Background
Seet Ynn contacted LTA to see if our group can help on some real-world problem that LTA is currently facing. After some discussions about possible project ideas, we settled on this project on pneumatic door unit replacement.
After some years of use, the older trains which use pneumatic door units, instead of the new electric door units, will need to have their door units replaced and repaired. These pneumatic door units then need to be removed from the train and then replaced. Considering that these door units weigh a hefty 18kg, lifting it up from the ground of depot to floor of the train to above shoulder height causes huge ergonomic strain to the technicians who move these units.
We need to keep in mind that the safe lifting weight above the shoulders is 5kg for men. Hence, even a pair of fit male technicians, carrying the unit up and down and holding the unit in place while another technician screws it in place, will exceed the safe working limit.
Hence, we wanted to help them by creating a lifting arm.
However, it wasn’t as simple as creating a crane, lever or forklift style lifting arm.
- Replacing the pneumatic unit requires a highly specific set of motions while avoiding obstacles on the train.
- No clear grips are available on the pneumatic unit.
These are some of the technical challenges we are facing in our project to create a cheap lifting system for pneumatic door units.
Description
Lifting Arm for SMRT Train Door Maintenance
A significant portion of SMRT’s fleet comprises older trains with pneumatic doors that require regular maintenance. Servicing these pneumatic units above each train door has proven to be quite a pain in the arm for the workers. This is because this process requires a highly specific and customized set of motions with at least 3 degrees of freedom, all while avoiding obstacles within the train such as the grab poles. Our project aims to prototype a cheap, simple transporting and lifting system to ease the ergonomic stresses on technicians who have to replace and repair this pneumatic door operator unit.
Vision
We are committed to design our lifting arm to deliver a better lifting experience and reduce the ergonomic stresses, on the technicians who replace MRT pneumatic door units to keep our trains running.