Heavy farm gates

[frank horton]

Hi guy's,
building myself a 6m wide entrance gate to my place and I want it powered....
yes it's lazy....hahaha
so this thing will weigh around 300 +kgs.....
have used a kits before on light weight gates but was not really impressed and it wasn't the cheapest kit on the market.......too much electronics for me.......
SO,
thinking about using a elec wheelchair motor 24/36volt geared down to trundle the gate....should be strong enough, as some of the folks I see driving them weigh as much as my gate.....hahaha....
I'd still use the tooth type drive mechanism...chains are to messy and anyway there'll be loads of dust....
My question is about control, happy enough to just sit there with the button down on a remote till the gate has finished it's motion.....not bothered about fully automatic....would have some sort of micro switch to stop the gate crashing into the stops tho....
any suggestions.....
for control gear and where to get them....
ta

 

[armalites]

If you look on ebay you can get GSM controls. So you could just pull up and dial a number and the gate open. Saves worrying about key fobs as normally you'll have your phone with you. It also means you can open it from the house phone.

 

[blackolive (Ste)]

Id be looking along these lines.

used to do a bit of gate automation on the side till I got fed up of the gate bloke not listening to me when I told him what cabling provision to leave.
The underground controllers were very reliable and will handle your gate with ease, and the photocell safety stops prevent any accidents

https://www.gatemotors.co.uk/single...s/kit-myshark-single-gate-opener-underground/

https://www.easygates.co.uk/liftmaster-sub300k-underground-gate-opener.asp

 

[pedrobedro]

6 Metres is a big gate to do in one.

 

[rtbcomp]

Mount the motor so it can turn slightly against a spring so if the gate jams, the motor rotates a few degrees and operates a microswitch to cut the power. Will work in both directions and at any point along the travel of the gate.

 

[awemawson]

I am always concerned that actuators below ground are prone to rain and filling up with debris. My preference would be above ground be it sliding or swinging.

 

[frank horton]

wow, so many good results.....
quite like the idea of the phone type....
will look into it....
yep 6m is a large gate but it's a tricky 90 degree entrance....200year old oak tree one side of a single track road and a lake with steep soft banking on the other.....it's just so a 40 footer artic can get out....the unit is no problem but the trailer wheels will need a bit extra room .....
especially as this move will have my whole life will be in the back.....hahaha....
thanks...Frank

 

[octo0072000]

wow, so many good results.....
quite like the idea of the phone type....
will look into it....
yep 6m is a large gate but it's a tricky 90 degree entrance....200year old oak tree one side of a single track road and a lake with steep soft banking on the other.....it's just so a 40 footer artic can get out....the unit is no problem but the trailer wheels will need a bit extra room .....
especially as this move will have my whole life will be in the back.....hahaha....
thanks...Frank

trailer with rear steer saves you the cost of a gate

 

[AndySV1K]

Is this a gate where people other than you will go through? If so, be very very careful!!

You need to have lots of safety features built in. There needs to be a full safety design done to ensure there are no possibilities of someone getting injured.

There have been cases of people being killed by crushing in the uk and you would risk prison if the worst happened.

Gates need to have safety devices in place so that fingers or limbs cannot get pinched, to a lesser extent so that vehicles can't be hit as they pass through, but most importantly force control so that any obstruction to the gate operation doesn't result in a crushing force.

It's a total minefield to be honest, I've done gates where there have been 6 sets of safety edge strips in place, then 3 sets of beams and finally encoder motors with current detection so that they can't over drive.

If you're building a simple 5 bar style farm gate it's a little easier as there's fewer crush or trap locations, but please do look into the EN regs first.

Andy.

 

[brightspark]

danger where kids are is the main concern

 

[AndySV1K]

danger where kids are is the main concern

Kids are definitely the main concern but there have been adults killed by them too. With adults, to be fair it's usually due to miss use of the gate but that won't remove responsibility from the gate owner/installer.

If a modern proper gate motor is used it will likely have an encoder built in and be able to monitor the gate for obstructions. It's not the only safety device required but will be far better than a plain motor with no intelligence.

I don't mean to sound all negative, but it's an area i've worked in and still do occasionally and they will go after you in the event of an injury or even just scratching a vehicle.

Andy.

 

[awemawson]

Our gate has the encoder, but we still had to fit an I/R 'break beam' across the opening AND an early warning second detector so the swing stops if a vehicle is too close and might be hit. We still get loads of Eastern European delivery drivers stuck between the two detectors with their noses against the gate despite telling them, and there being a sign

 

[AndySV1K]

Our gate has the encoder, but we still had to fit an I/R 'break beam' across the opening AND an early warning second detector so the swing stops if a vehicle is too close and might be hit. We still get loads of Eastern European delivery drivers stuck between the two detectors with their noses against the gate despite telling them, and there being a sign

From what I understand the encoder is preferred but can't be relied upon on it's own, it's only there for force limitation should someone get trapped. I've had to put double sets of beams on one side, one across the threshold and also externally. Add to that safety edge strips and now even flashing beacons when the gate is moving. Some of it goes over the top in my book but lots of it is quite practical and based upon people actually getting hurt and killed.

The best ones are when you do anti-tailgating, that catches people out as they ALWAYS try and sneak through! This is especially amusing on rising bollards when someone sneaking through gets their sump ripped off

 

[Mikey D]

One of our drivers was delivering to JLR Solihull , had been there many times and decided to drive over the rising bollards just as they are rising ( he did go thru the red light ) Aparently they go all the way up before coming down again .Major damage was done to both the truck and the bollards .

 

[Thrashsmith]

Is this a gate where people other than you will go through? If so, be very very careful!!

You need to have lots of safety features built in. There needs to be a full safety design done to ensure there are no possibilities of someone getting injured.

There have been cases of people being killed by crushing in the uk and you would risk prison if the worst happened.

Gates need to have safety devices in place so that fingers or limbs cannot get pinched, to a lesser extent so that vehicles can't be hit as they pass through, but most importantly force control so that any obstruction to the gate operation doesn't result in a crushing force.

It's a total minefield to be honest, I've done gates where there have been 6 sets of safety edge strips in place, then 3 sets of beams and finally encoder motors with current detection so that they can't over drive.

If you're building a simple 5 bar style farm gate it's a little easier as there's fewer crush or trap locations, but please do look into the EN regs first.

Andy.

Reviving this old thread instead of clogging up the forum with a similar topic...

I've been asked to design & make an automatic gate that will be fitted by a specialist automation 3rd party. It will be 3m wide.

It's only at the stage of email enquiry at the minute and so far the only spec has come from the client, (small gaps so their dogs can't get through), but nothing from the automation guy as of yet.

What H&S issues should I be aware of that might affect the design? Where can I read further info? Cheers