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in liasion with Kokoa Kamili
Project Goals
Project Goals
Every year, Kokoa Kamili's cocoa bean production season is interrupted by inclement weather such as heavy rain and harsh sunlight. We have helped with solving this problem by developing a rapidly deployable rain protection system to prevent the drying cocoa beans from becoming wet and developing mold as well as protecting the beans from being scorched by intense sunlight.
Background
Background
Kokoa Kamili is a social enterprise located in Tanzania that produces cocoa beans. They help local farmers make a better living by purchasing wet cocoa beans from them at a premium price and doing all post handing of the fruit like fermenting and drying.
They currently operate from June to December, however, their production season is cut short due to inclement weather such as extreme rain or sun that affects the processing and quality of the beans.
Motivation
Motivation
When they encounter this extreme weather, their employees have to carry 200 trays of almost 50 kg of cocoa beans into a shed for coverage. This process is pictured above, in which each tray requires two employees to carry. This entire process takes about 70 minutes to get all beans covered, which interrupts their workflow and is just not efficient.
Problem Statement
Problem Statement
Create a cocoa bean drying protection system, with controlled direct sun drying when the weather is clear, that can be rapidly deployed to protect the beans if the weather turns cloudy or rainy.
High Priority Requirements
High Priority Requirements
Protection from rainfall and sun exposure
Protection is retractable or removable
System can be deployed rapidly
No major repairs for least one season
Safe to operate
Ethical Considerations
Ethical Considerations
Safe and easy to use for Kokoa Kamili staff members
Uses locally sourced materials in Tanzania to support local economy
Part of the ethical and fair business of Kokoa Kamili
Our Solution
Our Solution
The concept driving our solution is that the mechanism can be attached and easily modified to any standard greenhouse Kokoa Kamili chooses in Tanzania. In our prototype is an off the shelf, catalog greenhouse frame to which we attached our rapidly deployable mechanism to the top. This features two layers of rollers for both rain and sun protection, Velcro straps, clamps and bearings, and a crank mechanism for retraction. Additionally, we have provided a larger scale CAD model of our prototype to show how it might scale up.
Prototype
Prototype
CAD Model
CAD Model
Two Layer of Rollers
Velcro
Clamps and Bearing
Crank
CAD Rollers
CAD Clamp and Bearings
CAD Crank
Hardware Demonstrations
Hardware Demonstrations
Rapid Deployment
Rapid Deployment
Rain Protection
Rain Protection
Results from Force of Deployment Tests
Results from Force of Deployment Tests
This test was done using a force guage to verify the actual load needed to actuate and unfurl the tarp by pulling from the bottom rod. By doing so, we were also able to quantify the amount of labor our system would require in comparison to the current baseline of carrying the 50 kg drying tables.
Gallery
Gallery
Meet Team Asante
Meet Team Asante
Amy Shoch
engineering analyst
Daniel Shorr
project manager
Disney Rattanakongkham
liaison interface
Drew Dalman
financial officer
Special Thanks to
Special Thanks to
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