Work Platform

A lift vehicle comprising:

• a vehicle chassis;
• and
• an aerial work platform coupled with the vehicle chassis, the aerial work platform comprising:
• a floor structure having a front side, a rear side and ends.
• a safety rail disposed along at least the front side of the floor structure, the safety rail including an entry gate at the front side, and
• a lift gate pivotably attached to the safety rail and pivotable between a closed position and an open position, the lift gate including a gate rail extending along the rear side of the floor structure and a pair of lift rails connected between the gate rail and the safety rail, wherein the gate rail is pivotable relative to the lift rails between an extended position and a retracted position.

A platform for an aerial lift comprising:

• a floor structure having a front side, a rear side and ends;
• a safety rail disposed along the front side and the ends of the floor structure, the safety rail including a pair of entry gates at the front side;
• a lift gate pivotably attached to the safety rail via a primary gas spring and pivotable between a closed position and an open position, the lift gate including a gate rail extending along the rear side of the floor structure and a pair of lift rails connected between the gate rail and the safety rail, wherein the gate rail is pivotably attached to the lift rails via a secondary gas spring and pivotable between an extended position and a retracted position;
• a proximity sensor facing away from the rear side of the floor structure, the proximity sensor detecting a structure within a predefined distance of the platform;
• a lift gate lock that normally locks the lift gate in the closed position;
• and
• a controller in communication with the lift gate lock and the proximity sensor, wherein the controller releases the lift gate lock according to a signal from the proximity sensor.