Danish loader crane manufacturer Hojbjerg Maskinfabrik (HMF) has patented a system that allows truck cranes to be safely used to their maximum capacity even where outriggers cannot be extended.
Electronic Vehicle Stability (EVS) is based on sensors on the wheels of the truck that measure the overturning moment and shut the crane off before the truck topples over. It is co-ordinated to work with the crane’s main safety system and monitors loads across the entire slewing area.
Usually outriggers are used to prevent trucks overturning when loader cranes are extended and picking heavy loads. But in some applications, such as narrow streets, space for outriggers is restricted. In such circumstances EVS can now provide the necessary safety back-up.
The system also factors in the payload on the back of the truck to increase the lifting capacity of the crane. Loader crane charts do not normally take into account the extra stability that can be given by heavy materials being carried on the truck.
The EVS system has been tested with customers in Denmark and Germany and was officially launched by HMF at the IAA commercial vehicle exhibition in Frankfurt last month.
