User-Centered Design · Mechanical Design · 2022

Motorised
Wheelbarrow

A hands-on motorised wheelbarrow built for construction and farming in Cameroon — reconditioned e-scooter motor, ergonomic handle system for users from 1.5 m to 1.9 m, designed and fabricated in three weeks without CAD simulation.

Motorised wheelbarrow — complete assembled unit designed for construction and farming in Cameroon
Year 2022
Role Lead Designer · Mechanical Engineer
Duration 3 weeks
Collaborator Badou
Category User-Centered · Mechanical Design

Project Case Study

The Problem

In Cameroon, wheelbarrows are essential tools for construction sites, farming, and market activity. The problem is that traditional models require heavy and sustained manual effort — creating fatigue, limiting how long workers can operate, and excluding users with less upper-body strength.

The brief was to design a motorised wheelbarrow that was easy to use, comfortable, and adaptable to users of different heights — from 1.5 m to 1.9 m — while working within a tight budget and without access to 3D modelling software or simulation tools.

The motor selection itself became a three-week sourcing challenge. We needed a reliable, budget-compatible unit with the right wheel size for ergonomic integration. The solution was a reconditioned e-scooter motor with a pre-mounted wheel of approximately 35–40 cm — ideal for the height range and simpler to integrate mechanically than a bare motor requiring a separate wheel build.

The Approach

This project was purely hands-on engineering: welding, cutting, and assembling the frame from experience, measurement, and iterative thinking — with no CAD models or FEA runs to fall back on. Every decision had to be made physically, validated by trial, and corrected in the workshop.

Key design decisions included: battery and oil tank placement for easy access during operation and maintenance; handle geometry and positioning for users from 1.5 m to 1.9 m; and motor mounting with handles positioned for intuitive and comfortable control.

When Badou proposed an adjustable elevator mechanism to accommodate shorter users, budget constraints made the original concept unviable. The solution was an increase in wheel diameter — raising the entire frame by a small amount to bring shorter users into a comfortable operating posture without adding complex adjustable components. A constraint became a design principle.

The Outcome

The motorised wheelbarrow was completed in three weeks and validated for comfortable use by male users (1.75–1.90 m) and female users (1.50–1.90 m). The motor integration performed as intended — reducing operator effort and extending practical working duration significantly compared to a standard manual wheelbarrow.

The most important lesson was about the appropriate scope of engineering tools. Not every project requires CAD or simulation: this design, built from measurement and iterative fabrication, was delivered in three weeks. A simulation-driven approach for the same brief would have added four to six weeks without proportional benefit to the outcome.

Collaboration proved equally important — Badou's ergonomic challenge directly improved the final design. Budget constraints that seemed like setbacks produced a simpler, more robust solution than the original proposal. Resourcefulness under constraint is not a compromise — it is a design skill.

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