Monday, October 21, 2013

Requirements List Created!

After discussing many ideas we have put together a list of requirements for our bike trailer including both demands and wishes. The list of requirements below is a vital part of organizing and progressing our design.


Group A

Bike Trailer Requirements List

Page : 1 of 1
ChangesD/W
Responsible


Geometry

DLength - 63"

DWidth - 18"

DHeight - 16"

DClearance from Ground - 6"min to 12" max


Kinematics

DSuspension

D3" Travel

WAir Shock Suspension


Forces

DLinear Axial

DAngular Axial

DWeight < 20lbs

DLoad - 100lbs max

DElasticity


Energy

DPower Output

WUSB 3.0


Material

DCorrosion Resistant

DWeather Resistant

DElastic

WWeldable

DMachinable


Waterproof Container for Battery


Safety & Ergonomics

WBrake Lights

WTurn Signals

DEnvironmentally-Friendly

DNarrow Body

DEasily Connectible to Bicycle - Rear Axle

DMax speed - 50 mph

WTorsion Control

WQuick Release


Production

WPotential for constant production

DProduced as one-off

DLoad Bearing Tests

DFatigue Tests


Assembly

WEnd-user Assembly

DNo-assembly required


Operation

DRugged Outdoors

DEnvironmentalist Demographic

DConservationist Demographic

DActive Lifestyle Demographic

DTravel Demographic


Maintenance


Rust


Parts Wear


DC Motor


Recycling

DMetal - Aluminum

WPlastic - Carbon Fiber


Costs






Schedule


Constructed by April 2014

Within the next few weeks we will post a short overview of the many discussions we had in order to create this list. 

Friday, October 4, 2013

Off-Road Bike Trailer Ideas

Now that we all have agreed on an off road bike trailer for our senior design project we can expand on the idea.

Knowing that there are similar products in the market we first analyzed the pros and cons of many designs. We also researched our target consumers and asked a few simple questions:
  1. What activity did you do to warrant using a bike trailer?
  2. What trailer did you use?
  3.  What did you like and not like about your current bike trailer?
  4. Are there any features that would have made your activity easier or more enjoyable?
After discussing our findings with each other we concluded many things:
  • There are many people who participate in long distance bike trips and/or activities (such as camping, etc...) that would require a bike trailer.
  • Almost every trailer in the market today is a two wheel design.
  • There are a few one wheel design trailers out in the market but they are very expensive.
  • Many people complained about the lack of agility in two wheel designs.
  • There is a need to charge electrical components such as phones and GPS devices.
  • Safety is a big concern to everybody and features such as trailer size and stability were found to be a problem in some cases.
  • While a trailer has one real main use, many people requested a design that helps them in their off-bike routines while on the road (cooking, storage, shelter, etc...)
As of now we have an outline of what we want to create.

We would like to design a bike trailer capable of traversing rugged off-road terrain while still being able to tow the equivalent of what is necessary to accompany a long distance trip up to a maximum of 100lbs. We also want to incorporate a power generating device capable of charging up small electrical devices either on the go or later through means of stored energy. This design must be safe, comfortable, and easy to use.

Soon we will be putting together a requirements list featuring the various demands and wishes of our design.


Monday, September 30, 2013

Project Idea Finalized!

Our team has been working hard at finalizing on our project idea for the past few weeks.

The main ideas we have been discussing are as follows:

  1. Mobile Medical Evacuation Platform for the Modern Battlefield

    Modern battlefield medical evacuation currently consists of the same techniques and technology that were used decades ago. We are considering the idea of developing a mobile evacuation platform to help a single rescuer evacuate the patient and assist medical personnel in the care and treatment of the patient.


  2. Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle

    Jan Reside, a member of our team, is working on building an underwater ROV for a competition taking place next year. We considered taking this project on together however due to the escalated timeline required for completing the project we all agreed that this project might be too much on top of our senior class load.


  3. Automated Horse Feeder

    There is no real way to feed horses hay from bails via some automated system that does not scare the animals. There are automated oat feeders but it appears that oats are not as nutritious for horses and an owner cannot leave for a long weekend without hiring a person to feed the horses.

    picture showing the end view of the 4 horse feeder where the hay is loaded in.
  4. Off Road Bike Trailer

    We all agreed that a bike trailer is a great idea for our senior design project. All of us team members have an active lifestyle and see this as a profitable idea. These days there are many people who travel cross-country on bikes and use competing products. There are no inexpensive bike trailers that have one wheel and are rated for off road use.

    BOB YAK 28 Plus Bike Trailer with Dry Sack
We have officially decided upon the off-road bike trailer design and all future posts will relate to updates and progress of our project.