ME 408-121

July 6, 2019

Portable Undercarriage Cleaner

A vehicle’s undercarriage must be maintained in order to ensure that it will remain on the
road for years to come. Due to the fact that the undercarriage is made of unpainted steel, it is
often one of the first places to feel the effects of rust and road salt. The purpose of this product is
to provide a convenient method for consumers to wash the undercarriage of their vehicles at
home in order to inhibit the formation of rust.

Cleaning the undercarriage of a vehicle is difficult without the proper tools, especially in
the winter when it is important to remove road salt. Oftentimes vehicle owners must go to a car
wash in order to get an adequate cleaning cleaning, which can be costly if done regularly.
Additionally, many people prefer to wash their cars at home in order to make use of specialty
products. For those who prefer this method there are hose attachments which can be used to
clean a vehicle’s undercarriage, but they require physical manipulation which can be tiresome
depending on the design.

The portable undercarriage cleaner is a wash pad which can be attached to a hose in order
to clean vehicles by simply driving over the pad. It will consist of a series of spray arms within a
plastic housing and a cleaning fluid container attached to the water intake by a siphon. As water
flows through the intake it will siphon cleaning solution into the system. The housing will be
rectangular in shape with angled sides such that vehicles can easily roll over it. The top of the
housing will consist of two interlocking parts in order to provide easy access to the spray arms
and solution container for maintenance and modification purposes, and water flow will be
adjustable through the use of valves, which will be accessible from this position. This product
allows consumers to wash the underside of their vehicle without needing to go to a car wash or
physically clean the undercarriage with a wand attachment. It will be as simple as driving over
the pad. The siphon mechanism and easy access to the parts through the interlocking panels in
the top of the undercarriage cleaner are a substantial improvement on the closest existing
product, which consists only of a pipe with a plastic housing placed over top.
Past work talk about as a background
 current modle which we working on

• for the rport objectives (To create a portable vehicle undercarriage cleaner

• Suitable for home use

• Ease of use for the elderly or inexperienced

• Adjustable length

• Ability to use detergent

 • Justfication

• (Current undercarriage cleaners are large and heavy

• Currently use hand-held attachments

• Only used commercially in auto-shops or car washes

• Limited/expensive home tools exist

-abstract

-INTRODUCTION

1.1 PROBLEM DESCRIPTION AND BACKGROUND

1.2 PAST SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEM

1.3 PROPOSED SOLUTION