Developing a Portable Hydroelectric Generator Using Axiomatic Design Method

Abstract

Hydroelectric power plant is the largest renewable energy source in Indonesia. There are several models of hydroelectric power machine applied in Indonesia, one of them is a portable generator. However, there are still some problems in the existing portable design, for example it has a big size and unattractive design; it is unpractical and unsafe to use, that it results in ineffective and inefficient use of the generator as well as results endanger. This reality occurs because the design does not meet user criteria. The purpose of this study was to redesign the portable hydroelectric power generator which can satisfy user requirements. Survey was conducted to identify the customer needs and axiomatic design method was used to determine the design parameter by mapping process from customer attribute and functional requirement. Statistical analysis was conducted to test the hypothesis. The results of this study showed that the proposed design of portable generator can increase user satisfaction as much as 73.67% so it is recognized to be different from the existing design. The design developed is also valid to satisfy user requirement at 5% significance level including the fact that it is durable, waterproof, attractive, lightweight, small in size, and portable.