for up to a week without recharging, Paul Waweru utilized the cells.
Batteries that can be recharged on the go
The math teacher found that the cells functioned, so he or she began building portable power banks from of discarded materials like UPS cases.
I began by creating smaller power banks, and then expanded into larger sizes capable of recharging electronics as large as televisions and PCs. As a physics professor, he reasoned that he already possessed the knowledge necessary to create the items in question.
He utilizes his invention to power his home lighting and electronics independently of the grid. He takes old computer monitors and turns them into lamps.
A Green Energy Business
To better conduct his experiments, Waweru has relocated his operations from his home to those of his newly founded recycling company, Eco-Power Company. The firm designs a variety of portable power backup devices that can run everything from smartphones to desktop computers, televisions to lamps, and music systems to cameras. Prices at this business start at Ksh10,000 and go up to Ksh25,000.
