Product Design by Jamie Rodda

Recyclist

Mon, 02 Jul 2012 10:52:00 -0400

Recyclist is a recycling collection service which operates around the use of bicycle and trailer to collect waste. It is designed for use in heavily built up urban areas where typical recycling services cannot be offered due to a number of constraints.

The trailer would travel around blocks of flats and tenements etc. on a timetabled route, collecting people’s waste. Once the trailer was full its operator would cycle to the nearest recycling facility and empty the bins. they would then return to collect more waste.

The service would be run as a social enterprise, and the collection trailers would be operated by individuals who have been in long term unemployment.

The bicycle trailer was chosen as it is much more maneuverable than a van or truck in narrow streets. It is also a much more environmentally friendly mode of transport. It has low running costs and requires little maintenance. All the materials used in the trailer and bins are either recycled, reused, or widely recyclable.

The trailer as it was for the Gray’s School of Art degree show 2012.

The trailer chassis is mad from box section steel for strength and durability. I chose not to paint or coat the trailer for the degree show, keeping the welding visible, however for the trailer to be put into use it would have to be painted or zinc coated to protect it against corrosion.

The trailer includes mounts for a dynamo unit and a rear light for visibility purposes. The wiring for the dynamo is routed internaly through the framework of the trailer, keeping it out of the way.

The trailer mounts to the rear axle on the non-driveside of the bicycle. This means the mount does not interfere with any gears etc. It is a design that can easily be fitted to a wide range of bikes with no modification. A heim joint is used to allow the trailer to move freely from side to side with some up and down movement.

The waste is contained in bins made from a rolled piece of recycled tyre rubber, supported by two bicycle rims at the top and bottom. The construction of the bins allows the user to twist and squash the bin, crushing its contents and making room for more.

There is a bicycle tyre fitted to the top of the bin to give the user something to grp on to when compacting the waste.

Removable lid.

There is a fold down stand at the rear of the trailer to stabilise the trailer when people are pushing down on the bins.

Time for an update, haven’t done any posts for a while due...

Mon, 02 Jul 2012 09:45:00 -0400

Time for an update, haven’t done any posts for a while due to being busy and not having a computer just now…

Here’s a photo of the logo I welded for my business cards.

FROM STEEL: The making of a SoulcraftThis is a great insight...

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:39:08 -0400

FROM STEEL: The making of a Soulcraft

This is a great insight into the production of a hand crafted steel bike frame.

This is an interesting trailer design which uses 2 bicycle forks...

Sun, 20 May 2012 10:03:00 -0400

This is an interesting trailer design which uses 2 bicycle forks to mount the wheels. This allows brakes to be fitted easily if need be and would give some vibration absorption too.

A video of the cycle trailer being tested.

Sun, 20 May 2012 09:59:56 -0400

A video of the cycle trailer being tested.

Photo

Fri, 18 May 2012 08:42:36 -0400

Trailer testing.

Thu, 17 May 2012 14:54:00 -0400

Trailer testing.

TIG welding trailer chassis.

Sat, 12 May 2012 11:44:45 -0400

TIG welding trailer chassis.

Prototyping trailer

Thu, 03 May 2012 16:25:20 -0400

Prototyping trailer

Cutting down to size

Angling ends

Laser cutting dropouts from MDF

Prototyping trailer

Door to door recycling waste collection service test.

Tue, 01 May 2012 16:48:35 -0400

Door to door recycling waste collection service test.

Practice TIG welds.

Tue, 01 May 2012 10:17:56 -0400

Practice TIG welds.

Why Do We Give? Not Why Or How You Think, by Alix Spiegel

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 06:30:22 -0400

Why Do We Give? Not Why Or How You Think, by Alix Spiegel:

And interesting article about people’s habits in relation to donating money to charity, the findings are quite suprising.

Photo

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:38:03 -0400

A modified ‘B.O.B’ trailer. www.bobgear.com

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 11:28:06 -0400

A modified ‘B.O.B’ trailer.

www.bobgear.com

Comparison image. I was able to compact 11 bottles and 10 small...

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 11:26:00 -0400

Comparison image. I was able to compact 11 bottles and 10 small cartons down to the size of 2 milk cartons.

Compacting plastic waste test

Sun, 15 Apr 2012 15:27:00 -0400

This was a test to see how well plastic bottles could be compacted using a paper shredder.

I used roughly the amount of plastic I would use in 2 weeks.

I used a paper shredder to shred the bottles etc.

Shredder mechanism:

They had to be cut with scissors first so I could put through them shredder.

The only parts which could not be shredded were to tops of the bottles.

Some of the plastics shredded better than others. The milk cartons did not break up completely, but the resulting perforation meant the pieces could be rolled up or folded easily.

The shredded waste:

As a result of chopping and shredding the bottles and carton, the amount of space taken up by the waste was greatly reduced. I was able to fit it all into 2 empty milk cartons with space leftover.

This is a storyboard that I did in the design workshop with...

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 09:49:08 -0400

This is a storyboard that I did in the design workshop with Melehat Gulari. It depicts the idea behind the product/service.

How to… make recycling pay, by Bethany Hubbard

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:01:04 -0400

How to… make recycling pay, by Bethany Hubbard:

An interesting article on The Ecologist about recycling of everyday products into reusable entities…

Via: Core 77, artist: lunchbreath

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:12:34 -0400

Via: Core 77, artist: lunchbreath

These concepts deal with the issue of compacting collected...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:35:00 -0400

These concepts deal with the issue of compacting collected materials in recycling bins. Through user participation the waste is compacted, making for a more engaging experience for the user and also giving them visual feedback in relation to the amount of waste that has been collected.