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Grant Cambridge is the recipient of the 2009 Special Award by the CSIR Meraka Institute. He has installed Digital Doorways in New York, Addis Ababa, Uganda and Australia
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Commissioning the second solar-powered container Digital Doorway - this
time in Vumbu Village in rural KwaZulu-Natal - was a singular
experience, even for the CSIR's Grant Cambridge who takes challenges in
his stride. Vumbu is close to Kranskop; the community comprises mainly
subsistence farmers.
What is a container Digital Doorway?
A Digital Doorway is a rugged computer system used to promote self-learning of computer and information skills in remote areas. The concept of a Digital Doorway in a container was born out of discussions by the Digital Doorway team of the CSIR Meraka Institute and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). As a self-contained unit, decorated in bright colours, the container Digital Doorway has been designed to operate in deep rural areas where there is no access to the electricity grid. It is equipped with the identical functionality to that of other traditional three-terminal Digital Doorways.
Three ruggedised computer systems (based on the three-terminal Digital Doorway design) have been built into a self-contained, custom-built container. The systems have been designed to operate off 12 Vdc (Volts of continuous current). Roughly 3x3 m, the structure stands 3.8 m at its highest point and is equipped with seven 'stick-on' 68 Watt solar panels on its sloping roof. The solar panels charge 10 110Ah deep cycle marine batteries within the container, which supply power to the Digital Doorway systems. The system has been designed to operate 14 hours/day and has a zero-sun capacity of approximately five days. The container is roomy enough to allow groups to cluster around each terminal; three external doors allow access to the physical equipment.
"A stir in the valley": Digital Doorway@Vumbu
Transporting this container to Vumbu (a site recommended by the DST) for installation at the Nophungwe primary school was no mean feat. Cambridge escorted the abnormal load down the mountain pass, on a potholed road that once used to be tarred. "The 25 km trip into the valley took an hour," he explains. "There was no room for error on a road that does not often carry heavy vehicles with a big load."
Cambridge undertook the installation on his own in extreme heat. This entailed levelling the ground, laying down concrete slabs on which the container rests, fitting buck boost regulators to provide 12Vdc to the screens, and custom making the steps into the container. "I also had to do extensive pruning of some trees along the track leading to the school, so we could get the truck into the school grounds," he reports.
Most satisfying was the training Cambridge gave to teachers and residents, with the full support of Mrs Mkhize, the principal of Nophungwe primary school.
"It is always amazing to see the response to the novelty of computers," he says. "Prior to the Digital Doorway, no one has been able to use computers. Having access to a huge resource of information on the Digital Doorway - which includes the new 2009 software - has opened the eyes of the users."
The container is running well and Cambridge plans to return later to install updates and check on use.
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