Abstract:
Tillage is a process of preparing a field for planting and growing different kinds of crops. In Ethiopia, farmers have been using animal traction ard plough, known as Maresha, for thousands of years. Tillage using these tools is labor intensive and time consuming. With Oxen travelling at speeds between 0.3m/s and 0.5m/s pulling the ard, the average time required for such type of land preparation is 24 to 30hr/ha depending on the soil type. Among the total headcounts who live under the national poverty line, about half is encountered by smallholders. As a result of this, for most of the smallholders, it is difficult to afford tillage machines available which cost between 65000 and 75000ETB. To solve these problems, a two wheeled tractor (2WT) was designed and developed. After making all the necessary kinematic analysis, geometric analysis and designs, a two wheeled tractor was developed. The design was made by considering the maximum soil penetration resistance of 2525N force on a silty clay loam soil. The kinematic analysis, where all the speeds of the rotating parts are determined are done in accordance with the walking speed of the operator. Then, every part was fabricated based on the design values. The developed 2WT has a forward speed of 0.72m/s and it requires 13hrs and 24liters of diesel fuel to cover a hectare of land. It costs 21280 ETB (twenty one thousand two hundred eighty birr), which is three times cheaper than the imported 2WTs.