Date of Award

Spring 2020

Document Type

Thesis

Publisher

Santa Clara : Santa Clara University, 2020.

Department

Electrical Engineering

First Advisor

Andrew Wolfe

Abstract

This report showcased a project from Santa Clara University's Senior Design Showcase. Current senior electrical engineering students Karter Naito and Kyle Johnson have created a Natural Disaster Relief Communications Box that they hope will have a big impact on natural disasters. The device had three different power sources to provide power to operate the device : plug-in wall charger , solar panel, and a handle crank. Powered by a Raspberry Pi 4, it could set up a local Wi-Fi network for people to connect to and receive and send important information. To increase the reliability of the device , it was weatherproofed as much as possible as well as made rugged. Based on the design , it was simple to use and economically viable to make sure the device can be accessible by the masses. The hope was that first responders or people in an emergency situation have a way to connect and send vital or important messages to one another. The intended purpose was to send out evacuation messages or to directly notify first responders on where help is needed. The goal of the project was to set the foundation for future design projects to further improve the device and increase its applications/functionality. At the conclusion of the project, the box was functioning properly and a working proof of concept for our device.

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