Entrepreneurs and innovators pioneering new ways of creating a
better transport system will see their ideas brought to life from
idea through to inception with thanks to government funding,
Transport Minister has announced today.
Up to 53 projects
will be awarded a share of £1.95 million in Department
for Transport funding. Past winners include a purifying system to
lower virus transmission on trains, a portable charger for use at
remote locations and a battery cooling system.
In the 2020 round of funding, the University of Surrey
constructed a device that could make it safer for people to
travel. The device could be installed on trains and buses to
purify the air and lower the transmission of certain viruses
including COVID-19.
The device works by sucking air through the equivalent of a cold
flame. Ionising plasma then attacks any virus particles that may
be in the air and breaks them apart, rendering them harmless.
Similarly, Greenway Innovations developed a system that attracts
and grabs virus droplets that are produced when you cough. This
system could be installed on trains to purify the air and lower
the transmission of viruses.
Transport Minister said:
Backing innovation is a priority for us and I’m delighted to be
supporting Britain’s budding entrepreneurs, as they help us to
ensure people can travel at ease and to solve the complex task of
decarbonising our transport system.
This is vital as we look ahead to a greener and safer transport
future that will create jobs right across the UK.
The faster a battery is charged, the hotter it can get, which is
why QDot has created a battery cooling system, thanks to funding
received in the last round of the competition. The design
includes a built-in cooling tab that allows heat to be conducted
away rapidly, allowing drivers to charge their vehicles quickly
by preventing battery packs from getting too hot.
Meanwhile, thanks to government funding, a portable charging
solution that can allow drivers to charge at remote sites,
including festivals and tourist attractions, is being developed
by Pragmatex. The device can also be used to ‘concentrate’ mains
supply where there is little excess power available – charging
the battery slowly from constrained supply and then rapidly
transferring this stored energy to a vehicle when/where it can
charge rapidly.
Now in its 11th round of funding, the Transport Research and
Innovation Grant (TRIG) brings
together talented start-ups – mainly SMEs and
universities – and policymakers at the earliest stages of
innovation.
By issuing targeted investments of up to £30,000 for each
project, the fund aims to help budding start-ups and academics
propel their ideas to market quicker.
CEO of
Connected Places Catapult, Nicola Yates OBE, said:
The UK’s innovation
ecosystem has a strong track record in developing solutions to
complex problems.
The TRIG 2021
call is focused on finding the next wave of state-of-the-art
transport solutions, enabling the sector to achieve net zero and
become more resilient to disruption.
I very much look forward to seeing the proposed innovations and
working with the successful teams to support their journey to
market.
