MINOR PROJECT REPORT

ON
“DESIGNING OF A GOLF CART”
In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
degree of

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY
In
AUTOMOBILE ENGINEERING

Submitted by
Name : AKASH SAHOO
Registration No : 1901109001
(2019-2013)

UNDER THE ESTEEMED GUIDANCE OF

Mrs. Baisalini Sethi ( H.O.D in automobile engg. department )

Mr. Sibasis Harihar Sahu ( Asst. Prof. in automobile engg. department )

DEPARTMENT OF AUTOMOBILE ENGINEERING

PARALA MAHARAJA ENGINEERING COLLEGE,
SITALAPALLI : BERHAMPUR-761003
Academic Year : (2019-2023)

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 Certificate
This is to certify that the minor project report entitled “Designing of a
golf cart” by AKASH SAHOO (1901109001) being submitted to the
Parala Maharaja Engineering College, Berhampur, affiliated to Biju
Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT), Rourkela, Odisha for
awarding the degree of B. Tech (Bachelor of Technology) in
Automobile engineering is an authentic record of research work carried
out by under the guidance of Mrs. Baisalini Sethi ( H.O.D in
automobile engineering ) & Sibasis Harihar Sahu ( Asst. Prof. in
automobile engg. Department). I am satisfied that the report has reached
the standard, fulfilling the requirement of the regulations relating to the
nature of the degree.The contents of the report have not been submitted
for the award of any other degree or diploma.

Signature Of Signature of HOD

Seminar Guide

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 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the minor project report entitled “Designing of a golf
cart” submitted by me, Akash Sahoo (1901109001) is an authentic
record of the project work done in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the Degree of B. Tech (Bachelor of Technology) in Automobile
engineering, under the supervision and guidance of Mrs. Baisalini
Sethi ( H.O.D in automobile engineering ) & Sibasis Harihar Sahu
( Asst. Prof. in automobile engg. Department), during this course of the
year 2019- 2023. All the work contained with in this record is my original
work except where otherwise acknowledged and has not been submitted
in part or in full by me for any degree or diploma to this or any other
University or an examining body in India or abroad.

Date : Signature of Student

Place : Name : AKASH SAHOO
(Reg. No : 1901109001)

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
 I take this opportunity to express my deepest sense of gratitude and sincere
thanks to every one who helped me to complete this work successfully. I
express my sincere thanks to Ms. Baisalini Sethi, Head Of Department,
Automobile Engineering, PMEC for providing me with all the necessary
facilities and support.
 I would like to express my gratitude to our project guide Mr. Sibasis Harihar
Sahu (Asst. professor in automobile eng. Department), for giving such a
wonderful opportunity and for their support and co-operation.
 I am also thankful to all my classmates who contributed to the successful
fulfillment of this minor project work and co-operation during the project
work period.

Date : Signature of Student

Name : AKASH SAHOO
(Reg. No-1901109001)

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 ABSTRACT
In this minor project report, the Design of an Electric golf cart is done, the process to develop
or to design a golf cart chassis, cart frame, suspension system, electrical transmission system with
motor and differential , braking system , steering system are explained. All the materials used for
the calculation & analysis are industry standard being utilized currently. Priority of this design was
to keep the cart as light weight as possible and rigid with good performance on grassy and concrete
terrain’s used in either golf course or in hospitality / education sectors. A unique rectangular chassis
is used in the design comprising of square & rectangular shape. The focus of design was long
mileage from the batteries used to the existing range of the electric vehicle.

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 INDEX
TOPICS PAGE NO.

1. INTRODUCTION 07

2. LITERATURE REVIEW 07-08

3. LITERATURE GAP 09

4. DESIGN PROCEDURE 09-12

5. DESIGN DEVELOPMENT 12

6. CHASSIS DESIGN 13

7. STEERING SYSTEM 14-15

8. SUSPENSION SYSTEM 15-16

9. TRANSMISSION 16

10. OTHER DESIGN COMPONENT 17-18

11. ANALYSIS PROCESS 18-22

12. CONCLUSION 22

13. REFERENCES 23

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INTRODUCTION :

This projects aim is to Design an electric golf cart with six people seating capacity which
runs on batteries. The need for a golf cart isn’t just using it in the golf course and is nowadays
being used in large universities spread over vast acres of land and in expensive hotels and latest
complexes for comfort traveling i.e Hospitality industry and providing low cost of charging with
increasing mileage as technology advances. In this project the aim has been to put forth an industry
standard design for an electric golf cart that can run exceedingly well on grassy / muddy terrains as
well as wet conditions and concrete roads. During designing all the constraints and cost
considerations and all technical aspects were set according to the current advancements in the
industry in a thoroughly researched manner. A battery electric vehicle (BEV) has far fewer moving
parts than a conventional gasoline-powered vehicle. There’s no need for a liquid fuels or oil changes.
There’s no transmission or timing belt to fail you. And most of the maintenance cost associated with
IC engine are eliminated. Customer needs and requirements are of prime importance regarding
comfort, high reliability, economic and performance and long mileage with regards to an electric
golf cart. A lot of engineering and reverse engineering tactics went into the designing phase and
many alterations and modifications were done to improve the design. Solid works model of the
entire vehicle has been made and assembly has been done of all important components.

(Fig.01 : Electric golf cart )

LITERATURE REVIEW :

FE methods that currently are used extensively in academia and industry. The method
described in general terms, the basic formulation is presented, and some issues regarding effective
FE procedures are summarized.
(Finite Element Analysis The Finite Element Method (FEM) is a powerful tool for the
numerical procedure to obtain solutions to many problems encountered in engineering analysis.
Structural, thermal and heat transfer, fluid dynamics, fatigue related problems, electric and magnetic

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fields, the concepts of FE methods can be utilized to solve these engineering problems. In this
method of analysis, a complex region is discretized into simple geometric shapes called finite
elements the domain over which the analysis is studied is divided into a number of finite elements.
The software implements equations that govern the behavior of these elements and solves them all;
creating a comprehensive explanation of how the system acts as a whole. These results then can be
presented in tabulated or graphical forms. This type of analysis is typically used for the design and
optimization of a system far too complex to analyze by hand. Created geometric models are
transferred to the ANSYS program to be done FEA. Selection of element type on the mathematical
model, creating the mesh form, determining the contact areas, boundary conditions, environment
and material properties and the type of analysis have been made in the program interface.)

[01] Demeng was performed research on lightweight design of automobile structure based on
ANSYS by using FEM. The kind of FE model of the frame of a semi-trailer was established based
on ANSYS and stress calculation and experiment validation simulating the actual working
conditions were performed. Then, the math model of optimal design was formed from the analysis
result of FEM.

[02] Bircan, et al. were stated that two types of space and ladder frames were considered with three
types of materials as steel, aluminum and titanium. Displacement values were generated for two
frames with three materials and torsional stiffness values obtained using FEA software ANSYS. It
was concluded that maximum torsional stiffness value 307,692 Nm/deg was obtained from space
frame with material of steel while the minimum value 30,769 Nm/deg obtained from ladder frame
with material of aluminum.

[03] Lovatt was performed the development of a lightweight electric vehicle chassis and
investigation into the suitability of TiAl for automotive applications. A lightweight chassis for a
battery electric vehicle being developed at the University of Waikato was required. The chassis was
designed around a predetermined body shape and suspension setup. A chassis, built from 20 mm
thick aluminum honeycomb sandwich panel was designed and built to LVVTA standards allowing
the car to be driven on public roads. The chassis weighs a little over a third the mass of a mass
production car chassis.

[04] Hirsch was designed innovative light-weight car design using aluminum. Weight saving in the
chassis can also achieve 40% in comparison to conventional steel chassis. It has the additional
benefit of improving the driving dynamics, ride comfort, and safety due to the reduction of the
unsprung mass.

[05] Teh and Tong was performed a structural investigation of an electric car chassis. Their
analysis was focused primarily on the main frame and suspension arm. There were two concepts
each for both the chassis and the suspension arm. These concepts were simulated to determine the
optimum balance between weight and rigidity. Torsional rigidity was analyzed for the chassis while
static force, braking torque test and cornering test were performed for the suspension arm. The
results showed that the stressed skin chassis concept and three tube suspension arms had higher
rigidity.

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LITERATURE GAP :

Now our motive is to design an electric golf cart which will fulfill all these previous works so
we prefer SOLID WORKS & ANSYS software for design and analysis of all type of test. And
which is budget friendly & easy to use. As well as we consider MS(mild steel) & GI pipes to make
our chassis frame which gives the strength to sustain the load & having maximum durability with
light weight structure.

DESIGNING PROCEDURE:
For designing of our electric golf cart we use SOLID WORK designing software. The
process or steps which are used to make design of any component of our vehicle are as follows :

1. First of all open the software then there is a interface comes which is divides in to several
groups like, one contain all the tools of solid work which is at the top of interface, the there is a
design tree which is at the left side of the interface.

2. From the design tree choose plane for sketch part and then from the entity box choose the
rectangular shape and then give the dimensions by using smart dimension which is at the menu
bar.

3. Next step is to come out from the sketch section and choose the extrude function to extrude the
bar and give the dimensions for length.

4. Similarly make sketch for the other bars required for the whole chassis and after that using the
welding joint function joint the bars to make a one single structure.

5. With solid work we can also analysis both the static and dynamic load of the structure.

(Step.1 : Interface of the solid work part design)

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(Step.2: Choosing front plane)

(Step.3 : Giving dimensions)

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 (Step.4 : Extrude with giving length parameters)

(Step.5 : Cut the middle portion with required parameters)

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 (Step.6 : Select the material<Final design>)

DESIGN DEVELEOPMENT :

The design development stage is where the design considerations are outlined and according
to which under certain parameters, criteria and market research the following design is developed.

(a) The design considerations set are so the vehicle can meet all safety standards and
performance during its entire life cycle :
 Safety and performance
 Standardization as per industry
 Safe engineering practices
 High quality cost ratio
 Power and performance
 Stability and long product life

(b) The design development stages are divided in many parts they are:
 Chassis
 Steering
 Suspension
Etc.

* Mainly we design only electric golf cart chassis & frame. All other parts of the golf cart are
designed according to the parameters of purchased parts like wheel, differential, motor etc.

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CHASSIS DESIGN :

A vehicle frame also known as its chassis is the main supporting structure of a motor vehicle,
to which all other components are attached, comparable to the skeleton of an organism. Since the
1930s, virtually every car had a structural frame, separate from its body. This construction design is
known as body on frame. Over time, nearly all passenger cars have migrated to uni-body
construction meaning their chassis and bodywork have been integrated into one another. Nearly all
trucks, buses, and most pickups continue to use a separate frame as their chassis.

Structure and material selection :

The chassis chosen for the design is a tubular space frame consisting of Round, square tubes and
Rectangular tubes both for a sturdy construction. A space frame was chosen because of its
simplicity of design and strong torsional rigidity and moderate difficulty in design and building
practically in a cost effective manner. Rectangular tubes used are primary with thickness of 2.5mm,
secondary square steel pipes are with 1mm thickness and tubular one which are used for body frame
are contain 2mm of thickness of mild steel. Different sizes of pipes and shapes are used to lighten
the weight of the chassis and give it a modest look and not make it bulky and rectangular tubes are
used only at the bottom of the chassis for better mountings of the standard components and its
thicker and provides a strengthened base compared to square & round pipe as our vehicle is long.
Mild steel is used for its light weight and high strength ratio which suits best as compared to, for our
cart with affordable minimum cost , it is more durable and rigid.

The dimensions of our chassis according to six seat is ergonomically built with moderate
aerodynamic considerations, as for a golf cart aerodynamics is not prime criteria. The dimensions
are selected, 2743 x 1066.8 x 1752.6 mm (L×W×H) In which 1828.8 mm wheel base is found to be
comfortable and 914.4 is track width as per proper assemblies of differential and steering and all
suspensions so the geometry provides with well spacious seating arrangement as well as some space
on the back to keep storage.

(Fig.02 : chassis)

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STEERING SYSTEM :

The steering system is the key interface between the driver and the vehicle. The main
requirement is that the steering should be precise, with no play. In addition, the steering system
should be smooth, compact and light. It must also provide the driver with a perfect feel for the road
surface and help the wheels return to the straight-ahead position. Among two basic steering
mechanisms i.e rack and pinion and recirculating ball mechanism, rack and pinon method was
chosen considering various parameters such as availability, widely used and cost .

In the rack and pinion system, a pinion gear is attached to the steering shaft, i.e. turning the
steering wheel turns the pinion gear which then moves the rack. The rack and pinion gear is
enclosed in a metal tube, with each end of the rack protruding from the tube. It does two things:

 It converts the rotational motion of the steering wheel into the linear motion needed to turn
the wheels.
 It provides a gear reduction, making it easier to turn the wheels.

A tie rod at each end of the rack connects via the swivel ball joint to the steering arm which
finally moves the wheel. The specific advantage of the rack and pinion design is a good feedback
and a direct steering feel.

Design parameters :
1. Wheel base : 1828.8 mm
2. Track width C : 914.4
3. Assumed inside angle as per geometry Should be less than 5m as per industry standard of golf
carts

(Fig.03)

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 (Fig.04)

SUSPENSION SYSTEM :

Suspensions are very important in any automobile. We know that any system used in vehicle
to reduce road shocks and vibration known as suspension system. Springs, shock absorber, torsion
bar etc. are components of suspension system. So the suspension springs are used to separate the
wheel of the vehicle to the body so when the vehicle feel those vibration it transfer to the spring and
the spring start oscillating without transmitting this vibration to the vehicle body. In our electric golf
cart we had the option to choose independent or dependent suspension systems but we chose
dependent ones for various benefits of it. We have used dependent suspension systems for both
front and rear i.e; leaf spring. As the vehicle is long and heavy at both side leaf spring was
considered necessary according to design and also the market research revealed that.

Parameters selected
1. No of full length leaf – 1
2. No of graduated leaf – 4
3. U bolt length – 5 inch to fit across the rectangular tube holding the leaf
4. Total length 500mm×48 mm×70 mm (L×B×H)

(Fig.05)
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 (Fig.06)

TRANSMISSION :

A transmission is a system which transmits power and provides controlled application over
that power. In layman terms a transmission usually consists of a set of a gearbox that uses gears and
gear trains to provide speed and torque conversions from a rotating power source to the output. The
main components of our transmission assembly are differential, motor and its controller. In an
electric golf cart the need for using a separate gearbox is eliminated because of electric transmission
and use of motor in place of an engine. Instead a single speed reduction transaxle differential is used.
A transaxle is an assembly of differential gear with one step reduction coupled with rear axle and
hub which is used to directly mount on the chassis. With market research there are various standard
transaxles for electric golf cart with preset reduction gear. One such transaxle with a reduction ratio
of 10.45 is chosen for our electric golf cart from various reduction ratios already available. The
reason for choosing this ratio was it gave us the best speed for our cart with full loading condition
and its cost effective.

Components & specifications of transmission :

1. Motor : 1.5 kw BLDC motor (Power out put :
2. Transaxle with reduction ratio 10.45
3. Controller
4. Battery : 12v × 4 pcs

(Fig.07) (Fig.08)

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OTHER DESIGNED COMPONENTS :

We also design other components like motor, balancing rod, fixed joints,Screws, nut & bolts,
U-bolt joints, tire, wheel rim, vehicle body frame etc.

(Fig.09 : Balancing rod) (Fig.10 : Fixed joints)

(Fig.11 : U-Bolt joint) (Fig.12 : Differential with wheel arrangement)

(Fig.13 : Tyre) (Fig.14 : Wheel rim)

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 (Fig.15 : wheel rim with screw holes) (Fig.16 : Front axle)

(Fig.17 : Differential) (Fig.18 : Wheel hub)

(Fig.19 : U bolt) (Fig.20 : Total body frame )

ANALYSIS PROCESS :

The design process is a series of steps that is followed to come up with a solution to a
problem. Steps of the design process involved in this study are shown in the Figure 14. At the
beginning of the design process, design geometry has been defined according to design
specifications as required parameters. Five selected profiles for each of the three materials are
applied to designed geometry and imported to ANSYS for analysis. To determine actual loading
conditions for the analysis, passenger capacity (6 passengers), weight of the vehicle components

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(electric motor, suspension, steering mechanism etc.) and batteries (4x31 kg) have been considered
and a total load of 800kg (approximately820 kg) has been applied to the chassis. After applying the
boundary conditions, structural analyses were conducted and updated until satisfactory design
solutions were obtained.

(Fig.21 : Analysis process)

Design Considerations for Electric Car Chassis :

The analytical calculations for the considered chassis were done using basic design
calculations. The pre-required data considered are as follows: Material: Chassis must be rigid and
strong enough to carry the designated load and achieve minimum deflection with minimum weight
and cost. In this study mild steel material was considered for chassis frame analysis.The electric car
chassis was designed in SolidWorks Computer Aided Design (CAD), software which is feature
based, parametric solid modeling program. Created geometric models are transferred to the ANSYS
program to be done for FEA.

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(Fig.22 : Design consideration parameters.01)

(Fig.23 : Design consideration parameters.02)

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(Fig.24 : Directional deformation)

(Fig.25 : Equivalent elastic strain )

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 (Fig.26 : Equivalent stress)

CONCLUSION :

In this study, design and analysis of the electric vehicle chassis which will be used in PMEC
campus have been carried out in order to determine optimal design parameters. The chassis was
designed using 3D parametric software Solid Works and the analyses were conducted using ANSYS
via FEA method. The development and application of the FEA considerably reduce the time and
effort required for the chassis design process. The chassis was designed so as the vehicle can
withstand the loads with a specific strength and stiffness while considering weight, cost and ease of
manufacturing. Following conclusions may be drawn:

 Analyses have been performed by the material mild steel and profile types for the chassis. Mild
steel material have been used in combination with three different profile types. Namely; Hollow
Square, Circular Tube, and Hollow Rectangular.
 Results show that for all material-profile combinations, maximum stresses were below the yield
stress indicating the design was safe in terms of static strength.
 Finalizing the design of the chassis and trying to innovate with different pipe sizes and shapes
gave a unique looking cart with considerable strength and balance.
 The performance of overall vehicle including its speed, braking distance and turning radius
were achieved under the pre-set assumed values.
 The suspension design was selected carefully to give the best performance in overloading
conditions as we use leaf spring to provide more support in case of heavy luggage/materials
kept behind.
 The transaxle gives the most optimum output with the coupled motor and the cart is able to
climb fully loaded in grassy/muddy terrain.

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REFERENCES :

1. Demeng, Z.H.Q. 2005. Research on Lightweight Design of Automobile Structure Based on

ANSYS; Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Machinery, 2005-06, p: 12-15;
https://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTOTAL-NYJX200506003.htm

2. Bircan, D.A., Yaşar, A., Koca, E., 2014. Design and Analysis of Chassis using Finite
Element Analysis, AVTECH’14: II. International Automotive & Vehicle Technologies
Conference;İstanbul,Türkiye
https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/cukurovaummfd/issue/22746/242815

3. Lovatt, C.R., 2008. The Development of a Lightweight Electric Vehicle Chassis and
Investigation into the Suitability of TiAl for Automotive Applications’; Ms. Degree,
Mechanical Engineering; The University of Waikato at Hamilton, New Zealand.
https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/

4. Hirsch, J., 2011. Aluminum in Innovative Light-Weight Car Design, Materials

Transactions, Vol. 52(5), p: 818-824. https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/

5. Teh, R.Y., Tong D.K.T. 2013. A Structural Investigation of an Electric Car Chassis,
EURECA 2013 Conference; Taylor’s University, Malaysia.

6. IOSR Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (IOSR-JMCE) e-ISSN: 2278-1684,p-ISSN:

2320-334X, Volume 11, Issue 2 Ver. VII (Mar- Apr. 2014), PP 35-41

-THE END-

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