“Flight Time” and the “Scope of the mission” play major roles in using UAVs as they affect most industrial activities. Once the battery has depleted, the UAV has to land on the ground and human interaction is needed to change the battery with a fully charged one. Nowadays, several automatic battery swapping systems are catching interest in research. This research presents the novel concept of an Inverted Docking Station that allows a quadrotor UAV to attach to the ceiling during the automatic battery-swapping process. The proposed design consist of a docking station, a positioning system and gripper mechanisms. The proposed design allows the quadrotor to carry the load under the quadrotor and remain attached throughout the servicing period. A mathematical model and design guideline have been proposed, and a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) was performed to check that the developed platform is strong enough to withstand the above task. A ‘DJI TELLO’ small-scale quadrotor was chosen as a case study to demonstrate the proposed research. Finally the advantages and the limitations of the system are discussed.

The purpose of the present study was to identify the customer requirements and engineering attribute expectations of an innovative product to which a Kano’s model and quality function deployment (QFD) analysis was applied. In order to accomplish the research, a new water filling machine design was used as the case study. This alternative machine was aimed at making life more convenient and to support people interested in small businesses, since a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) filling machine saved production costs. This research began by classifying the obtained answers from questionnaires into groups. We then conducted a statistical analysis on potential users. The number of elements of the customer requirements was 11 and the number of engineering attributes expected was 5. The customer requirements of the innovated automatic filling machine was quickly identified. The machine, therefore, was designed and evaluated according to the considerations and relationships between customer requirements and engineering characteristics, where the cost and the machining capacity were considered important factors in the analysis.

The use of plastic bottles has become a significant environmental concern, and recycling them has become a priority. Small and medium-sized recycling companies must collect and categorize large volumes of plastic bottles and sell them to larger recycling firms, a process that is time-consuming, costly, and labor-intensive. This manual sorting process can pose health risks, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and can affect worker productivity. To address these issues, this study proposes the development of an automated conveyor belt system that can rapidly and accurately separate plastic bottles by type. The system utilizes an opaque and transparent plastic bottle separation platform, which saves time, cost, and manpower. This system design provides recycling SMEs with a competitive advantage by serving as a practical application model and a prototype with an easy-to-use concept. Key tools employed in this research include product design development (PDD), Kansei engineering, manufacturing process design, controlling system, and fault tree analysis (FTA). The light sensors are critical components in the separation process, detecting the opacity or transparency of the bottles’ surfaces. The proposed prototype’s reliability will be assessed by FTA, which considers all potential failures. This study contributes to the body of knowledge surrounding the integration of conveyor systems and provides valuable information for businesses seeking to optimize their sorting processes. The guidelines developed in this study can serve as a starting point for further research on the integration of conveyors in waste sorting plants.

In agricultural field, irrigation is one of the most interesting considerations affecting the rate of plant growth and development. Micro-irrigation as the dripping or sprinkle method is one of the irrigation types that applies the small amount of water for fulfilling the humidity requirement. The most important factors affecting the demand of water for plants are soil conditions and effect of climatic factors. With less human labour required, to improve the irrigation method from the recent days, analyzing water used or water permeation automatically through the soil moisture has been raised as the interesting topic. Proposed in this research is the ring irrigation system (RIS) which is introduced as an alternative channel for emitters that drip water directly onto the soil at the plant’s root zone where the soil conditions before and after watering can be quickly detected by the sensors. This RIS can be used for the potted plant, green house, or other small farm fields. Product design and development (PDD) is applied in this research for assisting the designer to understand and create the RIS prototype properly according to the customer’s requirements where the suggested functions obtained will be added and tested.

Efficient inventory management is fundamental for modern businesses, requiring innovative storage solutions that enhance organization, accessibility, and space utilization. This study presents an alternative rack system designed to enhance warehouse efficiency while adapting to changing inventory demands. The system features modular configurations, durable yet lightweight materials, and ergonomic designs to support diverse storage needs. By maximizing space efficiency and optimizing load distribution, the design lowers operational costs and improves workflow. A comparative analysis with traditional racking systems highlights the advantages of the new design in flexibility, adaptability, and ease of use, aligning with modern logistics requirements. The study evaluates an industrial rack under a 1200-kg load using finite element analysis (FEA) and fatigue analysis, proposing structural enhancements. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) ensures alignment with customer needs. Static analysis identified critical high-stress and deformation points at the column-beam connection, with a maximum stress of 1.1 × 10⁹ N/m² and deformation of 10.8 mm. Increasing beam thickness reduced stress and deformation. Fatigue analysis showed an increase in life cycle from 600 to 900 cycles at critical points. Despite improvements, some high-stress areas still exceed material yield strength, indicating the need for stronger materials to ensure safe load-bearing capacity.