D-Lab Corn Sheller

MIT's D-lab

A simple Do IT Yourself (DIY) corn shelling tool which makes the corn shelling task easy and faster compared to the traditional methods.

Snapshot
Manufacturing & delivery
Performance & use
Research & standards
Feedback

Product description Brand name and product description

MIT D-lab’s corn sheller is a low-cost solution for removing maize kernels from the cob faster and safer than manual shelling. It can be built with simple tools and a piece of metal sheet. Instructions are available online as a Do It Yourself (DIY) product.

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Latin America & the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia.

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

MIT’s D-lab and partners (community partners, Whirlwind Wheelchari International)

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

The product can be made with locally available materials and is DIY so the cost varies depending on the region and materials used.

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

Iketsetse Single Stroke Maize Sheller, Maximizer corn sheller

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 2: Zero hunger

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

Small scale corn farmers

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

Do it yourself (DIY) instructions are available online. The user needs to build a metal jig which requires welding operations. The metal jig can be used to produce as many corn shellers as desired. Once the jig is ready, a piece of metal sheet can be shaped into a corn sheller following 7 simple steps (Cutting the metal sheet, forming the ridge, forming the cone, riveting, spot welding, finishing the sheller). Tools needed to make the corn sheller include: metal jig, hammer, shears, pliers, wood block, pipe or rod.

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Do it yourself (DIY) instructions are available online, workshops can be offered through local partners to teach the communities how to build and use the product

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

D-Lab’s corn sheller and jig have been taken to more than 10 countries.

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Shelling capacity (kg/hr)

Capacity of sheller, measured in kilograms per hour

Unknown

Manual or motorized

Is the sheller manually operated or is it motorized?

Manual

Perforation sizes for nuts (mm)

Size of holes on the sieves, measured in millimeters

N/A

Shelling efficiency (%)

Rate of efficiency of the sheller

Unknown

Materials

The material used in construction

Metal sheet

Varieties shelled

List of crops that this technology shells

Different corn varieties, size is adaptable

Nut breakage rate (%)

Overall percentage of nuts broken

N/A

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

D-Lab corn sheller is highly portable and requires no electricity. It can be built from any type of metal sheet locally available. The mold for the sheller, is cut to fit the local variety of the corn. The sheller is placed on the corn cob, and the corn bob is span while being held still with the hand. The ridges in the sheller pulls out the grains from the cob as the cob is being span in the sheller. It requires virtually no training to be used, and some tool handling skills to be built. It can be built varying the corn sheller diameter depending on the user’s needs.

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

Corn sheller Corn sheller jig

Technical support Technical support provided by

The product is distributed through help of local community partners and usually easy to use, in cases of further assistance, partners can be reached for assistance, although this would be rare.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

It can be built with locally available materials, which can be used as replacement as well.

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

It can be recycled afterwards.

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

Ability to build anywhere with local materials, affordability.

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

The sheller is said to work at least four times faster than by hand

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

Tests performed by the manufacturer MIT’s D-Lab.

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

Potential cuts while building and handling metal sheet. Depending on the materials used the tool can present rusting.

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

None

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

Trottier, Katherine. Low-Cost Maize Shellers for Nepal. (2014).

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

Unknown

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Field tests and user experience feedback

Other information

D-lab corn sheller can be used as part of creative capacity building workshops.

Ward, L. 2008. MIT’s Guru of Low-Tech Engineering Fixes the World on $2 a Day Popular Mechanics

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

Snapshot

Product description Brand name and product description

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Latin America & the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia.

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

MIT’s D-lab and partners (community partners, Whirlwind Wheelchari International)

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

The product can be made with locally available materials and is DIY so the cost varies depending on the region and materials used.

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

Iketsetse Single Stroke Maize Sheller, Maximizer corn sheller

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 2: Zero hunger

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

Small scale corn farmers

Manufacturing & delivery

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Do it yourself (DIY) instructions are available online, workshops can be offered through local partners to teach the communities how to build and use the product

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

D-Lab’s corn sheller and jig have been taken to more than 10 countries.

Performance & use

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Shelling capacity (kg/hr)

Capacity of sheller, measured in kilograms per hour

Unknown

Manual or motorized

Is the sheller manually operated or is it motorized?

Manual

Perforation sizes for nuts (mm)

Size of holes on the sieves, measured in millimeters

N/A

Shelling efficiency (%)

Rate of efficiency of the sheller

Unknown

Materials

The material used in construction

Metal sheet

Varieties shelled

List of crops that this technology shells

Different corn varieties, size is adaptable

Nut breakage rate (%)

Overall percentage of nuts broken

N/A

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

Corn sheller Corn sheller jig

Technical support Technical support provided by

The product is distributed through help of local community partners and usually easy to use, in cases of further assistance, partners can be reached for assistance, although this would be rare.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

It can be built with locally available materials, which can be used as replacement as well.

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

It can be recycled afterwards.

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

Ability to build anywhere with local materials, affordability.

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

The sheller is said to work at least four times faster than by hand

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

Tests performed by the manufacturer MIT’s D-Lab.

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

Potential cuts while building and handling metal sheet. Depending on the materials used the tool can present rusting.

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

None

Research & standards

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

Trottier, Katherine. Low-Cost Maize Shellers for Nepal. (2014).

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

Unknown

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Field tests and user experience feedback

Other information

D-lab corn sheller can be used as part of creative capacity building workshops.

Ward, L. 2008. MIT’s Guru of Low-Tech Engineering Fixes the World on $2 a Day Popular Mechanics

Feedback

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

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D-Lab Corn Sheller

MIT's D-lab

In context photographs (0)

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors