Overhead crane: design, technical characteristics
A crane is a lifting industrial equipment that is used in the construction and manufacturing sectors along with auxiliary equipment:hoists, electric winches, jacks, gates, pulley blocks, as well as lifts that move loads in a certain direction.
Cranes are complex, versatile lifting mechanisms that lift and then move loads along a spatial, direction-changing path, or vertically. With their help, various structures are installed, as well as technological equipment.
Special equipment consists of several elements. Among them:
- motor or electric motor;
- gearbox;
- magnet;
- half couplings and couplings;
- pushers;
- contactors;
- winches;
- resistor blocks or control blocks;
- brakes
Overhead crane works on a cyclic principle. The cycle includes the following actions:
- the working stroke during which the load moves;
- unloading;
- idling, in which the load-handling mechanism returns to its place to receive a new load.
The main characteristic of special equipment is load capacity.
Safety precautions
Before using the crane, you should study safety precautions. For these purposes, instructions are provided at enterprises. Instruction points are subject to change. They depend on the type of equipment. In general, the briefing consists of several points that are considered without fail. This is working with electrical equipment, studying the principle of operation of the main crane elements, how to control equipment, etc.
When choosing special equipment, pay attention to its load capacity, method of securing the load, the presence of additional devices, and the frequency of lifting loads. The lift is also selected taking into account the weight of the load being moved.
