Hello All - This posting looks at designing a "Low-Cost Village Sanitation" dedicated to the Engineers Without Borders, University of Wisconsin-Platteville chapter. Good Luck on your upcoming trip to Ghana!
The topics in this posting might be helpful in providing basic survival needs, making into products to sell, or instructions for people to make devices themselves.
As a start, how about these Low-Cost Village Sanitation patents. Please remember that newer patents are probably not expired, and therefore active. Patents that have expired due to age (generally more than 20 years old from the filing date) are free to use by anyone.
DECOMPOSITION TOILETUS Pat. 3921228 - Filed Apr 1, 1974 -
IMPROVEMENT IN PRIVIESUS Pat. 109160 -
PRIVYUS Pat. 432461 - Filed Apr 7, 1890
PRIVYUS Pat. 1290886 - Filed Jan 3, 1918 -
READY-BUILT METAL OUTSIDE PRIVYUS Pat. 2573838 - Filed Feb 3, 1947
COMBINED SEPTIC TANK AND PRIVYUS Pat. 1281528 - Filed Sep 5, 1916
IMPROVEMENT IN PRIVY-HOUSESUS Pat. 147266 - Filed Dec 9, 1873 -
IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FERTILIZERS FROM NIGHT-SOILUS Pat. 151905 - Filed May 23, 1874 -
IMPROVEMENT IN PROCESSES AND APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING FERTILIZERS FROMUS Pat. 183242 - Filed Jun 21, 1876 -
IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF MANURE FROM NIGHT-SOILUS Pat. 200731 - Filed Jan 4, 1878 -
FERTILIZERUS Pat. 232756 - Filed May 19, 1879 -
APPARATUS FOR MAKING FERTILIZER FROM NIGHT SOILUS Pat. 548561
IMPROVEMENT IN TREATING NIGHT-SOIL FOR AGRICULTURAL PURPOSESUS Pat. 39472
IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FERTILIZERS FROM NIGHT-SOILUS Pat. 129739 -
IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FERTILIZERS FROM NIGHT-SOILUS Pat. 151905 - Filed May 23, 1874 -
Weak alkaline organic fertilizer from organic waste including food waste and ...US Pat. 6793704 - Filed Dec 10, 2001
METHOD OF CLARIFYING NIGHT SOIL WITH BACTERIAUS Pat. 3219576 - Filed Apr 20, 1962 -
MEANS FOR DEODORIZING AND DRYING NIGHT-SOIL AND THE LIKEUS Pat. 950977 - Filed Jul 15, 1908 -
COMPOST TOILETUS Pat. 3840907 - Filed Sep 6, 1972 -
Method for natural biochemical decomposition of latrineUS Pat. 4001108 - Filed Jun 23, 1975
In addition, here's some other information you might find interesting.
CLTS - Community-Led Total Sanitation
Community-led total sanitation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Google results for Community Led Total Sanitation
Google results for Rural Sanitation
YouTube - THE NEW WAVE- Scaling Up Sustainable Sanitation in Rural ...
YouTube - Awakening - Total Sanitation in Bangladesh - Part 1
YouTube - Water and sanitation: a partnership for change
YouTube - Sanitation: A Perfect Deal!
YouTube - WECF film on Safe Sanitation
YouTube - Community-Led Total Sanitation in Bangladesh
YouTube - East Timor Water & Sanitation - Part 1 of 5 Community ...
YouTube - Awakening: Achieving Total Sanitation in Bangladesh
YouTube - Ecosan toilet in Bangalore,India - Towards sustainable ...
How to Build a Composting Toilet - wikiHow
How to Build a Compost Toilet eHow.com
How to Build an Outhouse eHow.com
YouTube - Ecosan toilet in Bangalore,India - Towards sustainable ...
YouTube - Pump Aid and the Elephant Toilet
YouTube - Water and sanitation: a partnership for change
YouTube - Sanitation in Ethiopia
YouTube - WaterSanitation's Channel
How to Build a Dry Toilet eHow.com
YouTube - Affordable Compost Toilets for the World's Rural Poor
YouTube - Towards Clean Cities: Addressing Sanitation in Urban India
Water And Sanitation Videos - Metacafe
Find your local library at Libweb and ask about Community Led Sanitation or Rural Sanitation.
You could ask for help from an Engineering School. Find schools at All Engineering Schools.
So what can you do with all this information? Here's some suggestions.
+ You could make and sell the device described in the expired patent. Please note that just because something is patented or written, it might not work all that well or might not be safe in today's standards. Use your own judgment, or seek help, to stay safe and out of trouble.
+ You could "translate" the expired patent into easy-to-understand instructions for others to make the device. These instructions could use easy-to-find materials, like trees, plants, rocks, people, scrap materials, etc.
+ You could recruit the inventors or authors to help you, since they are experts in their field. Some of the inventors of older patents might be retired now and might be looking for something to do.
+ Existing manufacturers could use this information to make their already fine products even better, more efficient, or less expensive.
+ Build on the work of others. Maybe, use patent images instead of starting with a blank sheet of paper. Computer model other's designs and make the designs better or cheaper or simpler. You don't have to "reinvent the wheel" . Design around active patents.
+ You could use the information to brainstorm new ideas.
That's about all for now. As background, the site "Design for the Other 90%" said to "GET INVOLVED", so I did. I plan to continue posting these LOW-COST DESIGN TOPICS on my Blog for a while yet. Let me know if you have a topic you would like covered. I'm open to suggestions on improving my blog format, too. Please e-mail me directly.. I hope you find this helpful. I'm sure you can do much better though! Good Luck!For more of my LOW COST DESIGN TOPICS - Click on the tag below "design for the other 90%".
See disclaimers on TG Ideas LLC publications and website - http://www.athenet.net/~ideas/, Thanks!
