Mobile Crane

For my capstone project, my team was tasked with making mobile cranes safer. To do this, we decided to build a model of a crane and implement various control systems to reduce the risk of tipping. I led the mechanical design aspect of the project and modeled a mobile crane that could be mostly 3D printed and laser cut. It has a few notable features:

• Extending Arm: The arm is composed of three telescoping sections. A lead screw drives the middle section and a belt system simultaneously moves the third section.

• Turn Table: A ring of bearings supports the weight of the crane arm and allows it to rotate 360 degrees.

• Linear Actuator: A lead screw is used to mimic the hydraulic actuator that would normally adjust the angle of the crane arm.

• Load Cell: A load cell is placed at the tip of the crane to measure the weight of what’s being lifted.