College of Engineering

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Fall 2020-2021

Senior Design Project Report

Paper Shredder Design

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

Degree of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering

Team Members

Student Name Student ID

1 Omran AlBahrani 201600939
2 Omar AlHajjaj 201702069
3 Abdulrahman AlQahtani 201403547
4 Mohammad AlDossary 201600975

Project Advisors:

Advisor Name: Dr Fraj Alshmri

Co-Advisor Name: Bouchaib Zazoum
 Abstract
Nowadays, even though it is the era of technology and everything could be made in a soft-
copy, hard-copies of A4 paper are still widely used and indispensable in every industry, every
home, and every work office. However, hard-copy papers eventually need to be disposed in a
proper way to not damage the environment and also to be reused again. The best way is to cut
(shred) the paper in small pieces in order to recycle it easily.
In this project, the goal of the team is to design a paper shredder with a DC motor, gears and
two shafts with blades that are able to cross-cut paper in small, standard sizes (DIN P-4) for
recycling purposes. Moreover, some papers are top-secret or classified papers (read & destroy)
and shall not be leaked or read by people whom are not involved. Thus, shredding these papers
in small sizes will be good for recycling purposes and will be excellent for securing classified
papers and information and guarantees nothing will be leaked.
 Acknowledgments
Foremost, it is the team’s honor to be under the supervision of our advisor Dr. Fraj AlShmri
with his great experience in the field of Mechanical Engineering, the team members would like
to thank him for his support in this project. Moreover, the team members would like to thank
every single one helped with an advice or facilitate the team’s way to the finalize this project.
 List of Acronyms (Symbols) used in the report
Acronym / Symbols Definition Unit

N Rotational Speed RPM

D Dimeter mm

T Torque N. m

P Power W

C Number of blades #

F Force N

p Pressure of a single A4 paper N / m2

n Number of A4 paper (s) #

 List of Figures
Figure 1: Designing cutting blades and gears in SolidWorks .................................................. 12
Figure 2 Typical gear design in SolidWorks ........................................................................... 14
Figure 3: Reference paper shredder shape ............................................................................... 14
Figure 4: AmazonBasics 12-sheet, cross-cut paper, ................................................................ 16
Figure 5: Existing Mechanism ................................................................................................. 16
Figure 6: Stress ........................................................................................................................ 17
Figure 7: Total deformation ..................................................................................................... 17
Figure 8 :The used AISI 304 stainless-steel shaft and blades .................................................. 25
Figure 9: AISI 304 stainless-steel properties ........................................................................... 25
Figure 10: Exploded Assembly of the system ......................................................................... 27
Figure 11: Assembled system .................................................................................................. 27
Figure 12: Motor ...................................................................................................................... 28
Figure 15: Fan .......................................................................................................................... 28
Figure 14: Blades ..................................................................................................................... 28
Figure 13: Gears ....................................................................................................................... 28
Figure 16: Final Prototype ....................................................................................................... 28
Figure 17: Tachometer Device with Stickers........................................................................... 29
 List of Tables
Table 1: Part Specifications. ...................................................................................................... 9
Table 2: Shredder items & details ............................................................................................ 13
Table 3: Mechanical shredder Objects, Results & Remarks.................................................... 15
Table 4: The used standards for each part used in the paper shredder .................................... 20
Table 5: Summary .................................................................................................................... 26
Table 6: Project Plan ................................................................................................................ 30
Table 7: Tasks and assigned members ..................................................................................... 32
Table 8: Tasks the contribution of the members ...................................................................... 33
Table 9: Project bill. ................................................................................................................. 37
Table of Contents

Abstract ................................................................................................................................... 2
Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................... 3
List of Acronyms (Symbols) used in the report ..................................................................... 4
List of Figures ......................................................................................................................... 5
List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... 6
Table of Contents.................................................................................................................... 7
Chapter 1: Introduction .............................................................................................................. 9

1.1 Project Definition ........................................................................................................ 9

1.2 Project Objectives ....................................................................................................... 9
1.3 Project Specifications .................................................................................................. 9
1.4 Applications .............................................................................................................. 10
Chapter 2: Literature Review ................................................................................................... 11

2.1 Project background .................................................................................................... 11

2.2 Previous Work ........................................................................................................... 12
2.3 Comparative Study .................................................................................................... 14
Chapter 3: System Design ........................................................................................................ 18

3.1 Design Constraints and Design Methodology ................................................................ 18

3.1.1: Geometrical Constraints .......................................................................................... 18
3.1.2: Sustainability ........................................................................................................... 18
3.1.3: Environmental ......................................................................................................... 18
3.1.4: Social ....................................................................................................................... 19
3.1.5: Economic................................................................................................................. 19
3.1.6: Safety....................................................................................................................... 19
3.1.7: Ethical ..................................................................................................................... 19
3.2 Engineering Design standards Engineering .................................................................... 19
3.2.1 Screws ...................................................................................................................... 20
3.2.2: Gears ....................................................................................................................... 20
3.2.3: Blades & Shafts ....................................................................................................... 22
3.2.4: Motor ....................................................................................................................... 23
3.3 Theory and Theoretical Calculations. ............................................................................. 23
3.3.1: Calculating Gears Rotational Speed........................................................................ 23
3.3.2: Torque on The Shaft................................................................................................ 23
3.3.3: Cutting Force ........................................................................................................... 24
3.3.4: Maximum Number of Paper in Each ............................................................................. 24

Chapter 4: System Testing ....................................................................................................... 29

Chapter 5: Project Management............................................................................................... 30

5.1 Project Plan ..................................................................................................................... 30

5.2 Contribution of Team Members ..................................................................................... 32
5.3 Project Execution Monitoring ........................................................................................ 35
5.4 Challenges & Decision Making ...................................................................................... 35
5.4.1 No Standard Design for Paper Shredders ................................................................. 36
5.4.2 Finding A Proper Workshop .................................................................................... 36
5.4.3 Meeting challenges ................................................................................................... 36
5.5 Project Bill & Budget .................................................................................................. 36
Chapter 6: Project Analysis ..................................................................................................... 37

6.1 Life-Long Learning ........................................................................................................ 37

6.1.1 Software Skills ......................................................................................................... 37
6.1.2 Hardware Skills ........................................................................................................ 38
6.1.3 Time Management Skills ......................................................................................... 38
6.1.4 Project Management................................................................................................. 38
6.2 Impact of Engineering Solutions .................................................................................... 38
6.2.1 Society ...................................................................................................................... 38
6.2.2 Economy................................................................................................................... 39
6.2.3 Environment ............................................................................................................. 39
6.3 Contemporary Issue ........................................................................................................ 39
Chapter 7: Conclusion.............................................................................................................. 40

7.1 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 40

7.2 Future Recommendation................................................................................................. 40
References ................................................................................................................................ 41
Chapter 1: Introduction

1.1 Project Definition

Paper shredder is a machine that is used to cut unwanted paper into small pieces in order to get
rid of the paper. It is basically a mechanical machine that that uses a DC motor to rotate gears
that are connected to two shafts covered with sharp metal heads all around. The shafts rotate in
opposite directions, while the paper gets shredded when it goes between them. Paper shredder
is widely used in offices to dispose papers as waste and also to shred some classified and secret
papers in sensitive areas like the military.

1.2 Project Objectives

The main important objectives in this project are:
1- Design a paper shredder strong enough to handle up to 5 stacked papers.
2- Design a safe paper shredder that is safe to use for the end user.
3- Ensure that the shredded paper is recyclable according to a standard.
4- Design a removable storage compartment where the shredded paper can be stored.
5- Design shredding blades that are able to shred paper into small pieces.

1.3 Project Specifications

This shredder is used for security purposes and recycling. Furthermore, the shredder uses
a verified shredding standard by the Netherlands’ based website called recycling.com.
Moreover, the standard is internationally approved.

Table 1: Part Specifications.

Part Features

Nmotor = 6684 RPM

Dmotor = 9mm
Motor Gear (Input)
Teeth count= 7

N2 = 40.16 RPM
D2 = 57mm
Second Gear (Output)
Teeth count= 41
 Fcutting = 0.27 N
Single Cutting Blade Force

Fcutting, total = 29.16 N

Total Cutting Force of The

Shredder

5 papers, Fpaper = 24.79 N

Maximum Number of Paper in

each cut

T = 119.97 x 10-3 kN.m

Torque on the shaft

NFan = 500 – 1500 RPM

Suction fan
Voltage = 12 V

AISI 304 Stainless-steel

Material used in shaft and

blades

1.4 Applications
The main applications for the project are:
1. Allows the user to dispose of paper very simply and effectively
2. Can be used by government organizations, banks, and corporate offices to dispose of
documents containing sensitive information
3. Can be used by environmentally aware people who care about recycling
4. Is easily accessible for use in any capacity to effectively dispose of waste paper
Chapter 2: Literature Review

2.1 Project background

Since ancient Egyptian times around 4000 B.C., man has had the need to write, just as there is
a need for written documents today. Memoirs, notes and messages, religious documentation,
and just plain stories were written on walls, clay, animal hides, and waxed tablets, they were
the only materials available at the time and they were mostly solid objects making the process
[4]
of discarding any unwanted material nearly impossible, that is until papyrus was invented
[12]
. Papyrus is a material that resembles the paper we use today, just a little thicker, and just
like the paper that is used today, its main purpose was to be used as a writing surface. But even
still, with both papyrus and paper alike, the process of discarding the material was a manual
task that was time-consuming for large documents, didn’t do a good job of destroying the
written information, and on top of that, it was harmful to the environment.
In 1908 New York, U.S.A., an entrepreneur by the name of Abbot Augustus Low invented and
patented the first paper shredding machine, which he called “Waste Paper Receptacle” as he
realized the need for a more compact method of disposing paper. During his lifetime, he only
got to create one working prototype but was never able to make a second, as he passed away
in 1912, and therefore the finished product was never made either and was soon forgotten about
[4] [9]
.
In 1935 Balingen, Germany, a toolmaker named Adolf Ehinger who was secretly against the
Nazi regime, used to write down his feelings and thoughts surrounding this topic, but he feared
exposure and so he set out a goal of changing the way that he discarded material. He got his
inspiration from a kitchen utensil, the pasta maker, which was a popular tool in Germany. He
used the same concept as the hand-cranked pasta maker to make a manual paper shredder,
which he then improved and tweaked and eventually added an electrical motor to [4] [9] [12]. In
1936, he patented his work and was determined to make a success out of this invention. This
success came during troubled times in the 1940s amidst the World War II period where
paranoia was running high and secrecy was of the utmost importance. He began selling the
product across the country and then expanded and started selling internationally to
[12]
governments and embassies . His product was given another sales boost during the 1950s
due to the Cold War. He then started a company around this invention and his business
continued to flourish even in the years that followed the war.
Paper shredders became popular since then, but they were mostly utilized by government
organizations to destroy private, confidential, or otherwise sensitive documents and it was very
rare to find them in use outside of government bodies, that is until the mid-1980s, with a rise
of identity theft crimes and growing privacy concerns, paper shredders then became more
popular among regular individuals.

2.2 Previous Work

This project report is one of the best and most recent reports for designing a paper shredder. It
has been done by the Department of Mechanical Engineering in Federal University of
Petroleum Resources in Nigeria. Moreover, it has been published in Journal of
Multidisciplinary Engineering Science and Technology (JMEST). It was mainly built for
[1]
security causes and at the same time for recycling . The following are the significant parts
that make up the paper shredding machine: The machine frame, shredder support, drive shaft,
cutting blades, gears, electric motor and the left and right base [1]. The idea is that the DC motor
will rotate the gears, the gears will rotate the shafts in opposite directions, the shafts have
cutting blades that will cut the paper when it goes between the shafts. Figure 2.1 shows the
design of gears and cutting blades in SolidWorks [1].

Figure 1: Designing cutting blades and gears in SolidWorks

The Designers of the shredder selected mild steel for the frame, plastic for the gears and
medium carbon steel for the rest of the parts according to these factors: Pressure and load
[1]
involved operating temperature Availability, cost and functionality . The table below show
the highlights of the important parts of the shredder.

Table 2: Shredder items & details

Item / Part Details

Electric Motor Power = 0.075kW

Rotational speed = 1450 rev/min

Shafts Hexagonal Shaped, Length = 300 mm

Cutting Blades Thickness= 1.5mm, Hexagonal Shaped, Number=

56/each shaft

Spacer Between every 4 blades

Gear 1 (connected to motor) Diameter = 6 mm, four teeth

Gear 2 Diameter = 30 mm, 13 teeth

Gear 3 Diameter = 56 mm, 37 teeth

Gear 4 Diameter = 42, 42 teeth

 Figure 2: Typical gear design in SolidWorks

The final paper shredder has dimensions of 525mm x 400mm x 200mm and could shred up to
20 papers at once [1].

Figure 3: Reference paper shredder shape

2.3 Comparative Study

“Take the best that exists and make it better” Henry Royce. Our idea is far from original, Paper
shredders has been in use for nearly two centuries in that time there has been many designs.
This has no only gave us the ability to find and study multiple design ideas for paper shredders,
but also it gave us the ability to find out what makes a design better than rest. Furthermore, it
expanded our knowledge in paper shredder design. Three paper shredder projects were studied
and analyzed.
 The first project is about Mechanical Shredder made by a team in the Northern Arizona
University, their idea is to make a mechanical paper shredder that relies on no electricity
whatsoever. The main goal of their project was to design a shredder that is reliable, human
driven and has no electrical components. They have multiple design ideas but ultimately
decided on retrofitting an AmazonBasics 12-Sheet Cross-Cut Paper and Credit Card Home
Office Shredder as seen in figure 4. Their team then took apart the Shredder and examined the
shredding mechanism. They also removed the electric motor from the shredder. While their
team was examining and analyzing the shredding mechanism figure 5, they found out that they
can design and make a handle and attach it directly to the shaft which would in turn operate the
entire system. In conclusion their prototype has met some of their objects which are briefly
discussed in the table 3 below:

Table 3: Mechanical shredder Objects, Results & Remarks

Objectives Results Remarks

Budget of 100 $ 91.76 $ Inexpensive nearly 9% less than the total budget.

Their system was very top heavy, this happened because of the
36 pages/min 20 pages/min
reduced weight in the bottom as they have removed the
electric motor.

The shredder can go beyond 4 pages in one go; however, it

10 pages/iteration 4 pages/ iteration becomes increasingly difficult to operate the handle. So, they
agreed on 4 paper to make it easy to operate.

Can shred Credit

Yes The shredder was able to shred credit cards and CDs with little
cards
to no effort
Can shred CDs
 Figure 4: AmazonBasics 12-sheet, cross-cut paper,

Figure 5: Existing Mechanism

The second similar project to our project is about paper shredder design, the team working on
this project are from Capital university of science and technology Pakistan. Their idea was to
improve on an existing paper shredder. The paper shredder that are trying to work on had
couple of problems. These problems are:

1- The design of the paper shredder made it generate more noise because of extreme
vibration.
2- The cutters used in the paper shredder are not reliable method of disposing confidential
or sensitive papers, because it was easy to assemble the shredded papers.
3- There was a problem that caused the paper shredder to jam as paper moved along the
blades.
So, the team redesigned the paper shredder using a program called ANSYS. They used the
program to calculate the stress and the total deformation. Figure 6 and figure 7. In
conclusion, their paper shredder has poor safety because their shredding machine is open
and every moving part of the machine is open and it would be very easy to cause injuries.
Their shredding machine is also limited to ten papers at the same time.

Figure 6: Stress

Figure 7: Total deformation

Chapter 3: System Design

3.1 Design Constraints and Design Methodology

3.1.1: Geometrical Constraints

In the paper shredder design, there was no gear standards the team could follow clearly.
However, the team based their work on a paper shredder that was referenced on a Netherlands
based website that is called recycling.com. Furthermore, the website has multiple standard
paper shredders that are not only verified by the recycling companies, but also recommended
for security purposes. Moreover, due to the covid-19 lock downs. The team also faced a great
difficulty in finding suitable workshops that satisficed the needs of the project. Also, the
ordering online was unreliable as the market faced massive delays due to the pandemic.

3.1.2: Sustainability
For the paper shredders to last a long time, there are a few steps that can be taken to ensure the
longevity of the machine’s life as well as maintain the desired level of performance. The most
important one is to schedule regular checkups and/or repairs, which include emptying the paper
shredder, cleaning it, and lubricate as well to make sure that it is running at its optimum level
and peak performance.

3.1.3: Environmental
With the growing concerns for our environment, taking steps towards protecting it, to ensure
a brighter future, is now more essential than ever before. One way to protect the environment
is to reduce the amount of unrecyclable waste and to promote the act of recycling as a whole.
One of the easier materials to start on is paper, as it is an abundant material that is frequently
used in workplaces and even in individual homes, and considering how much it is used in the
day-to-day, a small change in our habits will lead to greater change and will make a
significant difference in getting towards that shared goal. By using a paper shredder, it would
be the first step in the paper recycling process, as it destroys papers and reduces them to very
small pieces before even reaching the recycling centers, making reprocessing much easier [2].
3.1.4: Social
Most government sectors, companies, and individual people care about their private and/or
confidential information, most of which is present in paper format, shredders can help in
destroying those papers and preventing them from falling into unwanted hands, thus providing
a level of protection and a sense of security and safety.

3.1.5: Economic
Making paper is a costly process, from labor costs and machine costs, to transport and fuel
costs, all of these along with others factors contribute to the overall cost of paper production.
By shredding and recycling paper, the production costs will decrease, as the demand for new
paper to be produced will decrease. Moreover, the overall environmental effect will help reduce
further costs in the long term as it will minimize the need for potential future environmental
repair costs [5].

3.1.6: Safety
The safety and privacy of information is one of the core reasons of using a paper machine. By

shredding confidential or otherwise private documents, it relives the stress of security concerns

and ensures that there are no traces left behind for unwanted eyes to take a look.

3.1.7: Ethical
In today’s networked society, people entrust companies and businesses with their private
information, with faith that their information is going to be kept safe. By simply using paper
shredders, businesses have an easy method of discarding documents without compromising the
client’s security, and in turn keeping their promises to their customers by ensuring that their
private information would not be leaked [3].

3.2 Engineering Design standards Engineering

Engineering standards should be followed in each component of our system. In this section,
each component that has been selected for the project is defined. The selected components are
screws, gears, blades, and the motor. The screw standard has been taken according to ANSI
metric. The gears standard has been taken according to ISO. The motor has been taken from
Ronning-Motor Brand. Ronning-Motor is a company based in China specialized in
manufacturing all kinds of universal motors, dc and induction motors. See the table below.
 Table 4: The used standards for each part used in the paper shredder

Components Engineering standard Details

Screws ANSI Metric B18.6.3, Fed. Spec. FF-S-92, Fed.
Spec. QQ-P-416, MS35206-207,
NASM35206
Gears There are no gear standards -
Blades Security cutting standard DIN P-4
Motor ISO 9001 U5420
Shafts Security cutting standard DIN P-4
Fans There is no standard 140mm computer fan

3.2.1 Screws
2 type of screws have been used:

Screws type 1:
 Length: 13 mm
 Head Dimeter: 4 mm
 Head Height: 1.5 mm
 Driver style: Phillips

Screws type 2:
 Length: 9 mm
 Head Dimeter: 6 mm
 Head Height: 2 mm
 Driver style: Phillips

3.2.2: Gears
Four gears have been used:
1- Motor Gear: is a double gear.
Side A: is directly connected to the motor.
 Side A Type: Helical Gear
 Side A Teeth count: 37 teeth.
 Side A Root diameter: 28 mm
 Side A Tip diameter: 32 mm
 Side A thickness: 11 mm
  Side A tooth depth: 2 mm
 The reason the team used helical gear on side A of this gear, is because helical gears
are ideal for reducing the noises generated by the movement. Furthermore, helical gears
are more able to handle the extremely high RPM coming from the motor [1].

Side B: is directly connected to Gear 1.

 Side B type: Spur gear.
 Side B teeth count: 7 teeth.
 Side B Root diameter: 9 mm
 Side B Tip diameter: 15 mm
 Side B Thickness: :10 mm
 Side B Tooth depth: 3 mm

2- First gear: is a double gear

Side A: is Directly connected to Side B of the motor gear:

 Side A type: Spur gear.

 Side A teeth count: 28 teeth.
 Side A root diameter: 38 mm.
 Side A Tip diameter: 45 mm
 Side A thickness: 7.5 mm
 Side A tooth depth: 3 mm

Side B: is Directly connected to Side A of the Second gear.

 Side B type: Spur gear.

 Side B teeth count: 6 teeth.
 Side B root diameter: 6.5 mm.
 Side B Tip diameter: 13 mm
 Side B thickness: 15 mm
 Side B tooth depth: 3 mm
3- Second Gear is a double gear.
Second gear is also directly attached to the first shaft and is responsible for moving the shaft
Side A: is directly connected to Side B of the first gear.
  Side A type: Spur gear.
 Side A teeth count: 41 teeth.
 Side A root diameter: 57 mm.
 Side A Tip diameter: 63 mm
 Side A thickness: 4 mm
 Side A tooth depth: 3 mm

Side B: is directly connected to the third gear.

 Side B type: Spur gear.

 Side B teeth count: 9 teeth.
 Side B root diameter: 15.5 mm.
 Side B Tip diameter: 23.5 mm
 Side B thickness: 6 mm
 Side B tooth depth: 4 mm

3- Third gear:

Third gear is directly connected to side B of the second gear. Furthermore, it’s also responsible
of moving the second shaft.

 type: Spur gear.

 teeth count: 9 teeth.
 root diameter: 15.5 mm.
 Tip diameter: 23.5 mm
 thickness: 6 mm
 tooth depth: 4 mm

3.2.3: Blades & Shafts

The blades are designed to be able to produce DIN P-4 standard paper cross-cut that are equal
or less than 6mm wide, and equal or less than 160mm2 size. This standard produce papers that
are easier to recycle because their relative size when compared to higher security standers of
the micro-cut. DIN P-4 standard shredders produce approximately 400 particles which provides
high security for confidential data when shredding. Furthermore, DIN P-4 provides shredded
paper stacks that are easier to recycle when compared to higher security levels. [10].
3.2.4: Motor

The motor is manufactured by Ronning-Motor company, the specifications of the motor are:
 Shaft length: 14 mm
 Shaft teeth type: helical
 Diameter: 45 mm
 Length: 96 mm
 Armature core length: 26 mm
 Armature core width: 54 mm

3.3 Theory and Theoretical Calculations.

3.3.1: Calculating Gears Rotational Speed

Given a motor speed Nmotor = 6684 RPM, the motor speed will rotate the first gear (N1), then
the first gear will rotate the second gear (N2), then N2 will rotate the third gear, which is the
speed of the paper shredder because it is directly connected to the driver shaft. The transmission
of speed between the gears (Compound Gears) is determined by the following relationship [11]:

Output speed = (Input Speed) (Product of Transmission Teeth / Product of Receiving

Teeth) (3.1)

Where the input speed is Nmotor = 6684 and the number of gears teeth are according to the
SolidWorks design.

Output Speed = (6684) [ (37 * 9) / (7 * 28 * 6 * 41)]

= 46.16 RPM
The third gear speed (N3) = the speed of the paper shredder = 46.16 RPM

3.3.2: Torque on The Shaft

Torques on the shaft depends on the power of the motor and the speed of the paper shredder
(N3). It is calculated by the following formula [11]:

T = (P x 60) / (2 x N3) (3.2)

Where P is the motor power Pmotor = 579.9 watt (0.5799 kW) and N3 is the paper shredder speed
N3 = 46.16 rpm.
Thus, the torque on the shaft:
 T = (0.5799 x 60) / (2 x 46.16) = 119.97 x 10-3 kN.m

3.3.3: Cutting Force

The cutting process of the paper (A4) happens only when the force for the blades is bigger than
the tear force of the paper. According to [11] each blade should have a cutting force of Fcutting =
0.27 N. In this design there are 54 blades in each shaft, so in total there are 108 cutting blades
in two shafts. The total cutting force for this shredder is equal to:

Fcutting, total = 0.27 x C (3.3)

Where 0.27 is the cutting force for each blade to cut A4 paper, and C is the total number of
blades in the paper shredder.

Thus, the total cutting force of this paper shredder:

Fcutting, total = 0.27 x 108 = 29.16 N

3.3.4: Maximum Number of Paper in Each Cut

According to [8], the force required to cut a number of A4 paper is given by the following
equation:

Fpaper = n x p x 2 (3.4)

Where n is the number of paper in each cut, p is the pressure force of a single A4 paper and it
equals to p = 0.78909 N / m2 [8].
Moreover, the Fpaper should be less than Fcutting, total in order for the blades to cut the paper.
So, the condition is Fpaper < 29.16 N. Thus, the maximum number of papers is:

Fpaper = 5 x 0.78909 x 2 = 24.79 N < 29.16 N

The paper shredder can shred up to 5 A4 papers in each cut.

3.3.5: Material Selection:
The material used for the blades and the shaft is the standard stainless steel AISI 304. The
following figure shows the different properties of the material. Moreover, this material is
widely used because of its low cost and its availability. This material is a popular choice in
paper shredder applications because of its high strength and ductility, it is also easily
manufactured, furthermore, it is highly reliable and its maintenance and repairs are easy and
cost effective.

Figure 9 :The used AISI 304 stainless-steel shaft and blades

Figure 8: AISI 304 stainless-steel properties

3.3.6: Summary
Table 5: Summary

Part Features

Motor Gear Nmotor = 6684 rpm

Third Gear (Connected to the shaft) N3 = 46.16 rpm

Single Cutting Blade Force Fcutting = 0.27 N.

Total Cutting Force of The Shredder Fcutting, total = 29.16 N

Maximum Number of Paper in each cut 5 papers, Fpaper = 24.79 N

Torque on the shaft T = 119.97 x 10-3 N.m

3.4 Product Subsystems and selection of Components:

The figure [10] Show the exploded assembly of the project. The various parts of the project can
be seen. The parts of the project are the shafts, blades, gears and two bases. The assembled
system is showed at figure [12]. Each blade has four teeth to cut papers up to DIN P-4 standard,
furthermore each blade has a cavity in its inner radius to allow the shaft to slide through the
blades. The blades also have small teeth in the inner radius to prevent them from rotating
without intention. The two shafts are 27mm long and have 18 cavities to allow the inner teeth
of the blade to slide through them and, prevent them from rotating without intention. The two
bases are designed to hold the two shafts, gears and the motor in place. The gears are not only
designed to transfer the rotation from the motor to the shaft, but also designed to reduce the
RPM coming from the motor.

Figure 10: Exploded Assembly of the Figure 11: Assembled system

system

3.5 Manufacturing and Assembly:

In terms of selecting the material, the blades, shafts, and one of the gears are all made out of
stainless steel AISI 304 which is the standard, the first gear and the motor gear are made out of
plastic to reduce noise and vibration. The outer body of the shredder was chosen to be made
out of aluminum as it is a lightweight material that is reliable and widely available. The
shredding process starts at the DC motor (Figure 13) that provides 0.560 HP that then produces
rotational motion through the motor gear, which in turn causes the other gears to rotate until it
reaches the final gear which is responsible for the rotation of the two shafts.
The gear system chosen was the compound gear system, which has an advantage over the
pulley gear system as it is more efficient for this particular application, as it produces less speed
which is what is needed here. The pair of shafts used here help increase the cutting force, as
well as provide a smaller cut, which in turn, increases security. The shredding shafts hold the
blades (Figure 15) that are responsible for the shredding. In some cases, the blades that are used
are made out of stronger materials but for this application, stainless-steel is strong enough.

Figure 15: Motor Figure 14: Gears Figure 12: Blades Figure 13: Fan

Figure 16: Final Prototype

Chapter 4: System Testing

In this project, the main interest was to calculate the rotation speed of the shaft gear (second
gear) using a Tachometer Laser. The testing is simply conducted by using a special type of
sticker that is used to stick on the rotational object (gear), then aim the laser at it, as it passes
the sticker, the laser is reflected back to the device, showing the real RPM of the gear. The
experimental result may differ as compared to the theoretical numbers due to many possible
reasons, which include friction, which affects the rotation process, and the weight of the gear
which could also be a factor as the weight of the material used for the gears may be different
to the one in the theoretical calculation.

Figure 17: Tachometer Device with Stickers

According to the experimental results, the rotational speed of the third gear is 40 rpm < 46.16
RPM due to the reasons mentions above. This number makes sense as it is close to the
theoretical calculation in chapter 3. Moreover, the dimension of the shredded paper is 0.9 * 1
mm which is ideal for both security as well as recycling. Moreover, the use of plastic gears was
an effective solution to reduce the noise coming from the rotation of the motor, and the helical
gear design helped reduce the vibration.
 Chapter 5: Project Management

5.1 Project Plan

In this project, a plan was set out at the beginning of the semester and was followed throughout,
which is the Gannt Chart plan. This chart shows each task that needs to be accomplished until
the point of finalizing the project. However, the dates were flexible for the most part as some
milestone submission dates were altered throughout the semester. The table below shows the
dates that were set out in the Gannt Chart.

Table 6: Project Plan

# Tasks Start End

1 Chapter 1: Introduction 20/9/2020 02/10/2020

Project Background
2 Chapter 2: Literature Review 20/9/2020 02/10/2020
Previous Work
Comparative Study
Design Constraints and
Design Methodology
Engineering Design
standards
3 Chapter 3: System Design Theory and Theoretical 7/10/20202 29/10/20202
Calculations
Product Subsystems and
selection of Components
Manufacturing and
assembly
Experimental Setup,
Chapter 4: System Testing &
Sensors and data
4 20/11/2020 8/12/2020
Analysis
Results, Analysis and
Discussion
 Project Plan
Contribution of Team
Chapter 5: Project members
5 20/11/2020 8/12/2020
Management Project Execution
Monitoring
Challenges & Decision
Making
Project Bill of Material &
Budget

Life Long Learning

Impact of Engineering
6 Chapter 6: Project Analysis Solution 20/11/2020 8/12/2020
Contemporary Issues
Addressed

Conclusion
7 Chapter 7: Conclusion & 20/11/2020 8/12/2020
Recommendation Future Recommendation

Fan Shape
8 Design of Prototype 15/10/2020 20/11/2020
Cavity
Location
Suction Fan
blades
9 Parts Purchase Gears 15/11/2020 20/11/2020
Shaft

Outer Aluminum body

10 Manufacturing 15/11/2020 20/11/2020
Installing the suction fan
Integrating all parts
Shredding test 25/11/2020 6/12/2020
Examining gears & blades 25/11/2020 6/12/2020
11 Testing
Examining stability of outer 25/11/2020 6/12/2020
Aluminum body
Examining the suction fan 25/11/2020 6/12/2020
 Table 7: Tasks and assigned members

# Tasks Assigned Members

1 Chapter 1: Introduction Omar & Omran

2 Chapter 2: Literature Review All

3 Chapter 3: System Design All

Chapter 4: System Testing &

4 All
Analysis

5 Chapter 5: Project Management Mohammad

6 Chapter 6: Project Analysis Abdulrahman

7 Chapter 7: Conclusion & Omar

Recommendation

Omar & Omran

8 Design of Prototype

9 Parts Purchase All

10 Manufacturing Abdulrahman

11 Testing Mohammad

5.2 Contribution of Team Members

Team meetings were held weekly, sometimes reaching over three meetings a week. In the
meeting, tasks were discussed and the work was divided between the team members based on
their availability. After the meeting was held, each member had a task to accomplish, knowing
exactly what is required of them and what needs to be done. The table below illustrates each
team member's contribution.
 Table 8: Tasks the contribution of the members

# Tasks Assigned Cont.

%
1 Chapter 1: Introduction Omran & 100%
Omar

Mohammad 100%
Project Background

Chapter 2: Literature Omar 100%

2 Previous Work
Review

Omran & 50%

Comparative Study
Each
Abdulrahman
Omar 25%
Design Constraints and Omran 25%
Design Methodology Mohammad 50%
Engineering Design Omran 90%
Standards
Omar 10%
Omar 60%
Theory and Theoretical
Omran 20%
3 Chapter 3: System Design Calculations
Abdulrahman 20%
Omran 33%
Product Subsystems and
Abdulrahman 34%
Selection of
Mohammad 33%
Components
Manufacturing and
Abdulrahman 100%
Assembly

Chapter 4: System Testing Experimental Setup,

4 All 100%
& Analysis Sensors and Data
 Results, Analysis and
All 100%
Discussion
Project Plan
Contribution of Team
members
Project Execution Omran &
Chapter 5: Project
5 Monitoring Omar 50%
Management Each
Challenges & Decision
Making
Project Bill of Material &
Budget
Life Long Learning Abdulrahman
Impact of Engineering &
6 Chapter 6: Project Analysis Solution Mohammad 50%
Each
Contemporary Issues
Addressed

Conclusion
Chapter 7: Conclusion &
7 100%
Recommendation All
Future Recommendation

Omar &
Omran 50%
8 Design of Prototype Calculation Each

SolidWorks Omran 100%

Blades
Gears
9 Parts Purchase Shafts All 100%
Suction fan
Motor

Outer Aluminum Body

10 Manufacturing 100%
Abdulrahman

11 Testing Shredding & gears & All 100%

Stability
5.3 Project Execution Monitoring
During the project, meetings were consistently held between the team members as well as the
advisor. Almost all meetings were held online. As for the advisor, the team mostly
communicated with them through email, but also sometimes through online meetings. The
table below shows how the team monitored the activities.

Table 5.4: Dates of the activates and events

Time/Date Activities/Events

Weekly Meeting with group members

Biweekly Meeting with the advisor and co-

advisor

20/11/2020 Finishing prototype

12/11/2020 Midterm presentation

25/11/2020 Test the system

8/12/2020 Final Submission of the report

17/12/2020 Final presentation

5.4 Challenges & Decision Making

In this project, a lot of difficulties were faced but the team was determined and was able to pass
all these difficulties. Some of the difficulties the team faced might include:

1. There is no specific standard design for paper shredders.

2. Finding a proper workshop.
3. Meeting challenges.
5.4.1 No Standard Design for Paper Shredders

According to the research that has been done in this project the team couldn’t find one common
standard for the different parts of the shredder. There are possible reasons for this issue. One
of them is that paper shredders have different levels of security, and each level has a specific
size for the shredded paper. However, this size of shredded paper could be accomplished by
different types of blades. The second possible reason is that one of the objectives of shredding
paper is to be recycled. And different recycling processes might require different sizes or
shapes of the shredded people. Moreover, Different countries might put different standards of
their own in their offices.

5.4.2 Finding A Proper Workshop

The team members faced some difficulties in finding a suitable workshop that manufactures
the different parts of the shredder in standard/certified material. The reason for that is many
workshops have limited their services and their worktime due to COVID-19.

5.4.3 Meeting challenges

In order to follow the “safety first “rule, almost all meetings and decisions were made online.
In the beginning, this was a challenge, as face-to-face meetings were essential before the
pandemic. However, when it comes to execution (buying/building parts) the team members
tried as much as possible to let only one member finish the task or two members meet with face
masks, abiding by the safety regulations.

5.5 Project Bill & Budget

The project bill of the design is in the table below. All the project has been done in Saudi Arabia
and in Saudi Riyal. The table below shows all costs of the project.

36
 Table 9: Project bill.

Part Costs

DC Motor 120 SAR

Gears & Blades & Shafts (AISI 720 SAR

304)

Tachometer Laser 90 SAR

Suction Fan 100 SAR

Outer Aluminum Body 120 SAR

Banner 190 SAR

Brochures 100 SAR

Total 1440 SAR

Chapter 6: Project Analysis

6.1 Life-Long Learning

In this project, all the team members have learned new things in the research process. The team
has learned more details about gears, blades, and shafts. The team also learned about the types
of paper shredders and different levels of security. Moreover, the team learned how to divide
work, manage time, and overcome obstacles. The experience that the team acquired is very
valuable and is sure to help in any and all future projects.

6.1.1 Software Skills

One of the standards / major tasks of any engineering project is to learn the software related to
the project, most importantly SolidWorks. The team members even though have not finished
the CAD course but they managed to learn more and fast to be able to finish the model in order
to build it. Moreover, the team has also used Word for the report and PPT for the presentations.

37
6.1.2 Hardware Skills

In this project, one of the hardware skills the team learned is calculating the rotational speed
(RPM) of the gears using a Tachometer laser. The process is simply by using a special sticker
that reflects the laser coming from the Tachometer while the gears rotate. The Tachometer is
digital and thus the RPMs of the gears will show directly in the device. Moreover, the team has
also used some electrical knowledge in order to install the suction fan in the shredder.

6.1.3 Time Management Skills

Time management is significant in any project or plan. The team members tried to balance the
project and its requirements, as well as the other course duties and requirements. In every
meeting, the team members declared their status regarding their availability during a specific
period. The team members carefully followed the Gannt chart to complete each milestone in a
timely manner. The methods that were used to communicate and manage tasks were
WhatsApp, Discord, and Google meetings. Moreover, the team communicates directly with the
advisor once each task is done.

6.1.4 Project Management

The team members were committed to always be in touch in order to manage the project and
its tasks. In each week, the team members gather in Google meetings or Discord to plan for the
coming task. The team might have three or four meetings in a week depending on how urgent
the case is or how heavy the task is, and some meetings lasted for over four hours. In the end,
the team successfully finished all the tasks on time.

6.2 Impact of Engineering Solutions

This Project has multiple benefits in different aspects. It will be useful to society as well as the
economy, and it will be extremely useful for the environment.

6.2.1 Society
This project is useful for society, especially in the military and government section, and is very
helpful for the hospitals in the medical sector. This project will help in terms of security. The
military, government bodies, and hospitals frequently use paper shredders to destroy sensitive
documents, ensuring safety and security.

38
6.2.2 Economy

This project is helpful to the economy, as it helps recycling companies in their recycling process
of paper and encourages the continued safe disposal of it and its reuse to produce a new product
in an environmentally safe way.

6.2.3 Environment
This project plays a significant role in saving the environment. It greatly helps in protecting the
environment, land, air, and sea by cleanly disposing of papers, which eliminates the need for
burning paper or using other harmful methods of disposal. So, shredding paper and disposing
of it in the right way, and choosing to recycle, will help save the earth's environment and its
inhabitants.

6.3 Contemporary Issue

Here in Saudi Arabia, the educational services, the medical services, and all government
services are still mostly using hard copies of A4 paper. Even big companies are still dependent
on hard copies of A4 paper in most cases. Thus, there is an essential need to dispose of paper
in the right manner, especially that recycling bins are not widely used in the country except in
Aramco facilities that have special bins for recyclable materials. This project might be a
temporary solution to dispose of paper properly until the recycle bins become everywhere.

39
Chapter 7: Conclusion

7.1 Conclusion
In conclusion, the team members chose this project gladly with persistence to complete it and
to learn from it, and to help people and society. The team members have used their knowledge
from different courses, especially in Dynamics, Mechanical Engineering Design III, and
Manufacturing Methods. The team applied the skills of researching effectively, applied time
management skills in tough times and critical periods of COVID-19. Moreover, the team was
able to put its special fingerprint on this project by installing the suction fan and to design the
shredder piece by piece in the SolidWorks and build the prototype accordingly. When it comes
to the difficulties, the team was able to find a suitable design for the shredder and was able to
find a good workshop, and team members got used to online meetings.

7.2 Future Recommendation

There are various ways to make this project better. The first one is to select materials with
better mechanical properties than AISI 304. The project could also be better when using
different gearing systems and increasing the DC motor power. Choosing an outer body made
of plastic will be much better than using an outer body made of Aluminum. Finally, the team
recommends using paper shredders when there is a need to dispose of paper properly without
damaging the environment or creatures or whenever there is a need to destroy sensitive papers.

40
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