PVC Go-Kart Design for Strength and Stiffness
PVC Go-Kart Design for Strength and Stiffness
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SolidWorks CAD & FEA | Design | Prototyping
SolidWorks CAD & FEA | Design | Prototyping
Challenge
Challenge
Our four-person team designed and built a compact, full-scale push kart capable of supporting an adult rider while remaining maneuverable enough to pass through a laboratory doorway. The project required structural design, budgeting, fabrication, assembly, and physical validation.
Engineering Approach
Engineering Approach
We began with free-body diagrams and hand calculations for the seat support, push bar, and wheel loading. A SolidWorks weldment model was then constrained at the wheel attachment points and loaded with 145 lbf at the seat. Initial FEA identified excessive stress and deflection in the center of the frame, so we added a longitudinal reinforcement member that tied together three cross-members and improved load distribution.
Validation
Validation
The final design reached a calculated factor of safety of 1.5. Physical rider testing confirmed that the frame carried the intended load, but measured deflections exceeded idealized FEA predictions because the model treated joints as rigid, simplified connector behavior, and used fixed supports that did not capture movement in the physical assembly.
Design Improvements
Design Improvements
A next iteration would use stronger tubing or additional reinforcement, a denser frame lattice, a more rigid steering assembly, fixed rear-wheel bearings, and a more representative connector model. The difference between FEA and test data was as valuable as the final build because it showed which assumptions controlled model accuracy.
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