Giant testimony to gearbox reliability
A
David Brown Engineering product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Nov 4, 2002
The continuous action of a 48ft high 'hammering man' sculpture in Seattle has demonstrated that the odds of a David Brown gearbox failing are at least 12 million to 1.
The continuous action of a 48ft high 'hammering man' sculpture in Seattle has demonstrated that the odds of a David Brown gearbox failing are at least 12 million to 1.
Because that's the number of operations the statue has made trouble-free since 1991.
The huge hollow-fabricated steel sculpture, designed by Jonathan Borofsky to represent "the worker", stands outside the Seattle art museum and hammers away at a piece of metal with a giant mechanical arm controlled by a 3hp motor and a David Brown double enveloping worm gearbox.
With only one day's respite per year on Labor Day, the figure hammers four times per minute from 7am to 10pm.
The past 11 years have culminated in over 12 million hammer strokes without any problems with the gearbox - a true testimony to the toughness of its double enveloping worm design.
Senior Key Account Manager, Jim Virmala, who dealt with the original installation in 1991, explains, "The designers wanted a gearbox that would operate in a quiet and smooth manner but would be rugged and durable as well.
A double enveloping design, where the worm and gear wrap around each other, was a clear favourite due to its high torque capacity and ability to handle heavy loads".
A gearbox with a ratio of 450:1 was provided with special breathers to cope with the outdoor environment.
Due to the size of the hammering man, the arm had to be tested while he was lying down, so the reducer had to be designed for operation in both the standing and lying position.
Disaster nearly struck whilst the sculpture was being installed.
One of the slings around it snapped and all 20,000lb of steel fell a few feet to the ground.
A few bolts on the linkage were sheared, but luckily there was minimal damage to the reducer itself.
Since that day both sculpture and gearbox have been going strong.
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