Lidar - Jib Crane Team - Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Project

Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Project: The Jib Crane Team

The Project

With funding from the National Science Foundation, a senior design group from the CSU, Chico College of Engineering is designing a portable jib crane to help with the installation and removal of the Beam Steering Unit. This project, proposed by Dr. Mayor, will satisfy the graduation requirement of a capstone design project for the Mechanical Engineering degree. The team plans to design, build and test a working prototype that will be implemented by the end of the Spring 2011 semester.

The Team

As pictured, left to right:

Kyle Parker, Mech. & Civil Eng., Graduation: Spring 2011

Andy Gilmour, Mech. Eng., Graduation: Spring 2011

Wahab Alsaraie, Mech. Eng., Graduation: Fall 2011

Oya Ross-Walcott, Mech. Eng., Graduation: Fall 2011

Installation and testing of the jib-crane: 6 May 2011

The jib-crane team installed and tested the crane on the roof of the lidar shipping container on May 6. The crane was designed to be lifted to the roof in small sections that weigh between 60 and 105 lbs each. It is made entirely of steel. A comprehensive test of the crane was conducted with weights as much as 505 lbs. A trolley and 1/2-ton chain hoist are used to raise and lower the load.

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Oya and Kyle secure the crane.

Kyle and Wahab lift the I beam.

Attaching the I beam.

Testing the crane.

Fabrication of the jib-crane

The CSU Chico College of Engineering's Tech Shop fabricated the components for the crane.

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Scott welding.

Dave grinding the baseplate.

Base Plate Installation: April 27, 2011

To mount the jib crane on the roof of the container, a steel base structure was designed by the Jib Crane Team (pictured above), and fabricated by the CSU Chico College of Engineering Tech Shop. The base plate consists of a 1/4" thick steel plate welded to various-sized square steel tubing to maintain structural strength when the crane is under loading. It measures approximately 8 feet by 2 feet and is 3 inches thick. It is bolted to the frame of the shipping container on three sides with eighteen 1/2" x 7" grade 8 bolts. It weighs approximately 700 lbs and is designed to withstand all loading cases for the jib crane.

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