LED Warning lights for industrial cranes

[880arm]

I'm hoping you guys can help me out with this.

I'm a Safety Specialist at a large aluminum rolling mill here in the US. We have lots of big heavy equipment and dozens of overhead cranes in operation and the possibility of pedestrian vs. equipment or equipment vs. equipment collisions are always cause for concern. Our cranes range in capacity from 30 to 120 tons with a bridge length of 90 feet (I think) and the bridge is approximately 40-60 feet above the floor. If you're not familiar with overhead cranes and their operation, you can visit this site to get an idea of what I'm talking about. Ours are much larger than most shown there but you can get the idea.

One of our sister plants in Germany shared a novel idea they had come across of using LED lighting to project a solid red line on the floor directly under the crane. Of course as the crane moves, the line moves with it providing additional awareness to personnel at floor level. An example is shown in this photo.

In the photo you can see the LED fixtures mounted to the bottom of the bridge as well as the solid red line they project on the floor. They also shared the following information from the manufacturer.

I'm curious about some of the specifications but I only know about three words in German so I can't make heads or tails of the information. The Flashaholic side of me is really wondering what type of optic they are using :naughty:

I have been trying to visit the manufacturer's website but I can't seem to access it. I have also been searching Google for something similar but I'm coming up empty. My Google-Fu is weak today.

Have any of you seen something like this before and could you point me in the right direction? I know I will find something eventually but I figured I would approach the experts first!

Thanks!! :wave:

 

[Lun@ticFringe]

So if the light is directly under the crane how does it illuminate the floor if you are hoisting a load which is between the crane and the floor?

 

[880arm]

So if the light is directly under the crane how does it illuminate the floor if you are hoisting a load which is between the crane and the floor?

These are bridge cranes which consist of two large beams which span the width of the building bay and are joined together at the ends where they ride on the crane rails. The hoist is housed on the trolley which rides on the top of the two beams with the load suspended directly below it. The crane sizes vary but there is probably 16-20 feet between the beams on most of the cranes. With the LED's installed down one side of the bridge it would be unlikely the load would block the light, or if so, it would be only a small amount. We lift heavy loads but they are relatively compact.

You can see an example of the layout in this photo. I can't see any capacity labeling but I would guess this is a 15 to 30 ton crane. Much smaller than the type we are talking about.

The most likely candidates for this type of system would be our stacker cranes. Rather than a cable and hook, these cranes have a telescoping mast which is attached to the trolley and is able to move side to side along the length of the bridge and rotate 360 degrees. These cranes routinely travel in and out of rows of coil storage racks which greatly reduces their visibility. This photo shows a 15 ton version which is about half the capacity of ours.

I don't want to imply that these things are running around the plant recklessly endangering everyone. It's just that there are some tasks (particularly maintenance related) where having some sort of ground level indication of the crane position would be useful. Also, I'm anxious to check something like this out first hand . . . without having to travel to Germany. I hate flying long distances!

 

[AnAppleSnail]

If you don't mind typing, Google Translate does a passable job of translating things. If you want a quick demo, firmly attach an LED Mag Lite (2D or 3D) pointed at the floor in full focus. This will have more flare than a sleek red projector, but you can view the concept.

I thought it was a projected laser line at first, but those are usually too dim for good visibility. It may be a row of red LEDs behind aspheric lenses to create the line. Will the vendor come visit? They often do, and have a demo unit to show off.

 

[N8N]

I wonder if the same effect could be produced by something like a laser level. I'd have two concerns though: 1) intensity - when using lasers, if bright enough to draw a line, would it be so bright that it could cause eye damage if someone looked up at the wrong time? 2) you say the crane operates near/between storage racks, that might kill that idea (would need line of sight from the source to "paint" the line)

 

[880arm]

When I first saw the photos a laser level was the first thing I thought of. However, as you mentioned, the intensity would preclude their use. Lasers, other than the smallest ones, are actually subject to quite a bit of regulation in the workplace due to the hazards they present. Also, as you mentioned, even if we could use something like that, there is no way it could project an uninterrupted beam across the width of the floor. There are always obstacles in the way.

We will be contacting the manufacturer and obtaining a few units for purposes of a trial. As there are several steps in the purchasing process and the company is located in Germany, it will likely be a while before we actually get to test the idea.

 

[Jhendy]

I'm hoping you guys can help me out with this.

I'm a Safety Specialist at a large aluminum rolling mill here in the US. We have lots of big heavy equipment and dozens of overhead cranes in operation and the possibility of pedestrian vs. equipment or equipment vs. equipment collisions are always cause for concern. Our cranes range in capacity from 30 to 120 tons with a bridge length of 90 feet (I think) and the bridge is approximately 40-60 feet above the floor. If you're not familiar with overhead cranes and their operation, you can visit this site to get an idea of what I'm talking about. Ours are much larger than most shown there but you can get the idea.

One of our sister plants in Germany shared a novel idea they had come across of using LED lighting to project a solid red line on the floor directly under the crane. Of course as the crane moves, the line moves with it providing additional awareness to personnel at floor level. An example is shown in this photo.

In the photo you can see the LED fixtures mounted to the bottom of the bridge as well as the solid red line they project on the floor. They also shared the following information from the manufacturer.

I'm curious about some of the specifications but I only know about three words in German so I can't make heads or tails of the information. The Flashaholic side of me is really wondering what type of optic they are using :naughty:

I have been trying to visit the manufacturer's website but I can't seem to access it. I have also been searching Google for something similar but I'm coming up empty. My Google-Fu is weak today.

Have any of you seen something like this before and could you point me in the right direction? I know I will find something eventually but I figured I would approach the experts first!

Thanks!! :wave:

I'm looking for the same safety lighting. I have had little succes finding anything until I came across your post- we use large bridge cranes (up to 150 ton capacity). this idea seems very beneficial. If you find anything more please forward. thanks. My firewall at work is not allowing me to see your photos.

 

[WeLight]

What this is, is 4 strings of red leds in a housing. The graphic image looks to be a dialux or similar simulation that will be based on the optical performance of what can only be led coupled with secondary optics. You would need small die, Cree XPC leds as an example, with very narrow secondary optics to produce this strip of light. The question to ask the german company as a starting point is what lux is on the ground from what distance, that would allow you to reverse engineer possible led/optic solutions using a product like Dialux(free software) to mimic the graph in the data. The rest ie housing etc is minor issue