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Welcome to the July 2009 ASI Cutting Edge, your monthly e-newsletter from ASI Technologies, Inc. Question, comment or concern? We'd like to hear from you!
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Sincerely,
The ASI Team
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Case study B10 - Stairlift drive system |
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ASI design eliminates parts and reduces cost. rticle
Application - A stairlift is a mechanical device for lifting a person up and down stairs. For sufficiently wide stairs, a rail is mounted to the treads of the stairs. A chair is attached to the rail. A person on the chair is lifted as the chair moves along the rail.
History - There is evidence that the stairlift was first used by King Henry VIII. The 30 stone (420 Lb) king, injured through jousting, used a chair that was hauled up and down stairs on a block and tackle system by servants at the ancient Whitehall Palace in London.
Power - Early stairlifts mostly had alternating current (AC) drive motors which ran at full main voltage. An "energy cable" ran alongside or through the rail to carry the power from the supply point to the carriage. More recently, stairlifts have been powered from rechargeable batteries and use direct current (DC). One of the selling points is that a DC stairlift will continue to function during a power outage. In addition, the current draw of the battery charger is low enough that a dedicated AC circuit is not needed, making installation much easier and less expensive to the end customer.
Original system - The customer purchased from different vendors the following catalog standard parts; gearbox, motor, and brake. Then they designed custom brackets, a custom shaft and a custom gear. All of these parts were assembled in house by the customer. The resulting assembly was heavy, complicated to assemble and expensive.
ASI Technologies system - ASI looked at their design and application and from that information designed and developed a complete drop-in system. ASI used a 4-pole brush motor. The gearing consists of two passes. The first pass is a right angle worm set. The second pass is a parallel axis helical gear set. Mounted on the output shaft is a spur gear that interfaces with the customers rack. The ASI system eliminated all drive system assembly labor for the customer. The ASI system was less expensive, lighter, and more efficient. By integrating the custom brackets into the gearbox housing the ASI system eliminated assembly labor, hardware and part numbers. This made the drive more reliable, stronger, quieter, and easier to purchase, at a much lower total cost to the customer. |
Cutting Edge
