Automatic counterweight control and dynamic characteristicanalysis of a tower crane

WANG Hai-jian1, YUAN Jia-hui1, LU Shi-lin1, QI Zi-ang1, SHEN Yan-zhen1, XIE Fei2, LIU Lin2
(1.School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin 541004,
China; 2.Institute of Special Equipment Inspection and Research, Shenyang 110035, China)

Abstract: Aiming at the imbalance moment of a tower crane caused by fixed counterweight during working process, the automatic counterweight control and dynamic characteristic analysis of a tower crane were analyzed, and a balance control method based on automatic counterweight was proposed. The moment deviations at both ends of the tower crane during the lifting process were tested by the tension and pressure sensor. According to the deviation and deviation change rate, the fuzzy PID control algorithm was adopted to adjust the position of the weight block during the lifting process of the tower crane, then the moment balance between the counterweight end and the lifting end of the heavy object was achieved. By using the experimental system of the tower crane automatic counterweight system, the balance dynamic characteristics of the tower crane during the lifting and swinging of the heavy objects were tested and analyzed. The results indicate that the response speed of the automatic counterweight system of the tower crane is 0.4 s, the maximum torque difference during the counterweight process is 0.045 N·m, which shows that the system has good dynamic performance and realizes the realtime dynamic balance adjustment of tower crane under different working conditions. Thus, an effective technical method is provided for improving the stability of the tower crane and extending the service life of the tower crane.

Key words: tower crane; automatic counterweight; moment balance; weight swing; stability