Blickle solution makes a difference with dead man's brakes autonomous transportation system

... is a family company and a global player based in Germany. With over 17,000 employees worldwide, the system supplier has successfully developed individual drive solutions for clients from a wide variety of industries.

The client needs casters with a safe braking system when developing a new autonomous, intelligent, self-organising DTS (driverless transport system). The payload of this transportation assistant should be 1000 kg - that means that a load-bearing capacity of 500 kg per caster is required. The system should move along at a speed of 1 m/s and be able to, for example, lift containers up to 80 mm. A positioning accuracy of +/- 2 mm must be maintained for this. As the device is only 30 cm high, the mounting height of the casters is restricted.

Due to the low mounting height and high load capacity requirements, it was clear to the Blickle experts that heavy duty twin casters were the only solution. For this demanding application, our constructors developed a customised caster with cast iron and forged steel casing parts. The elastic polyurethane tread Blickle Besthane® Soft also offers good floor preservation and maximum operational comfort, with very low rolling resistance.

As conventional braking mechanisms could not be integrated into the caster, the specialists worked on a new solution, consisting of an electromagnetically controlled drum brake, using the dead man principle. This means that the brake is locked without power in normal condition, and is electromagnetically opened before the journey. The dead man's brake firstly acts as a travel brake and secondly as a locking unit, and represents a major safety function for the device as a whole. The Blickle caster solution was put through its paces on the client's testing premises; after a variety of braking, rolling and driving tests, and some minor constructive adjustments, the unit passed all tests. The CE declaration of conformity was then granted, giving the go ahead for a successful partnership.