design of a novel luggage carrier

I-CARRY ®

By

Ravishankar V

Mahesh Narayan K

Sharan Kishore

Assignment: Product Design and Development By Ravishankar V, Sharan Kishore, K Mahesh Narayan

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Design of a Novel Luggage Carrier (i-Carry®)

1 INTRODUCTION

Luggage is always a big problem, especially when travelling from place to another. Weight is a burden to people and

they want to make their life easy. According to a survey in the target market (Students, aged people and middle-

aged people), conducted by the product development team, it was found out that more than 90% of the survey

populous wanted to make the process of carrying luggage easier by an automated means.

1.1 MISSION STATEMENT This comprises of all the pre-planning thoughts and the benchmark the company is trying to achieve by the design

and manufacture of this product. It has the following subsections:

1.2 PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: RC controlled novel luggage carrier.

1.3 BENEFIT POPULATION: Right from students to old people, it covers the entire range of population.

1.4 KEY BUSINESS GOALS: Product to be introduced during the third quarter of 2014.

Achieve monopoly over luggage carrier market by 2015.

Assumptions: Cost effective one time investment.

Easy controls.

Ease of manufacture & usage.

Use of high torque dc motors running on rechargeable battery.

1.5 PRIMARY MARKET: Travelers.

Tourists

College student

Old people

Pilgrims.

1.6 SECONDARY MARKET: Casual users.

Can be used in factories and mills for moving small loads.

For loading and unloading of goods while shifting.


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1.7 STAKEHOLDERS: Users

Retailer

Sales force

Service center

Production people.

Manufacturers.

2 CONCEPT GENERATION

The need, as mentioned in the previous section shows that the product is needed almost everywhere. Hence, we

need to generate concepts which will aid the above mentioned need. The concepts considered are given below:

2.1 MANUALLY OPERATED STRUCTURE WITH NO AUTOMATION: This concept can be subdivided into four further concepts:

2.1.1 Metallic Base, Separately Manufactured wheels

In this design, the base is made of a metal and the wheels for moving the base is manufactured separately.

2.1.2 Metallic Base, Readymade Wheels

In this design, the base is made of a metal and the wheels for moving the base is chosen from readymade, standard

components.

2.1.3 Non-Metallic base, Separately Manufactured wheels

In this design, the base is made of a non- metal and the wheels for moving the base is manufactured separately.

2.1.4 Non-Metallic Base, Readymade Wheels

In this design, the base is made of a non-metal and the wheels for moving the base is chosen from readymade,

standard components.

2.2 AUTOMATED STRUCTURE (WIRED): This concept can be subdivided into four further concepts:




In this design, the base is made of a metal and the wheels for moving the base using the wired remote control is

chosen from readymade, standard components.


In this design, the base is made of a non- metal and the wheels for moving the base using the wired remote control

is manufactured separately.


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2.3 AUTOMATED STRUCTURE (UNWIRED, RADIO-CONTROLLED): This concept can be subdivided into four further concepts:




In this design, the base is made of a metal and the wheels for moving the base using the wired remote control is

chosen from readymade, standard components.


In this design, the base is made of a non- metal and the wheels for moving the base is manufactured separately.





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3 CONCEPT SELECTION

3.1 CONCEPT SCREENING: The three concepts are given below and are rated according to the selection criteria. The Manually operated

structure is selected as the reference and the remaining concepts are rated with respect to the reference.

Concepts

Selection criteria Manually operated structure with no Automation(reference)

Automated structure (unwired, radio-controlled)

Automated structure(wired, radio controlled)

Ease of handling 0 + +

Ease of use 0 + +

Ease of manufacture 0 - -

Net score 0 1 1

Continue? no yes yes

3.2 CONCEPT SCORING: The allocation of the weights to the selection criteria is done and the concept is rated and selected.

Concepts

Automated structure (unwired, radio-controlled)

Automated structure(wired, radio controlled)

Selection criteria Weight Rating weighted score

Rating weighted score

Ease of handling 30% 4 0.3 3 0.1

Ease of use 50% 4 0.3 3 0.1

Ease of manufacture 20% 4 0.3 3 0.1

Total 0.9 0.3

Continue Yes No

Hence from the above selection process automated structure (unwired, radio-controlled) is selected.


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4 CONCEPT TESTING

4.1 SURVEY POPULATION: Around 300 college students, travelers, tourists who take frequent trips were interviewed.

4.2 SURVEY FORMAT: Face to face interviews were conducted on college students.

Telephonic interview was conducted on other travelers and tourists.

4.3 COMMUNICATION OF THE CONCEPT: First, the need of the concept was emphasized along with its’ merits.

A verbal description of the concept was made to the audience followed by necessary sketches.

Simulations and videos were shown to them in order to enlighten them further.

4.4 MEASURE CUSTOMER RESPONSE: A feedback sheet was given to the customers to rate the product and also to get an idea of what they think.

Were they satisfied? Whether they want to offer any suggestions?

Thus, we can classify them based on how many people will definitely go for the product, how many would

probably go for it and how many won’t.

4.5 INTERPRET THE RESULTS: Based on the above survey, we can evaluate the results using the formula:

Q = N*A*P

Where Q= Quantity of the product expected to be sold during the time period.

N= Number of potential customers.

A=Availability*Awareness (Fraction).

P= Probability that the product will be purchased.


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5 PRODUCT ARCHITECTURE

5.1 MODULAR ARCHITECTURE: Batteries and motors comprise the modular architecture in the system; hence, they can be replaced whenever

a problem occurs.

5.2 INTEGRAL ARCHITECTURE: The base frame and the connecting wheels are integral to one another. If any defect occurs, the whole setup

needs to be replaced.

5.3 FUNDAMENTAL INTERACTIONS The instructions received from the Remote Control makes the motor to rotate, guiding the movement of the

base, with the wheels.

5.4 INCIDENTAL INTERACTIONS Due to uneven road surface and vibration of the motor might cause the luggage to vibrate, giving rise to

instability of the luggage.

6 DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURE

The design for manufacture plays a vital role in reducing the cost of the product and hence, making it very efficient

and cost effective. The design for manufacture of the product is done in many different methods:

6.1 ESTIMATED COST OF MANUFACTURING:

Slno. Product/Process Rate(INR) Quantity Estimated Cost (INR)

1 SI-MOT-JGDC-12V(200.0rpm) DC Gear Motor 600 4 2400

2 Amaron HI-WAY HCV620D31R/L 1280 Battery 800 2 1600

3 Aluminum Frame (Design and Manufacture) 130/kg 2.5784kg 450

4 Wheel, shaft set 100 4 400

5 RC Transmitter and Receiver 500 1 500

6 Wires 5 8 40

7 Overhead costs 410

TOTAL COST 5800


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6.2 REDUCE COST OF COMPONENTS: 1. The components which are most important are the ones which are needed to do the specific function. In this

case, the costs of the DC gear motor can be reduced to 2 from 4 by making one more share power with two

wheels instead of having individual motors.

2. If possible, cost due to batteries can be reduced in cost by using a single battery in place of two batteries.

This will make the total cost come down drastically.

The renewed bill of materials after the reducing cost of components is given below:

6.3 REDUCE COST OF ASSEMBLY: The assembly can be made simpler by making the assembly of frame with sheet metal and spring system simpler by

following the guidelines below:

1. The parts can be integrated to reduce the cost of assembly.

2. Change in design- Thickness, Length, Width

3. Arrangement of Battery to the sides, to reduce overall cost (avoiding extra supports/fasteners)

4. Arrangement of Motors (Locate the motor near the head of the I-Section)

After implementing the guidelines, the cost was reduced, as reflected in the table below:

6.4 REDUCE COST OF SUPPORTING PRODUCTION: The supporting production here might be the design of new wheels, which is eliminated in the stage of concept

selection itself. Hence, there is no supporting production cost, which can be probably reduced.







6 Wires 5 8 40


TOTAL COST 3800







6 Wires 5 8 40


TOTAL COST 3740


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6.5 IMPACT OF DFM DECISIONS ON OTHER FACTORS: DFM makes the cost lower, reducing the cost by 36%. This reduction in cost must not cause a compromise in the

functioning of the product, as mentioned earlier.

The product will have a relatively lower speed due to the removal of one battery and two motors. But this won’t

affect the functionality of the product. Component Reuse and Life-cycle cost – No maintenance is required, except

for battery charging.

6.6 DESIGN FOR ENVIRONMENT The design does not include any harmful materials and the energy used in this process is clean energy, hence making

the process compliant to the environment norms

7 INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

7.1 ERGONOMICS: All the sharp edges in the design have been replaced by fillet for safety reasons. Since it is not a complex shape, the

maintenance is very easy. The product is designed such that it is light and thin. The product is provided with four

spring hinges which can be easily accessed and which gives the luggage a firm support.

7.2 AESTHETICS: The aluminum plate is available in various colours. The battery, motor and the wiring part is provided with plastic

covering. The wheels are also available in fancy colours. The battery position is designed such that it does not disturb

the position of the luggage.

7.3 PRELIMINARY REFINEMENT: Preliminary refinement is done to refine the initial structure of the product, making it better than earlier.

7.3.1 Flat rectangular plate:

Here the seat of the luggage is designed to be a flat rectangular plate and the position of the battery is shown. The

figure (1) depicts that.


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Figure (1)

7.3.2 I section :

Here the seat of the luggage is designed to be an I section plate and the position of the battery is shown. The figure

(2) depicts that.

Figure (2)


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7.4 FINAL REFINEMENT

7.4.1 I section with hinge:

Here the seat of the luggage is designed to be an I-section plate and the position of the battery is shown. Hinge is

added to secure the luggage firmly. The figure (3) depicts that.

Figure (3)

This diagram, as we can see, is the best suited design, which serves our purpose.

7.5 SIMULATION OF THE DESIGN

7.5.1 Simulation of the base design:

The final design, shown in Figure (3) is the final design considered for the simulation process. For the considerations

of simulation, we will not consider the hinged plates, but we will consider only the I-Section for the design.

The I-section has been designed for the load of 10Kg luggage, and a weight of 5kg, inclusive of batteries and motor’s

weight. The simulation has been performed on a finite element analysis software (ANSYS Workbench, Version 14,

PA, USA). The final deformation diagram has been shown below, in Figure (4):

Spring Loaded Hinge


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Figure (4)

The ANSYS model shows that the deformation of the plate is in the order of microns for a load of 10kg. This shows

that our design won’t have much of an issue with respect to the deformation factor in the design.

7.5.2 Simulation of the wheel design

The design of the wheel is taken into consideration only if the wheel is not available in a readymade fashion.

Nevertheless, the wheel is design to handle both weight of the load and the resultant moment of the rotation

caused by the wheel.

The simulation is done by using a Finite Element Analysis software (ANSYS Workbench, Version 14, PA, USA) and is

depicted in Figure (5).


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Figure (5)


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8 CONCLUSION

After considering all the possible designs and simulating them, the product is designed in such a way that it satisfies

the need of the customer in the target market. The luggage carrier, hence can be used by any age group of people.

The final design is given below:

9 FUTURE SCOPE

Instead of separate radio-controlled joystick, the motion of the Luggage Carrier can be synced with a smart-

mobile phone

A lever mechanism can be used in the Luggage Carrier to carry it over the staircase.

A suspension system can be attached to the Aluminum base of the Luggage Carrier to damp the vibrations

due to erratic motion of the luggage on rough terrains

Make the Luggage Carrier universal to suit almost all lengths of luggage

Go for high speeds of the Luggage Carrier, in case of emergency

Detect Human presence to avoid collision

Make the Luggage Carrier follow the owner in front of it.

Spring Loaded Hinge