Foldable Shopping Cart EDSGN 100

Section 202

Team 3

http://personal.psu.edu/jnb5392/Homepage.htm

Submitted by:

Alex Thomason

Christian Sak

Jeremy Deppen

Jerod Barone

Submitted to: Xinli Wu

30 July 2015

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Abstract Our goal for this project was to design and build a prototype of a foldable shopping cart

for people without cars, or people that need to carry groceries longer distance than from a

garage. This report will show the processes of the research and development of our

design for the foldable shopping cart.

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Table of Contents

Introduction (cfs5124@psu.edu)………….……………………………………4

Description of the design task

Problem statement (abt5162@psu.edu)...………………...…………………………………4

Mission statement (cfs5124@psu.edu)………………...……………………………………4

Design specifications (abt5162@psu.edu)…..……...................……………………....……4

Design approach

Project management - Gantt chart (jnb5392@psu.edu).……………......………...…………5

Customer needs assessment (cfs5124@psu.edu) (abt5162@psu.edu)………………………5

Concept generation..……….………………………………..……………………….………7

Design selection matrices (jnb5392@psu.edu)….…………….……………………….……9

The final design and its prototype

Working drawings of your final design (jnb5392@psu.edu) …...…………….……..10-12

Prototype scale and a digital image(s) of your prototype………...………………………12

Design features (abt5162@psu.edu)….……..……..……....……………………..………13

Operation instructions (cfs5124@psu.edu)…………...…………….……….……………13

Engineering Analysis

• Working mechanism (how the designed device works) …………………………………..13

• Cost Analysis (jnb5392@psu.edu) …………………………………..……………………13

Summary and conclusions (jmd6366@psu.edu)………....…....…..…………13-14

Acknowledgements (jmd6366@psu.edu) ...…….………………….……………14

References (jmd6366@psu.edu)……….….………………………14-15

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Introduction (Christian Sak): This report documents the steps our group took to design a folding shopping cart

prototype in our Engineering Design 100 course. The shopping cart is meant to be for

people without cars, or people that need to carry groceries for a large distance. We started

with a basic design task and specifications, and then proceeded to evaluate costumer

needs. We then generated design concepts and picked the best one based on specific

needs. Our final product was a working half scale prototype. The rest of this report goes

more in depth of the process.

Problem Statement (Alex Thomason):

The problem is that many people lack a mode or transportation in which to carry

groceries and other items from one place to another. They need a storable product to aid

them in carrying multiple items up stairs, in elevators, and around town.

Mission Statement (Christian Sak): Our mission is to design and build a foldable shopping cart that will be useful to a

wide range of customers. The foldable shopping cart should be easy to use and assemble,

fold and store, buy and carry. The material cost of the cart should be under fifty dollars

and have a weight capacity of at least one hundred pounds. Of course, this product must

be very safe to use.

Design Specifications (Alex Thomason):

The folding shopping cart should be easy to use and assemble

The folding shopping cart should be ideal for transporting groceries and some

other materials.

The folding shopping cart should fold compactly for easy storage.

The material cost for the folding shopping cart should not exceed $50 unless it

can be justified.

The folding shopping cart should have a weight capacity of 100 lbs.

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Gantt Chart (Jerod Barone):

Customer Analysis (Alex Thomason & Christian Sak):

Customer # 1: Lives in an apartment with a car

1. What problems do you experience when you carry groceries back to your

home?

Well, because I live in an apartment on the top floor, there are a couple stairs I

have to climb before reaching an elevator. It is a pain to carry all my groceries up

the stairs and hold them until I reach my apartment. Getting from the store to the

parking lot of my apartment is fairly easy because I have a car.

2. What is your mode of transpiration when grocery shopping?

I take my car to the store so it is easy to take them back to the apartments. It does

not take me too long to shop and bring everything back.

3. If you travel by car, what is the distance from your car to your front door? If

you walk, what is the distance from the store to your house?

The distance from the apartments parking lot to my home is approximately 200 ft

(including stairs and hallways).

4. What is the average amount of groceries that you buy?

I go to the store on average two times a week. Since I have a family, I buy a

approximately 45 pounds of groceries each time.

Are there multiple people that you shop for?

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I shop for my family. I have a husband and one child. Neither come with me to

shop, so I have to carry all my groceries and items back to my home by myself.

5. How hard is it physically for you to buy and carry groceries back to your

home?

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate my difficulty as a four. Like I said,

walking through the apartment complex with everything can be tedious. I often

have to make multiple trips.

Customer # 2: Lives in a city without a car

1. What problems do you experience when you carry groceries back to your

home?

City streets, bumps, edges, crowded people bumping into me.

2. What is your mode of transpiration when grocery shopping?

Walking down the street, possibly brought onto public transportation such as a

bus or subway.

3. If you travel by car, what is the distance from your car to your front door? If

you walk, what is the distance from the store to your house?

I walk far to the store; it is multiple blocks away from my home.

4. What is the average amount of groceries that you buy?

I buy a pretty large amount weekly; I go multiple times a week so the load isn’t

too bad coming back to my home.

5. Are there multiple people that you shop for?

I shop only for myself.

6. How hard is it physically for you to buy and carry groceries back to your

home?

It takes a lot of effort to bring all my groceries down the streets to my home.

Crossing streets, going through public transportation, and walking up and down

occasional stairs is very tiring and tedious.

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Concept Generation:

Figure No. 1 Cart: A (Alex Thomason)

Figure No. 2: Cart B (Alex Thomason)

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Figure No. 3: Cart C (Jerod Barone)

Figure No. 4: Cart D (Jeremy Deppen)

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Figure No. 5: Cart E (Christian Sak)

Design Matrices (Jerod & Team):

Table 1. Design Matrix

Table 2. Design Matrix Weighted

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Working Drawings (Jerod Barone):

Figure No. 6: Solid Model of Cart (Jerod Barone)

Figure No. 7: Cart Platform

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Figure No. 8: Wheel

Figure No. 9: Top Half of Pole

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Figure No. 10: Assembly Drawing

Scale (Prototype to Real Size): 1:2

Figure No. 11 Figure No. 12 Figure No. 13

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Design Features (Alex Thomason): There are many features of this product that make it convenient and easy to use.

There are four wheels to make the cart very stable and maneuverable. Additionally the

locking mechanisms on the base and staff enable the user to tilt the cart on two wheels if

necessary. The Velcro on the platform ensures that the bag will not slide off the cart,

while the hooks below the handles enable the canvas bag to hang in an ideal position to

place groceries. Groceries can also be carried up stairs with the detachable bag. The thin

yet strong plastic platform allows at least 100 pounds of groceries to be loaded into the

cart. Round handles were also installed to provide comfort to the users while rolling the

cart. When the shopping cart needs to be stored, it easily folds down and fits in compact

places.

Operation Instructions (Christian Sak): The benefit of the folding design of this cart is that it can be pre-assembled in the

box. The cart will be in the folded position, so all the customer has to do is extend the

pole upwards until it clicks into place. The bag is included with the cart. When placing

the bag on the cart, attach the Velcro on the bottom of the bag to the base of the cart.

Then, hang the bag by its handles on the hooks at the top of the pole, right below the

handle. When the customer is finished using the cart they just take the bag off the cart by

simply separating the Velcro. Then, push the pole back into the folded position.

Working Mechanism (Jerod Barone): How this cart folds up is simple. The pole is equipped with hinges that allow it to

fold in half and down onto the platform. Also the hinges will lock in place when the pole

is extended so that the cart does not collapse during usage.

Cost Analysis (Jerod Barone): The total material cost of this cart turned out to be $54.51. We figured out that

finding cheap parts for the cart was not easy, so we searched for the cheapest parts we

could find and ended up with this cost. If we would sell an actual final product of the cart,

we would sell it for $84.99. This would give us at least a 60% profit margin, which is

reasonable in this case because this cart is expensive for us to build.

Summary (Jeremy Deppen): Storage and portability has become an increasing problem to the typical store goer

using a shopping cart as cities become bigger, apartments become smaller, and people

need to walk further to obtain their store bought goods. With this, arises a need for

durable, cost efficient, and easy to use shopping cart. When tasked with designing such

shopping cart, we needed to take into account the needs of a typical consumer, so we

asked two people about the factors that are involved in their shopping trip such as: length

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from store to car or store to place of residence, whether or not stairs are involved, etc.

The foldable cart that we designed and built can hold at least 100lbs, has a platform at the

bottom to store large items such as a case of water, can fold and store in small areas,

includes a detachable bag that makes transportation up stairs easy, and costs just over $50

to produce. Our design of a flat base on wheels, square rod protruding upwards, and

handles that hold the bag in place is a simple yet effective way to get your

groceries/goods from point A to point B while being able to fold up for easy storage.

Acknowledgements (Jeremy Deppen): We would like to thank Xinli Wu for his guidance over the duration of the project

as well as Nick Petrunyak for staying for evening hours and monitoring the workshop

where we built our prototype.

References (Jerod Barone):

High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Sheeting | U.S. Plastic Corp. (n.d.). Retrieved July

16, 2015, from

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23869&catid=705

1/16" x 24" x 48" HDPE Sheet

McMaster-Carr. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from

http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-plastic-rods/=y18dvm

After you go to the link, click on Chemical Resistant PVC.

McMaster-Carr. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from

http://www.mcmaster.com/#canvas/=y18ck5

Water Repellent sheeting

McMaster-Carr. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from http://www.mcmaster.com/#strap-

hinges/=y2rvfb

Two Style 7 hinges: 1 7/8" x 7/8" x 9/16" x 1 13/16"

McMaster-Carr. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from http://www.mcmaster.com/#pvc-

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square-tubing/=y2s2r3

3/4" x 3/4"

Reliable Hardware Company RH-5134BO-A 3/4-Inch Black Oxide Wood Screw and

Wax. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from http://www.amazon.com/Reliable-

Hardware-Company-RH-5134BO-A-4-

Inch/dp/B00JJ18VKC/ref=pd_sim_267_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=15H363RJNTJ1N

770AFB7

Reliable Hardware Company RH-9005-SET-A Casters Swivel Top Plate 2-Inch Wheel

Diameter Zinc, Set of 4. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from

http://www.amazon.com/Reliable-Hardware-Company-RH-9005-SET-A-

Diameter/dp/B00JJ18VIE/ref=pd_bxgy_267_img_y

Velcro® Combo Strips Pack - 3⁄4" x 15', Black. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from

http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-5750/Velcro-Hook-and-Loop-

Tape/Velcro-Combo-Strips-Pack-3-4-x-15-

Black?pricode=WY855&gadtype=pla&id=S-

5750&gclid=Cj0KEQjww42tBRCO-

sfEiO3DvYMBEiQAHeqMKHAsZHDC_XfgMZkVDmqBXqeUUbHl_AHflloH

GrasMqcaAuov8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

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