Dead Man Circuit for Dynamic Load Management in Performance Venues
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional lift systems in performance venues face challenges in managing dynamic loads, as multiple lift machines starting or stopping simultaneously can cause excessive mechanical stress on building structures, and existing safety mechanisms, whether software-based or operator-activated, are prone to malfunctions or operator dependence, leading to potential structural damage.
Innovation Solution
A dynamic load management system utilizing a dead man circuit with hardware components to measure and control the current load, preventing excessive machine operation by opening the circuit when the current exceeds a predetermined range, thereby limiting the number of machines that can be operated simultaneously, providing a proactive and software-independent safety mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple lift machines are started or stopped simultaneously to improve productivity, then the number of machines operating at the same time increases, but excessive dynamic load is created on the support structure
Solution Approach 1:
The dead man circuit performs preliminary monitoring of the total load before allowing machines to operate. By continuously tracking the cumulative load of selected machines and preventing selection when the limit would be exceeded, the system proactively avoids excessive dynamic loads rather than reacting after they occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The dead man circuit provides continuous feedback on the total load being exerted by selected machines. The circuit monitors the cumulative weight and prevents additional machines from being selected when the predetermined load limit would be reached, creating a closed-loop control system that maintains safety while maximizing productivity.
2Device complexity
If software-based safety mechanisms are used to control dynamic load, then system complexity is reduced, but reliability decreases due to software malfunctions or failures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces software-based safety control with a hardware-based dead man circuit that uses electrical connections and current flow to monitor and control machine selection. This hardware circuit is inherently more reliable as it cannot suffer from software bugs, memory errors, or processing failures, while maintaining relatively simple system architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The dead man circuit acts as an intermediary hardware layer between the machine selection interface and the actual machine operation. It provides a reliable hardware-based gatekeeping function that must be satisfied before machines can be operated, independent of software state or processing.
3Reliability
If operator-activated safety backup mechanism is implemented to prevent excessive dynamic load, then reliability improves, but device complexity increases and response time is delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The dead man circuit provides automatic safety control without requiring operator intervention. The circuit continuously monitors the total load and automatically prevents selection of additional machines when the limit would be exceeded, eliminating the need for operators to monitor loads or activate emergency stops while maintaining simple system architecture.
4Strength
If the number of machines operating simultaneously is limited to reduce dynamic load, then structural safety is improved, but productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The dead man circuit provides dynamic control of machine operation by allowing the maximum number of simultaneously operating machines to vary based on current system state. As machines complete their operations and are deselected, the circuit automatically allows new machines to be selected, maintaining optimal productivity while never exceeding the structural load limit.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively prevents excessive dynamic loads on building structures by proactively limiting the number of machines that can operate at once, reducing the risk of structural damage and providing a reliable backup to software-based safety mechanisms, ensuring safer operation without relying on operator intervention or software integrity.
Implementation Method 1
a dead man circuit. The dead man circuit includes a dead man enable switch, a plurality of switches corresponding with a plurality of machines, and a trip contact
Data Source
AI summary
A performance venue having a dynamic load management system for use in managing loads. The system uses a dead man circuit as a means for determining the actual or anticipated dynamic load produced by moving loads, and then disables the system by opening the dead man circuit when too many loads are moved or selected to be moved. Preferably, the invention is embodied in a dead man circuit is pure hardware, and is free of software components. The invention also provides a method of controlling movement of loads in a performance venue having a plurality machines. In its basic form, the method comprises selecting at least one of the machines for movement, closing a dead man circuit, and opening the dead man circuit if the current in the dead man circuit falls outside a predetermined range.