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Research paper · IDEAS 2024, IIT Roorkee

ECO
Emergency Care Orbit

A dual-mode ambulance that drives through the city, then lifts onto a track under the metro line to clear the traffic.

Role
Co-author, research and design
Team
Seven authors, NIFT Hyderabad
Year
2024
ECO driving along a city road at dusk, its red front lit

Problem

Ambulances wait in the same traffic as everyone else.

60min

The golden hour

30%

Of emergency deaths linked to delay

An ambulance boxed in by cars on an Indian road, seen from above

Opportunity

From a single-mode vehicle to a multimodal emergency system.

Process

Amphibians and ziplines.

An amphibian lives in two worlds. A zipline moves fast along one line. ECO started from both.

Brainstorming word cloud with ZIPLINE, QUICK, TRANSPORT and AMPHIBIAN

Brainstorming

Sketch of a capsule ambulance hanging from a roof rail

Sketch 01

Sketch of the capsule from above, with a rail along its roof

Sketch 02

Sketch of the capsule from the front, with roof connectors

Sketch 03

The first physical model of the ambulance, set on a striped barrier in a campus courtyard

First model

From levitation to road and rail.

The first idea floated the ambulance entirely. It became a more feasible hybrid: wheels on the road, a track above it.

ECO driving on a city road at dusk ECO suspended from the elevated track above a street

Solution

One ambulance, two modes.

On the road

Drives like any ambulance to reach the patient.

Mechanism

How it locks on.

Telescopic connectors reach the track. Electromagnets then lift the ambulance and push it along.

Diagram of the track section: electromagnets on the track for levitation and guidance, electromagnets on the connectors, and propulsion magnets
01Connect

Connectors extend up to the track.

02Align and lift

The vehicle is positioned and raised.

03Lock

It is secured for the ride.

System

From the call to the hospital.

  1. 01Emergency callStart
  2. 02Drive to the patientRoad
  3. 03Switch to elevated modeTrack
  4. 04LevitateTrack
  5. 05PropelTrack
  6. 06Switch lanesTrack
  7. 07High-speed travelTrack
  8. 08Back to ground modeRoad
  9. 09Arrive at hospitalEnd

How it works

01

Access

Reaches the patient by road.

02

Transition

Connectors rise and lock onto the track.

03

Transport

Glides to the hospital above the traffic.

Ground mode

At a glance

2modes

Road and elevated track

6m

Track height above the road

60min

The golden hour it protects

9steps

From call to hospital
ECO suspended from the track beside a brick building, a car on the road below
ECO on a street with its connectors extended

Connectors extending

Close-up of the connector heads with their wheels

Connector heads

Connector wheels running inside the track

Wheels inside the track

Technical drawing: ECO hanging from a track under the metro, between pillars, with dimensions 1.5 m, 2.5 m and 6 m

Dimensions

Fits under the metro.

Track

1.5m

Ambulance

2.5m

Above road

6m

Side drawing of the connectors extending telescopically

Connectors extending

Side drawing of the connectors folding to align with the track

Connectors aligning

Render of ECO running on the electromagnetic track

On the track

Cutaway of ECO’s interior: a stretcher with a patient, a monitor, an oxygen cylinder, an IV stand and a shelf of equipment

Patient care

Inside

A stretcher, monitor, oxygen and IV, with equipment within reach.

Film

ECO in the city.

Animation

Conclusion

A future where no life is lost to delay.

Presented

Amphi Transport for Emergency Medical Services: An Initiative to Devise Multi-Model Ambulance Operations

Research paper and abstract · presented at IDEAS 2024, International Conference, IIT Roorkee

Authors

Srivani ThadepalliAarohi Pandurang ChavanFarheen FathimaAvishkar Shankar KaleAaryaa Uday JoshiAditya DhruvAdweetya Mallik

Srivani Thadepalli, Associate Professor, Department of Fashion Technology, NIFT Hyderabad. All other authors, B.Des students, NIFT Hyderabad.