Wood Processing
This project is an example of custom wood processing equipment.
One of the major concerns with Wood processing is the removal of the wood chips and saw dust. The philosophy of this machine was to hang all of the mechanisms from above. This allowed the debris that were not removed by the vacuum system to be easily swept away.
The design of this machine required a fairly stiff frame. The main members in this design are 4" x 4" x 1/2" thick Steel. This is a good example of the types of custom frames that have been commonly designed.
Also shown, is the guarding system. The Yellow doors are interlocked with a safety rated fiber optic safety system. The final installation also had an Emergency Stop Cable down the full length of the feed and exit conveyors.
One of the major concerns for this design was to allow for easy access for maintenance. This was accomplished with the full length doors. (For a perspective of size, the green motors are 5 horsepower.)
Stress analysis results indicated that slightly thicker Aluminum was more cost effective then thinner-ribbed Steel components. Fabrication, assembly, and maintenance were all positively impacted with this design decision.