Eindhoven students build world’s first solar-powered ambulance

Students at Eindhoven University of Technology have unveiled what they say is the world’s first solar-powered ambulance, designed to bring medical care to remote regions where poor roads and a lack of fuel or electricity put healthcare out of reach.

Stella Juva, presented on Tuesday, was developed in a year by Solar Team Eindhoven, a group of 23 students. Solar panels on the roof power both the motor and the medical equipment on board, and on a sunny day the vehicle is expected to cover 715 kilometres without needing any charging infrastructure.

But how does a solar vehicle fare in one of Europe’s cloudiest countries? “The Dutch weather, to say the least, is not Kenya’s,” team manager Mathijs van Gerven told DutchNews after the launch. The ambulance’s 50 kWh battery stores solar energy so it can keep powering its equipment, and its own motors, without interruption, he explained.

Unlike a traditional ambulance, which transports patients to hospital, Stella Juva is designed to bring care to people, allowing healthcare providers to carry out blood tests, screen for diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria, administer vaccinations and perform pregnancy ultrasounds.

The students developed the vehicle with international health organisations including Amref Health Africa, formerly known as the Flying Doctors. “In remote areas, healthcare workers sometimes travel great distances by bicycle, and reliable energy is not a given,” Femke Maurits of Amref’s Dutch branch said in a statement.

Energy is essential, she said, for keeping vaccines cooled and running medical equipment.

Kenya test
In August the team will take Stella Juva to Kenya, starting with a kick-off at Amref International University attended by officials from the Dutch embassy and Kenyan diplomats. The vehicle will then be tested at two field locations, where healthcare scenarios, such as the treatment of tuberculosis patients, will be simulated.

“Three of our team members have been chosen to drive Stella Juva – they were the first to test her,” Van Gerven told us. “We will see who gets to drive the first Kenyan metres, but I reckon they will all want to go first.”

Afterwards, the ambulance will tour events across the Netherlands, and possibly Europe, to encourage companies and healthcare providers to take the concept further. For production at scale, the team is looking to industry.

“If 23 students are able to do this in just one year, think about what is possible if technological companies and social organisations collaborate,” Van Gerven said.