CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

Materials and Equipment

The materials used in fabrication of the pedal-powered paddy cleaning was G.I

sheet (16 gauge), angle bar 1 ½ x 4mm thickness, solid bar ¾ inches, 1 inch bearing,

sprockets (8 inches, 9 inches, 10 inches) blower, bicycle and chain.

The tools used included are welding machine, welding rod, grinder machine,

cutting disc, grinding stone, electric drill, vice grip and steel square.

Figure 1. Pedal-Powered Paddy Cleaner

(1)Sieve, (2) Chain, (3) Seat, (4) Blower, (5) Driver sprocket, (6) Pedal, (7) Hopper,
(8) Grain Outlet
 Components of the Pedal-Powered Paddy Cleaner

Blower. Is a machine that’s provides a wind that blows the impurities of the paddy

Chain. Is use to connect the driver and the driven sprocket for power transmission.

Driver sprocket. The driver sprocket ‘has a chain connected to another sprocket (driven)

by transmitting power to start the blower.

Frame. Is made of angle bar that used to carry and support the pedal powered paddy

cleaner.

Hopper. The hopper has a trapezoidal shape made of G.I sheet (16 gauge) with sides

slanted inwards to form a small outlet, above the top edge of the hopper it consists

sieve.

Pedal. This is the main motor of the machine. It was responsible in driving the shaft to

an appropriate speed that led to the blower to blowout the impurities.

Sieve. The sieve is intended to catch the straw and other materials larger than the paddy

Methods of Fabrication

1. Cutting- various parts were cut according to specification. The parts were join

together by means of welding.

2. Marking out and bending- the length of materials used in fabrication with

the require measurements with the aid of hack-saw and shearing machine.

3. Drilling- drilling machine was used to drill some holes on the stand to create

access for bolts and nuts.

 Design Phrase

Design Considerations and Criteria

The device was designed with the following considerations and criteria:

1. the machine should fulfill its basic task of cleaning the grain;

2. it should be economical;

3. there should not be a need for repeat of the process;

4. the machine should be portable to ease transportation; and

5. the attachments should employ low cost materials, methods and standard parts

that are locally available.

Principles of Operation

The pedal powered paddy cleaner was operated through the cranking of the prime

mover which drives the blower. A 6 kg amount of the threshed grains was fed into the

hopper. The hopper consists of sieve which intended to catch the straw and other

materials larger than the paddy. The sieve vibrates and the grains and other small

impurities flows down by gravity and pass through the hopper and drops across the

blower to remove the other light impurities. The clean grain materials flow down by

gravity towards the grain outlet were it is collected.

Preliminary Design

After fabricating the pedal powered paddy cleaner, preliminary testing and

running-in of the machine was carried out to check if all of the machine components are

functioning properly. Problems encountered during the test was observed and the parts

that might cause malfunctions were modified.

 Grain outlet, the blades of the blower, slippage of the chain this were the

problems encountered during the testing. After identifying this problems, quick solutions

are made like enlarging the grain outlet to avoid clogging, changing the blades of the

blower for stronger air and aligning the bike with the sprockets on the sieve and blower to

avoid slippage of chain.

Final Design

Considering the problems with the initial fabricated device, the final design was

conceived to make use of the cleaning unit.

Preparation for Evaluation

The independent variable in the evaluation was the machine parameters which is

the sprocket size. The dependent variables were the cleaning rate and cleaning efficiency.

Performance Evaluation

The performance evaluation involves collecting samples from the grain outlet and

the non-grain or unwanted outlet. The weight of grains and other materials in each

sample were recorded. The following equations was used to determine the percentage

cleaning.

Machine Operation

For the operation of the machine, one was task to the pedaling of the bike and one

for the feeding of the threshed grains in the hopper. A few seconds of pedaling with no

load, a 5 kg amount of grain was fed into top of the hopper which is the sieve, after it

vibrates, the grains will automatically fall down through the grain outlet and after the

cleaning operation the cleaned grain was collected at the collecting pan.
Cleaning Efficiency. The ratio of weight of cleaned grain over uncleaned grain.

Wi
Ec= x 100 (1)
Wu

Cleaning Rate. Weight of the uncleaned grain over time.

Wi ,(kg)
Rc = (2)
Time ,(hr )

Where:

Ec= Percentage Cleaning Efficiency, %

Wi= Weight of Cleaned grain, kg

Wu= Weight of Uncleaned grain, kg

Rc = Rate of clean grain, kg/hr

Statistical Analysis

The test results were tabulated and statistically analyzed using simple Completely

Randomized Design (CRD) with the size of sprocket. There were three replicates for each

treatment combination. Results was presented in standard analysis of variance (ANOVA).

Least Significance Difference (LSD) at 5% level of significance was used for the

comparison among mean.

Simple Cost Analysis

 A simple cost analysis was done in order to determine the economic effectiveness

of the machine. Assumptions was made for the determination of depreciation cost of the

device.

Actual costing was considered in determining the total cost of the device.

Materials and labor used during the fabrication when making shows in Appendix Table 7.

The formula that will be use for the calculation of the pedal powered paddy

cleaner are the following:

Depreciation Cost. Depreciation cost was computed by using Straight Line Method

Formula.

IC−SV
D= (3)
L

Where:

D- depreciation, (Php/yr)

IC- initial cost, (Php)

SV- salvage value, (10% of IC)

L-life span of the machine, (yrs)

Average Investment. The ratio of the investment cost and salvage value over two.

IC+SV
AI= (4)
2

Where:

AI- average on investment, (Php)

IC- investment cost, Php

SV- salvage value, Php

Repair and Maintenance of the Machine. These costs can vary greatly depending on

operating conditions, management, maintenance programs, and local costs.

12%IC
RM= (5)
L

Where:

RM- repair and maintenance, Php/yr

IC- investment Cost, Php

L-life span of the machine, yr

Labor Cost

The machine can be operated by two persons at a rate of Php 300 per day.

Variable Cost is the sum of labor cost and repair and maintenance.

VC= Lc + RM

Where:

VC- variable cost

Lc- labor cost, Php/day/laborer

RM- repair and maintenance

Fixed Cost is the sum of depreciation, investment cost and the insurance and license.

FC= D+IC+IL

Where:

FC- Fixed Cost

D- depreciation

IC- investment cost

IL- insurance and license

Break- Even Point

 The break-even point is the point in the graph where the custom rate and the

weight of the cleaned grains meet.

AFC
BEP=
(CR-VC/ C )

Where:

BEP- Break Even Point, kg/yr

AFC- annual fixed cost, Php/yr

CR- custom rate, Php/yr

VC-variable cost, Php/yr

C- cleaning capacity, kg/yr