Berkeley researchers are studying NextDrop, a company developed by CEE Systems Engineering alumni Anu Sridharan (MS, '10) and Emily Kumpel (PhD '13), in order to expand its water app to serve larger urban populations in India.
NextDrop was developed to help people in developing countries know when the rationed water will flow out of their taps. Because the water is delivered to households for only a few hours at a time, knowing when the water will arrive saves people hours of waiting each week.
NextDrop developed a system using cellphone text messaging to connect the service workers who manually open and close valves controlling the water with those waiting for the water.
See related article Grad student helps people in Bangalore know when the next drop of water will come (UC Berkeley News Center, 12.15.14)