Enhancement of Mobile Scissor Lifting System for Windy Environments

Abstract

This paper focuses on the enhancement of mobile scissor lifting systems for windy environments. This study was necessitated in order to address the lack of support arm problem on the mobile scissor lifting system for the strong wind environment such as Minna in Niger State Nigeria. The outstation broadcasting operations in Minna metropolis are usually challenging during windy days as the wind often affects the stability and efficiency of the outstation broadcasting platforms. This research employs electronic control circuit to control mechanical hydraulic actuated scissor lifting system in response to variations in wind speed. The mechanical components were designed using solidworks software. The control unit was remodeled using Proteus 8.0 software with the code written in Arduino integrated development environment (IDE). The model simulation results for both electronic and mechanical system reveal the possibility of achieving system stability with the resultant signal fidelity in outstation telecommunication broadcast within windy areas. The experiment result shows that the system was capable of lifting the telecommunication platform 2 meters high within 20 seconds considering the load range of 500 to 1000 kg. An overload alert mechanism was incorporated to signal the operators of excessive loading. Then, the system automatically deploys its support arms to counter the attendant consequences of the strong wind thereby restoring the stability of the mobile scissor lift. Therefore, the authors conclude that the enhanced mobile scissor lifting system would be deployed in the windy environment for the maximum attainment of stability objectives while physical model from this design should be subsequently fabricated in the near future.