Industrial - Bachelors
Dim emergency lights and limited power capacity puts users in danger when they need to use their current emergency beacon device most. GEO-LIGHT is the thought-child to target these areas where current devices fall short of the needs of users, by exploring and integrating the latest technologies.
This project aimed to explore and identify within Mining, Military and Medical industries, potential products that could benefit from the use of Nuclear Diamond Batteries, batteries which self generate power by storing Beta radiation released by nuclear isotopes such as Carbon14. Nuclear power is clean and green, with very little direct impact on the environments atmosphere, making it an ideal candidate to power future technologies which currently require recharging when the battery is depleted.
Qualitative and quantitative research was undertaken in the form of online surveys and in person interviews. Candidates from Mining, Military and Medical industries participated, offering real-world opinions and viewpoints on industry recommendations for ideal products and product features to explore the implementation of Nuclear Diamond Batteries.
Across the industries, three main product features reoccurred which included emergency lighting, safety and GPS tracking of personnel and dangerous cargo, such as explosives in the mining industry.
Multiple participants from all three industries specifically recommended emergency lighting beacons as an ideal product to explore.
With its durable high-impact polypropylene main body and stainless steel mounting face-plate, the GEO-LIGHT is designed for the harshest of conditions and elements.
The strap and buckle allow the GEO-LIGHT to be attached to life vests, backpacks and strapped around an arm or leg for water sports such as surfing or for ocean divers.
The dead-man configuration silicone switches on the top and bottom of the body are glow in the dark green, allowing the power buttons to be easily located in any lighting condition.
The fully sealed, custom gaskets between mating points of component assembly, allows the GEO-LIGHT to achieve an ingress protection rating of IP68, full submersion protection rated to 1m of depth.
Emergency lighting on personal emergency beacons is typically dim, making visibility to search and rescue personnel poor. The GEO-LIGHT combats this issue by integrating the latest CREE XPL 10W COB LED chips. These latest generation CREE LED’s are 50% Brighter than previous generations and have a peak luminosity of 1150 Lumens each, while only drawing 2.95v @ 1.05A of power. The GEO-LIGHT harnesses the power of two of these chips, offering an impressive peak combined luminosity of 2300 Lumens.
Emergency beacons typically use Li-Po batteries for their power source, which have a maximum shelf life of 3-5 years and maximum 40hrs operation. The GEO-LIGHT uses nuclear diamond batteries (NDB) to provide up to 25,000 years of storage and 4000-5000 years of active use. NDB technology harnesses the power of Carbon-14 naturally decaying and emitting Beta radiation. The Beta radiation is contained within the battery by shielding the Carbon-14 in laminate layers of Diamond. The NDB’s are also encased in one of the hardest known elements, making them fully tamper proof and safe for commercial use.
Designed for use in many different fields including military, water sports and hiking, the GEO-LIGHT incorporates operation safety features and useful systems design, making the GEO-LIGHT intuitive for all users. The operation of GEO-LIGHT is simple.
1. Press the two green, glow in the dark power buttons in a dead-man switch configuration, located on the top and bottom of the device at the same time, this will enable GPS only mode. This mode will allow your location to be shared with the nearest satellite, always close by with GEO-LIGHT’s pre-paid connection to private satellites.
2. Press the dead-man switch buttons again and the device will enable strobe lighting, on top of GPS location sharing. The strobes operate at a frequency of 1htz for 500ms (once every second for half a second).
3. Press the dead-man switch a third time to fully disable the device, putting the device into storage mode for future use.
Ethan is an Industrial Designer studying a Dual Degree of Design (Industrial) and Business (Marketing) with key interests in future technologies, advanced manufacturing, rapid prototyping and model making as well as prop and character concept modelling and rendering. Ethan has real-world experience in fields such as Medical, Automotive, Manufacturing, Prototyping, 3D Printing Technician, Consulting and Prop Creation.