Intelligent drop table
AssigneeNabholz Construction Corporation
InventorsStephen H. Schumacher, Karl Ifert-Miller
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A drop table system can intelligently provide truck assembly movement with a controller connected to at least one lifting column and a single inclinometer with the inclinometer positioned at a geometric center of a drop table platform. The drop table platform can be suspended with the at least one lifting column prior to a detection of drop table platform tilt with the inclinometer. The tilt may be corrected by altering operation of the at least one lifting column to orient the drop table platform in a level configuration.
Claims28
An apparatus comprising a drop table platform suspended by at least one lifting column connected to a controller, the controller connected to a single inclinometer positioned at a geometric center of the drop table platform to continuously detect tilt of the drop table platform as the drop table platform is respectively raised and lowered between a lowest elevational position and a highest elevational position.
A method comprising:
- connecting a controller to at least one lifting column and a single inclinometer, the inclinometer positioned at a geometric center of a drop table platform;
- suspending the drop table platform with the at least one lifting column;
- supporting a railroad truck assembly on rails of the drop table platform at an uppermost extent of the at least one lifting column;
- lowering the drop table platform and the railroad truck assembly to a lowermost extent of the at least one lifting column;
- and
- during the lowering step, detecting tilt of the drop table platform with the inclinometer at an intermediate location between the uppermost extent and the lowermost extent, and correcting the tilt of the drop table platform by altering operation of the at least one lifting column to orient the drop table platform in a level configuration.
A drop table system, comprising:
- a drop table platform configured to support a railroad truck assembly;
- a plurality of lifting columns configured to concurrently lower the drop table platform while maintaining the drop table platform in a nominally horizontal table orientation;
- a single inclinometer positioned at a geometric center of the drop table platform to detect tilt of the drop table platform as deviation from the nominal horizontal table orientation as the drop table platform is lowered;
- and
- a controller configured to interrupt further lowering of the drop table platform by the plurality of columns responsive to the detected tilt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.