41
APRIL 2015
ACT
REMOTE CONTROLS
TECHNOLOGYREPORT
conveyors (belts,motors and rollers);
HVACplacement and installationof air-
conditioning, heat pumpson roofs and in
theplacement of roofingmaterials,when
direct lineof sight is required.”
He said that boom trucks areoften
operated remotelywhenperformingheavy
equipmentmaintenanceon jobsites and
foroil andgas fieldmaintenance, forwire
line services andutilitygridmaintenance
and repair.
For the35 through50-ton capacity
boom trucks, remote control operation is
primarilyused inmanbasket operations,
Kuhlman explained.
“This couldbehigh line construction,
non-powered electrical gridmaintenance
and construction, lighting installationand
maintenance, agricultural grain storage
and silo construction,” saidKuhlman.
National‘sPilgrim, said remote controls
areofferedas anoptiononall of itsboom
trucks.
Spectrum of applications
“Weofferwireless radio remotesonall our
boom truckmodels from8 to60 tons,”he
said. “Theyaremost heavilyused inour
20 to40 tonmodels,which serve abroad
spectrumof applications fromutilitywork
inourpersonnel handlingplatforms to
general industryand construction.”
Remote control operation can improve
productivityand lower labor costs.
“Machineutilization is improved through
the ability tooperate the cranewitha
singleoperatorwho can fill the jobof the
rigger aswell, Pilgrim said. “OurNBT15
Series cranesoffer aunique solution
consistingof a standard radio remote
that ishardwired to theoperator control
stationat either thedriverorpassenger
sideof the crane. If theoperatorwants
to switch towireless remotemode, this
remote canbeun-tetheredand can then
beusedwithall the same advantagesof a
typicalwireless radio remote.”
NationalCraneoffers 4-function radio
remotes that allow theoperator to control
all fourprimary crane functionswith
ergonomic, fully-proportional joystick
controls, Pilgrim said.
“If requested,we canprovide sixormore
function remotes to control accessory
functions the customermayhave suchas
augerdrivesor auxiliaryhoists,”he said.
“Wehave also incorporated real-time
communicationof craneRCL sensors
and capacity status toanLCD screenon
the radio remote control onournewest
machines suchas theNBT50andNBT60.
This additionallowsoneoperator to
have anoperational experience as close
aspossible tooperating the crane from
the standard control station.As ease
of setupand simplifying the job for a
Operating a boom truck by remote control
allows the operator to see the entire scope
of the job, rather from just the vantage point
of the operator platform or cab.
singleoperator is an important design
consideration,wehave evenaddeda
small handheld radio remote as standard
equipment onourNBT50andNBT60,
whichallows theoperator tooperate
thehoist(s) and the front stabilizer from
the front bumperof themachine,where
ordinarilyvisibilitywouldnot allowmuch
feedback toanoperator in the crane cab.”
Utility contractors
“Utilityapplications areheavilyutilizing
our radio remotes in combinationwith
ourpersonnel handlingplatform toallow
theoperator to control the crane from the
platform toposition theplatformprecisely
from thebest viewpoint,” saidPilgrim.
“Manyof ourNBT40Seriesmodels are
equipped “remote ready” from the factory
toallow for easyadaptation later in the
fieldandan increased resalevalue, down
the road.”
Self-erecting tower cranesweredesigned
tooperateby remote control, utilizing
both cable remote control and radio
remote control, according toAngelo
Cosmo, productmarketing, TerexCranes.
Gettinganoperatorup to speedon
