Application of Sensors for Incorrect Behavior Identification in a Transport System

This article focuses on cranes that are moving on a fixed crane track. There are specific problems and malfunctions arising during the operation of these cranes caused mainly by the crane skewing phenomenon. Crane skewing induces undesirable additional forces as a result of force contact between the crane wheel flange and the head of the crane track rail. This negative phenomenon induces additional stress in the crane construction as well as wear of the crane components and, finally, a global reduction of the crane operational durability and reliability. There is described in this article a methodology and data processing for the experimental measurement targeted on the crane skewing, namely in the case of a bridge crane installed in a laboratory. The crane skewing phenomenon was experimentally induced by an intentional disruption of speed synchronization of the crane travel drives. The intensity of the crane skewing was measured by means of the strain gauge sensors. A suitable application of the measuring sensors, together with the utilization of the drive control algorithm, enables efficiency to eliminate crane skewing and also prevent its occurrence.