Gory accident inspired my boda boda speed governor innovation
In 2014, Kennedy Njenga joined the United States International University (USIU)-Africa for a degree in international relations.
His dream was to graduate and pursue a career in his field of study, with a bias towards diplomacy. After all, he had always pictured himself as a diplomat, dedicating his life to the service of others.
But a near fatal accident his late father, David Njenga, suffered in 2001 changed everything. The crash left his patriarch semi-paralysed, being wheeled in and out of hospital.
This meant that Njenga could not pursue any openings in the diplomacy field as his father’s health was deteriorating fast. He was also the one to take up the family business.
And then he witnessed another fatal accident on his way to Embu in April 2014, when a speeding boda boda rider transporting chicken was crashed by a truck. The painful incident pushed the young man into the world of innovation.
“The accident was so gory that the rider was minced and his body parts mixed with those of the chicken he was transporting. It was grisly,” recalls Mr Njenga.
Taming boda boda
No one deserves such a death, he thought. “Is there a way motorcycle riders can avoid such carnage? Is there a way I can help?” the questions ran through his mind.
Controlling the speed of the motorcycles was part of his answers.
“I wanted to save millions of lives being lost on the road in Kenya and Africa. I narrowed down to the boda boda industry because of the chaos I always witnessed. It’s a ticking time bomb that needs streamlining,” notes the USIU graduate.
He then embarked on the journey to come up with a first speed governor for motorbikes.
He floated the idea to several of his friends, but none would stick around for long. They said the project was not doable with the many hurdles facing them.
Everyone he talked to, he remembers, seemed to be after instant success and immediate gratification. They would glow up to the idea when they looked at the numbers, but easily give up at the face of many hurdles ahead. But he did not give up.
“After all, I have had lots of interest in engineering, picking the curiosity from my late dad who was a brilliant electrical engineer. Also, my mantra has always been, no struggle no progress,” he avers.
The 30-year-old went on to team up with his cousin, Dominic Kamau, who is an electrical engineer, to further his new-found dream.
The duo bought a motor vehicle speed governor and studied it to understand how such devices work.
“In 2015, we produced our first prototype which did not meet set standards, but we kept on improving on it,” explains Mr Njenga.
He graduated in 2017 while still working on the project. His breakthrough came in late 2018 on the sixth prototype, but the gadget’s motherboard blew up because of using wrong components.
Green light
Finally, in 2019, they produced a better version. It was then that they incorporated Alerby Logistics Innovation Limited with him as the chief executive officer and his partner as the co-founder and strategist.
All through the lockdown period, they spent time testing and improving the device.
“Now we have a speed limiter, which doubles as a tracker and is completely tamper and water proof. I am not an engineer, but I hustled to get it done,” states the Alerby boss.
Salama motorcycle speed, a first-of-its-kind bike speed governor in the world, is designed to safely cut off engine power when a motorcycle exceeds speed limit of 50 kilometres per hour, hence setting the maximum speed a rider can hit.
Through a speed sensor and micro-circuit unit fitted in the device, the determined speed is maintained. The two work together to control the set the speed by the sensor relaying data to the micro-circuit unit.
If a rider tries to exceed the limit, the micro-circuit unit automatically cuts off engine power. The result is that the motorcycle will immediately reduce its speed as the micro-circuit spontaneously controls the relay to recover the engine power in a very quick, safe and effective sequence.
“The process is so seamless that you cannot feel it. You will just notice that there is no more power and you cannot accelerate. Once you release the gas accelerator ,then the motorbike regains its engine power,” the innovator says.
He explains that the fourth generation speed limiter is built to motor vehicle speed governor standards as set out by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs), incorporating a tamper-proof option that guards against any interference.
“Trying to meddle with the speed will see the engine power cut off,” Njenga explains.
The Nanyuki native points out that the maximum speed has been set at 50 kilometres per hour but that can be configured to any top speed the government will set for motorcycles. Motor vehicles have a speed limit of 80km per hour.
But that is not all. The speed limiter has a fleet management module, tracking systems, geo-fencing capabilities and a Sim card that stores data used to monitor the gadget wherever they are.
The inbuilt tracking system is fitted with GPS and trailing capabilities which allows for real-time monitoring as the system generates immediate reports of location at any time through phones, tablets or personal computers.
The report also contains the riders’ profile, routes taken, distance travelled and real time speed record besides a power disconnection alert; giving information of the rider’s behavior.
Although he admits that the gadget will not be able to fully stop motorcycles theft, it can reduce the vice significantly as one is able to cut off the engine directly from the devices, enabling faster recoveries in case of theft.
The device is designed to give security agencies enhanced control of boda bodas, which are major facilitators of insecurity in the country as 80 percent of the crimes are aided by boda boda riders because they are fast and easily manoeuvre crowded places.
Further, the geo-fencing system allows users to configure settings to allow bikes only operate in the required geographical areas.
Should they trespass, the system kicks in and cuts off the engine , bringing the boda boda to a stop. This can be done in real time and from the comfort of one’s gadget.
The speed governor will cost Sh9,000, but the unit price is expected to drop significantly once the firm embarks on their mass production.
Mr Njenga says that they’re in talks with an investor who is seeking to buy the gadgets in bulk, then offer the boda boda riders on a staggered payment plan, depending on the agreement between the two parties.
“Currently, we are shipping parts of the device through air, but once we are able to start shipping them by sea for mass production, then the cost will come down,” he notes.
The innovation addresses the United Nation’s first five of the 17 major sustainable goals, as it seeks to have motorcycles safer to accommodate more women in the boda boda industry that is 95 percent male dominated.
“We shall also be looking to employ hundreds of widows who unfortunately lost their husbands in motorcycle accidents,” Mr Njenge points out.
