The steps taken to design the mobile tire recycling unit included a few key activities. These are as follows:

The Ideation Phase – The team addressed the four subsystems required for the design the equipment handling, the tire mounting, the scrubbing enclosure and the storage system. This phase involved extensive research and hand sketches to begin developing some potential solutions.

The Preliminary Design Phase – The team solidified 2 – 3 designs for each subsystem that could potentially be used in the final design. Each of these were analyzed and presented to the client for his opinion. This phase included more elaborate sketches and some hand calculations.

The Conceptual Design Phase – The team used a decision matrix to weigh the pros and cons of each idea ultimately choosing a single design to pursue for each subsystem. With each design chosen, further analysis was conducted including simulations and the development of three dimensional CAD models.

The Testing Phase – The team required testing to verify the filtration method required for separating the rubber from the water that is used in the scrubbing process. This determined which mesh size would be appropriate for the clients needs. At this time revisions were made to the CAD models and final analyses was completed.

The Project Closure – The team had all analysis and designs complete and had only the budget and drawing package to complete. These were the two major deliverables required for the client to continue working toward a fully functional prototype. The drawing package included part drawings, sub assembly drawings and full assembly drawings for each subsystem. The budget included quotes for the tire scrubbing pump system, shipping containers, truck mounted cranes and a manufacturing budget for each CAD model that was produced.