Wheel rim handling made easy
One half of a wheel rim weighs up to 100 kilograms. No problem! Thanks to our "manipulators," handling them at Austrian Airlines is now a breeze.
Aircraft wheel rims consist of two halves—an inboard and an outboard half—which are bolted together. Handling and precisely "threading" the upper half of the rim onto the up to 22 bolts that have already been inserted is no "easy" task – in the truest sense of the word. It requires skill, concentration, and above all, muscle power – until now! We've "roxed" it.
Focus on ergonomics: Automation for people
Our automation solution bears the weight and thus provides ergonomic support for the workers. They can now position the rim half precisely over the screws and lower it without exerting any force. This also represents a significant safety improvement. The heavy loads are balanced pneumatically with a hand force equivalent to approximately two to three kilograms. Servo drives take care of the turning. An additional advantage is that the rim halves can be safely stopped and held in any position during the turning movement for pre-assembly activities or visual inspections. Depending on requirements, we offer lightweight crane-mounted, mobile, or stationary manipulators for wheel workshops.
Would you like more information about this solution? Click HERE to download the comprehensive technical report (PDF) on this application.