A team of university students has developed a solar-powered ambulance designed to deliver healthcare services to people living in remote and hard-to-reach areas. The innovative vehicle, named Stella Juva, combines clean energy with advanced medical equipment to improve access to healthcare.
The sleek white-and-yellow ambulance is equipped with rooftop solar panels that power both its electric motor and onboard medical devices. The vehicle carries essential equipment, including X-ray machines, defibrillators, ultrasound devices, tuberculosis testing kits, and refrigerated vaccine storage.
Designed as a two-seater, Stella Juva can reach a top speed of 120 kilometres per hour and is capable of traveling across difficult off-road terrain where conventional ambulances often struggle to operate.
According to the development team, the ambulance can travel up to 715 kilometres on a sunny day. A solar-charged battery allows the vehicle and its medical equipment to continue operating at night or during cloudy weather, ensuring uninterrupted healthcare services.
Project leader Mathijs van Gerven, a 21-year-old biomedical engineering student at Eindhoven University of Technology, said the vehicle is fully equipped to provide medical care in areas where access to hospitals is limited.
Instead of transporting patients to distant medical facilities, Stella Juva is designed to bring healthcare directly to communities. The ambulance enables healthcare workers to diagnose illnesses, administer vaccines, and provide emergency treatment without requiring patients to travel long distances.
The student team plans to conduct field tests of the solar-powered ambulance in Kenya next month to evaluate its performance in real-world conditions and assess its potential to improve healthcare delivery in rural communities.
Femke Maurits, Partnerships Manager at Amref Health Africa, said the project addresses a major healthcare challenge faced by many African countries, where remote villages are often located far from hospitals and medical centers.
She noted that long distances and limited transportation infrastructure frequently delay access to medical treatment, making mobile healthcare solutions like Stella Juva an important innovation for underserved communities.
The project demonstrates how renewable energy and modern engineering can be combined to create practical healthcare solutions while reducing dependence on conventional fuel-powered emergency vehicles.
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