Development of unmanned solar powered Rice Paddy Mixer
Date
2024
Authors
Audrey Mae M. Habil
Kimwel A. Lazo
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Abstract
Sun drying for fresh harvested paddy is a wide practice but a labor-intensive operation among developing countries because it requires less investment. To prevent the risks that may be encountered during this operation, this study was aimed to design, fabricate and evaluate an unmanned solar powered rice paddy mixer. The machine is 163.50cm x 64.0cm frame attached with two 12V DC motors, two 15.42 Ah batteries, 300W PV punel, wheels, a 165cm rake that’s carried by a linear actuator, AC charging module and electronic enclosure. A microcontroller was utilized to operate the machine remotely using a smartphone application.
With a total of 5700 hand hulled grains, the conventional method produced 16.85% broken, 27.523% cracked and 55.63% whole grains. While the machine generated 9.33% broken, 34.85% cracked, and 55.82% whole grains. Independent Sample t-tests showed that there was a significant difference of 0.010 for broken grains between the two treatments. The machine can be controlled within a 100-meter radius via Bluetooth. It can travel at 5.4 kph while the rake was raised and operates while the rake is lowered at 4.46 kph. The battery charge may last for 2 hours and 48 minutes before it reached a 50% battery charge and a 6 days of continuous 7-hour per day operation, however charging via solar or an AC converter may take up to 48 hours.
The initial investment of Php 43,857.390, the cost analysis showed the machine’s annual operating cost of Php 53,901.59. As the machine operates on a cavan basis, the customs rate was applied in caravans at Php 8.05 per cavan. With this pricing, we can expect the breakeven point to be at 5,445.24 cavans while having a pay back period of 2.712 years or 54.24 days of operation. The machine has the potential to yield savings of P54,099 annually compared to the traditional mixing method. Furthermore, the reduced labor requirement plays a significant role in achieving these savings, thereby reducing post-harvest operation costs.