PedalPowered Washing Machine

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Pedal-Powered Washing Machine
Design Team Jenny Hu, Radu Raduta, Jess
Vechakul Mentor Allen Armstrong
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Community Partner

Mission
To support the basic family economy, through the
design and distribution of bicycle machines,
providing an efficient alternative for the rural
development of Guatemala.
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The Challenge An Alternative to Manual Washing

• Detergent and scrubbing are rough on hands
• Repetitive motions strain arms, back

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Our Solution Bicimáquina

• Inexpensive, durable pedal-powered washing
  machine
• Users Several families sharing or a local
  entrepreneur
• Requirements
• Simple to build and maintain by local service
  providers with local materials
• Easy for women and children to operate
• More comfortable to use than manual methods
• Culturally acceptable in Guatemala

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Design Specifications

• Cleaning Machine-washed clothes must be at least
  as clean as hand-washed (metric TBD)
• Capacity Minimum 5kg of clothes/load
• Pedaling time comparable to time for
• hand-washing (metric TBD)
• Power Maximum 100W (comfortable level of
  human-power output)

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Design Specifications (2)

• Materials and Manufacturing local (Maya Pedal)
• Manufacturing Cost Maximum 300 (comparable to
  other Maya Pedal machines)
• Lifetime of structure, assuming daily use
• Minimum TBD years (based on user expectations)

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Developing Concepts

• Researched washing physics, existing mechanisms
• Brainstormed design concepts
• Identified components required for each concept
• Compared designs to an existing Maytag washer
  with an exercise bike replacing the motor

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Vertical and Horizontal Axis Rotation
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Other Mechanisms
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Concept Selection
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Crank-Powered Test Stand

• Adjustable stand can model horizontal and tilted
  axes
• Evaluation of both concepts through simple
  experiments
• Identification of technical challenges
• Single best concept to be selected by March 30th

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Project Timeline
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Questions?