Designing a 600 kg Lifter: Calculating Power Needs

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Discussion Overview

The discussion focuses on calculating the power requirements for a lifting platform designed to raise a total mass of 695 kg (including the platform itself) at a speed of 0.75 m/s to a height of 37 m, with considerations for the angle of inclination and the impact of the pulley system.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Mathematical reasoning
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant raises a concern about the power calculations appearing too small and questions whether the pulley should be considered in the calculations.
  • Another participant suggests that the pulley adds inefficiency but can be initially neglected, recommending the use of an overall efficiency factor later.
  • A participant reports a power rating of 4.65 kW without a safety factor and mentions using a factor of safety of 1.5 for later calculations.
  • Another participant calculates a power requirement of 5.1 kW using the total mass, gravitational acceleration, and lifting speed, noting that the angle's sine is close to 1.0.
  • There is a discussion about the role of acceleration in the calculations, with one participant suggesting that the slow speed may allow for ignoring acceleration effects.
  • Potential energy calculations are presented, showing an increase of 5108.25 joules per second, while kinetic energy is calculated as 195.5 joules.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing power calculations (4.65 kW vs. 5.1 kW) and debate the relevance of the pulley system and acceleration in their calculations. No consensus is reached on the final power requirement or the treatment of the pulley.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention various assumptions, such as the angle of inclination and the treatment of acceleration, which may affect the calculations. The discussion does not resolve these assumptions or their implications for the power requirements.

engineeringstudent01
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TL;DR
Having some issues calculating the power required to lift a specific mass on the platform of a furniture lifter.
I have a platform which can lift 600 kg (the platform itself weighs 95 kg so their combined mass is actually 695 kg) at 0.75 m/s up to around 37 m in height at a maximum angle of inclination of 87 degrees. The issue I'm coming across is determining the power required to lift said mass as the results I'm getting at the moment seem too small for such an application. Does the pulley need to be considered too at this point or is it negligible? I've tried to incorporate it too but it still seems as if I'm missing something.
What I've manage to calculate so far is the acceleration of the platform when it's accelerating or decelerating, the maximum tension in the cable (of diameter 8 mm) and the force required to lift the platform with its combined maximum payload.
Please do message me on this if you have any ideas on how this problem can be tackled.
 
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How does this device look like (can you share any pictures or sketches) ? What kind of drive is used (just rotary motor with single pulley) ?
 
FEAnalyst said:
How does this device look like (can you share any pictures or sketches) ? What kind of drive is used (just rotary motor with single pulley) ?
I looks similar to the picture attached. It has a simple electric winch at the base, with a single pulley at the very top of the boom.
 

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engineeringstudent01 said:
The issue I'm coming across is determining the power required to lift said mass as the results I'm getting at the moment seem too small for such an application.
What answer did you get and how did you calculate it?
Does the pulley need to be considered too at this point or is it negligible? I've tried to incorporate it too but it still seems as if I'm missing something.
It will add inefficiency, but it is otherwise an energy conserving device, so you don't need to account for it in the first pass -- maybe use an overall efficiency factor for the system.
 
russ_watters said:
What answer did you get and how did you calculate it?
I'm getting a power rating of 4.65 kW without the factor of safety.
It will add inefficiency, but it is otherwise an energy conserving device, so you don't need to account for it in the first pass -- maybe use an overall efficiency factor for the system.
I'm using an overall factor of safety of 1.5 (apart form the cable which is higher). The calculations I've done so far are specifically without the factor or safety included so as to obtain maximum values. The factor of safety is going to be included later on.

[Mod edit: cleaned-up your quotes]
 
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engineeringstudent01 said:
I'm getting a power rating of 4.65 kW without the factor of safety.
I get 5.1 kW. I multiplied the total mass by 9.81 N/kG and 0.75 m/s and then by the sine of an 87 degree angle (which is still pretty close to 1.0). We're in the ballpark though.

Acceleration is a different animal, and the force is f=ma, where a is 9.81 (gravity) + your acceleration. But 0.75 m/s is so slow I suspect you can ignore the acceleration.
 
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engineeringstudent01 said:
I have a platform which can lift 600 kg (the platform itself weighs 95 kg so their combined mass is actually 695 kg) at 0.75 m/s up to around 37 m in height at a maximum angle of inclination of 87 degrees.
Assume the ramp is vertical.
In one second the potential energy will increase by a maximum of;
PE = 695 kg * 9.8 m/s2 * 0.75 m = 5108.25 joule (per second) = 5.1 kW.

The kinetic energy is only; KE = ½·m·v² = 0.5 * 695 * 0.75² = 195.5 joule.
 

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