Db Equipment · Master’s thesis · 2025

A wheel system for easier golf travel.

My master’s thesis with Db Equipment explored a wheel system for easier golf travel. Working in a two-person team, I developed a full-scale functional prototype through user research, mechanism development and hands-on testing.

Final wheelhouse concept visualized with Db’s blue golf travel bag and deployed support wheels — Db Wheelhouse · final concept visualization

Company: Db Equipment
My role: Design, CAD and final prototype printing
Team: Two-person master’s thesis
Duration: 20 weeks · 2025

Final concept in motion.

An animation of the final travel-bag design.

Final travel-bag render with the folding support wheels deployed — Db Wheelhouse · final travel-bag animation

My contribution and our scope

I led most of the design and digital development and 3D printed the final prototype. This was a two-person master’s thesis at Luleå University of Technology, developed with regular feedback from Db. Our scope was the wheelhouse; Db’s team developed the rest of the bag and supplied its fabric prototype.

Understanding the journey

Golf travel bags can be bulky to steer, tiring to pull and difficult to keep stable during stops. We combined a train journey with golf equipment, ten interviews, a survey with 72 responses and competitor benchmarking to understand those frustrations.

Protection mattered most to respondents, followed by manoeuvrability. Within our wheelhouse scope, that translated into three priorities: support the bag’s weight, make it easier to steer and keep the system compact when packed away.

Carry less weight

Support the bag while rolling, reducing the load held through the handle.

Stay in control

Balance steering and stability when moving, turning and stopping.

Pack it away

Fold the wheels close to the bag for transport and handling.

A working idea. A necessary rethink.

Our first concept used two extra wheels on folding legs at the back of the bag to help carry its weight while rolling. These legs swung out automatically as the bag tilted, reducing the load held through the handle. The mechanism worked in the prototype, but feedback from Db and its production partner exposed the trade-off: too many components, too much assembly complexity and too high a manufacturing cost.

We kept the goal of one-handed control and restarted the development phase. The second cycle focused on fewer components and familiar mechanical principles, leading to a direct button-and-pin locking system.

Double Diamond process extended with a second development and delivery cycle — One research phase, followed by two development and delivery cycles

One control. Two locked positions.

The final mechanism connects a central button to locking pins through rods inside the support legs. Pressing the button releases both sides; releasing it lets the pins engage when the legs reach the folded or extended position.

We refined the pivot placement, handle clearance and spring resistance through quick physical tests. The legs fold close to the body, while the deployed swivel wheels support the bag during movement.

Wheelhouse rendering with both support legs folded against the base — **Packed away**The support legs fold against the wheelhouse and lock in place for transport.

Wheelhouse rendering with support legs partway through deployment — **Repositioning**Press the central button to release the locking pins, then move the legs into position.

Wheelhouse rendering with both support legs extended — **Ready to roll**Release the button. Spring-loaded pins engage in the second position, securing the legs and their swivel wheels.

Sketch showing the final button-operated locking pins and folding leg positions — My mechanism sketch: the simpler direction that became the final design

Close-up rendering of the released locking pin inside the wheelhouse — Pin released: the leg can move

Close-up rendering of the locking pin engaged in its slot — Pin engaged: the leg is held in position

Making the design work in full scale

I developed the digital wheelhouse in Siemens NX and 3D printed the final prototype. The physical build combined printed structural parts, aluminium legs, bearings, fasteners and wheels supplied by Db.

We fitted it to a fabric prototype developed by Db’s team. The physical build connected the mechanism to the real bag, while protective ribs and a silhouette informed by Db’s Hugger helped the wheelhouse fit the brand’s product family.

Rear view of the completed physical prototype with extended aluminium support legs — The functional full-scale prototype

Physical prototype with the support wheels folded into the base — The folded system integrated with the bag

Translating Db’s silhouette into the wheelhouse

A consistent visual language across the details

Putting the prototype in users’ hands

Ten participants tested both our prototype and a standard golf travel bag. Tasks included rolling, turning, lifting over a curb and loading into a car. We alternated which bag was tested first, then collected ratings for mobility, stability and ease of use.

The prototype received higher average ratings in all three categories. This small comparative evaluation supported the design direction and gave Db a foundation for further development.

Average participant ratings · 1–5 scale

Mobility

Standard bag: 3.5 / 5
Our prototype: 4.7 / 5

Stability

Standard bag: 2.4 / 5
Our prototype: 4.5 / 5

Ease of use

Standard bag: 3.5 / 5
Our prototype: 4.6 / 5

10 participants. Averages calculated from the recorded responses in thesis Appendix 5. This was an informal prototype evaluation.

Person moving the completed golf travel-bag prototype beside an open car boot — Evaluating the prototype in a practical travel setting

A tested concept for further development

The outcome was a functional 1:1 prototype, CAD and visualizations. This gave Db a tested foundation to build on, with a clear direction for refining the design for production.

What I learned

I learned that a mechanism can feel simple to use while still being too complex to manufacture. The first concept made that trade-off visible. Restarting the development cycle taught me to judge part count, assembly and feasibility alongside the interaction, and to use CAD and physical prototypes together rather than treating them as separate stages.

Skills I developed: Translating user needs into a mechanical product concept.
Developing connected parts, clearances and movement in CAD.
Taking digital geometry into a full-scale printed prototype.
Responding to company and manufacturing feedback with a new design direction.
Tools & methods: Siemens NX for parametric CAD and assemblies.
PrusaSlicer and 3D printing for the final prototype.
Blender for final visualization, with Fusion 360 used for model transfer.
KeyShot for early team concept renders.
Interviews, survey, journey mapping, benchmarking and comparative user evaluation.