THESIS PROPOSAL

Students Name

Design Project I

De Pedro, Christine Lynne A.

Peralta, John Dave C.
Sangalang, Ricmar B.
Simeon, Harold T.

Specialization

Semester, School Year

Hardware/Software

Second Semester 2014-2015

Working Title of Thesis:

MCU-based drying system for Golden rice grains with Temperature and Humidity Modification

Background of the Study

The Research Problem

Rice is one of the staple food in this country. Most of the dishes will not be completed
without rice and since rice is essential to maintain and improve our health, many researchers
have created a variety of it. The Philippines has been producing its own rice considering that
most of the land area are rice fields. These rice fields have been facing the dry and wet season.
Taking into account of all these facts, the proponents believe that farmers are
experiencing difficulty in drying rice grains during rainy season which brings scarcity for some
time obliging our country to import rice in order to meet the necessities.

My Interest in the Research Problem

The process of rice production has caught the attention of the proponents because of the
continous encounter of rainy season and the succession of typhoons. The proponents are
sensitive and aware to the fact that these rice fields need water but our focus is mainly on the
process right after the reaping of rice crops which is the drying stage. Furthermore, the
proponents are also interested in the result of this drying system to the whole process of rice
production.

Grounding in the Real World

Prices of edible rice are incessantly rising depriving the people of enough nutrition from
this particular source of carbohydrates. Financially-challenged individuals were forced to
consume amount of rice lesser than their regular diet or sometimes coerced to low-grade rice fair
enough to meet their daily requirement of nutrients. With this in mind, the proponents believed
that thru this system, the production of rice will grow efficiently and will improve the existing
situation.

Insights from Initial Review of Related Literature

According to a publication of Rice Knowledge Bank which is under the International
Rice Research Institute, any delays in drying, incomplete drying, or uneven drying will result in
qualitative and quantitative losses which actually proves that Drying of rice grains should not be
delayed with any possible reason, and should not be affected even with the bad weather
considering that sundrying is the preffered drying method in Asia due to its low cost. Another
thing that the publication stated is that it is labor intensive and the control of grain temperature is
difficult which brings the need for a machine that provides consistent temperature and will help
provide good quality rice grains.
Based on the FAO Corporate Document Repository, in sundrying, although not requiring
labour or other inputs, sun drying may render the grain subject to insect infestation and mould
growth and is vulnerable to theft and damage from animals which clearly emphasize that this
method should be improved in order to be safe and to achieve high-quality rice grains.
Contamination to dirt is another possibility that the proponents is trying to avoid with the help of
application of technology considering that ordinary farmers are just utilizing the possible area
around their environs such as unoccupied basketball courts and even roadside.

The Specific Context of the Study

Research Setting
If given the chance to work with the International Rice Research Institute, the proponents
are planning to conduct this study in their vicinity wherein these authority can supervise and
share their knowledge in this particular field. The setting should be a closed area with the normal
temperature and can be considered an ordinary setting comparable to farmhouses. The
proponents are eager to carry out this study in the said setting since this study is intended to help
ordinary farmers with the rice production in a more efficient manner.

Research Site(s)
The proponents are considering the areas near Nueva Ecija as the research site for this
research since one of the proponents is familiar with the area and is partially well-versed with the
current situation of rice fields in that particular area. Furthermore, the proponents wanted to
initially share it to less fortunate farmers who has been experiencing trouble drying their rice
grains more especially the golden rice grains.

Research Participants
The land cultivators and farmers in IRRI is the prospective research participants of the
research. These particular individuals are knowledgeable enough with the drying of rice grains
and could somehow partake with the enhancement of the system if there is a need and the
proponents believe that farmers are worthy of help since they are working for our staple food.

Purposes and Types of Study

Purposes of the Study

The proponents aim to conduct this study so as to develop and upgrade the usual drying
activity of rice grains into more-advanced system wherein farmers will not be affected of the
changing weather but still are able to produce high-quality rice crops. Moreover, the proponents
are going to discover the effect of this drying system in a special type of rice grain which is the
Golden rice.

Types of Study to Be Done

This study consists of hardware and software since it has a prototype that resembles as a
machine for drying rice grain and an interface that would notify the user about the current
process that is undergoing and a menu for temperature and humidity modification. The machine
is reminiscent of an oven that has several layers for rice grains, well-contained and is able to
manifest the usual drying activity of rice grains. It has an interface that allows the user to control
and adjust the temperature based on the given rice grains and the humidity based on the
requirement of the rice grain. This will also allow the user to know if the process is done, or if it
still working.

Proposed Research Problem

Research Problem #1
How are we going to know the effectivity and efficiency of the system based in the output and
based in the current situation that the system is trying to improve?
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The proponents are going to compare the rice grains from the usual drying activity that
the farmers are doing to those rice grains from the system. If in case, the drying of rice
grains demands less time with the help of the system, and provide the same heat from the
sun, the proponents will now be able to know the efficiency of the drying system.