4 Reasons to Use Dual Wheel Casters as Opposed to Single Wheel in a Heavy Duty Industrial Casters
UBMI Publications
November 23, 2009
www.casterconcepts.com
There are four key scenarios that dictate the use of a dual wheel caster in an industrial application. There are certainly others situations and scenarios that dictate the use of a dual wheel caster but these are the ones that are felt to be the most applicable to a daily discussion.
1. The anticipated load can not easily be carried by one wheel. When the anticipated load to be transported exceeds the load rating plus safety factor of one wheel then a dual wheel configuration can be an excellent solution. Most engineering firms will suggest a minimum of a 30% safety factor be engineered into a heavy duty application. This would be you would take the total load of the cart (e.g. 30,000 lbs) and divide by 3 (the load is never evenly distributed on all four wheels of a cart) which then equals 10,000 lbs. If you then provide a 30% safety factor the desired load is 13,000 lbs. When place in a dual wheel industrial caster rig then the requirement for the casters remains at 13,000 lbs but the requirement for the wheel is only 6500 lbs. This change in load of the wheel can impact the bearing, material make up or other characteristics of the wheel.
2. There is a need to reduce the height of the cart or platform. One way to reduce the height of a cart or platform that is fitted for casters to spread the load over more wheels. When the load is spread over more wheels the diameter of the wheel can be reduced as the calculated load is halved (as in the example above). The use of a dual wheel caster will generally reduce the overall height by approximately 30% while carrying the same load. The draw back from this configuration is that one has to be careful with the change in the envelope that the caster must exist. It will require much more swiveling room in this configuration.
3. There is the need to reduce per square inch of floor loading. Commonly in application where is restriction on per square inch loading of floors (due to structural concerns or surface concerns) the load can be proportionally spread across a greater wheel surface. This can be done with some limitation by widening a single wheel caster and can be done in an exponential sense by developing a dual wheel caster. This can be a common application problem in aerospace applications where a delivery to the production floor is serviced through a "basement" configuration. In these applications where millions of pounds of weight are support above a active process—floor loading is very critical to know and design for. Caster Concepts engineering group has developed ways to directly test the actual floor load footprint for a given application using a specific caster configuration.
4. There is a need for easier swiveling when the cart is fully loaded. The heavier the load is on a wheel (greater load per square inch) the more force it will take to swivel a caster. This is a product of load per square inch and the coefficient of friction of the wheel material and the floor material at the time force is supplied to swivel the caster. When this occurs the swiveling wheel will be "scrubbed" on the floor during the swiveling action. When heavy loads and wide tires are utilized to carry the specified load the swiveling many times can only be done with powered equipment causing damage to the cart or the casters. The use of dual wheel in this type of application can allow the swiveling to take place with much less force. The reason for this is in a dual wheel configuration there is very little "scrubbing" of the wheels. As the force is applied causing a dual wheel caster to swivel, one wheel will turn clockwise while the other wheel rotates counter clockwise reducing wheel "scrubbing" and making the swiveling of heavy loads a much simpler process.
Dual Wheel caster configurations in heavy duty application can be a very useful way to solve a multitude of problems are discussion today are targeted 4 key areas that will hopefully assist you in the proper design and configuration of your industrial caster needs and applications. The Caster Concepts, Inc engineering staff is willing to assist with the most difficult application issues.
At Caster Concepts, Inc we will work with you to help you find the product that best fits your needs. Caster Concepts, Inc. is an ISO 9001-2000 certified designer and manufacturer of a comprehensive line of industrial casters, ranging from a medium-duty series to a heavy-duty series to meet any application. CCI also manufactures caster wheels to withstand impact, corrosion, temperature extremes and chemicals found in harsh industrial environments. These multi-functional casters and wheels serve a variety of applications in the industrial, automotive, food service, aerospace, material handling and other demanding markets. Learn more about the entire family of Caster Concepts companies – Reaction Industries, The Machine Center, Fabricating Concepts, and Triple E Manufacturing, by visiting the most comprehensive web site in the caster industry at: www.casterconcepts.com.
There are four key scenarios that dictate the use of a dual wheel caster in an industrial application. There are certainly others situations and scenarios that dictate the use of a dual wheel caster but these are the ones that are felt to be the most applicable to a daily discussion.
1. The anticipated load can not easily be carried by one wheel. When the anticipated load to be transported exceeds the load rating plus safety factor of one wheel then a dual wheel configuration can be an excellent solution. Most engineering firms will suggest a minimum of a 30% safety factor be engineered into a heavy duty application. This would be you would take the total load of the cart (e.g. 30,000 lbs) and divide by 3 (the load is never evenly distributed on all four wheels of a cart) which then equals 10,000 lbs. If you then provide a 30% safety factor the desired load is 13,000 lbs. When place in a dual wheel industrial caster rig then the requirement for the casters remains at 13,000 lbs but the requirement for the wheel is only 6500 lbs. This change in load of the wheel can impact the bearing, material make up or other characteristics of the wheel.
2. There is a need to reduce the height of the cart or platform. One way to reduce the height of a cart or platform that is fitted for casters to spread the load over more wheels. When the load is spread over more wheels the diameter of the wheel can be reduced as the calculated load is halved (as in the example above). The use of a dual wheel caster will generally reduce the overall height by approximately 30% while carrying the same load. The draw back from this configuration is that one has to be careful with the change in the envelope that the caster must exist. It will require much more swiveling room in this configuration.
3. There is the need to reduce per square inch of floor loading. Commonly in application where is restriction on per square inch loading of floors (due to structural concerns or surface concerns) the load can be proportionally spread across a greater wheel surface. This can be done with some limitation by widening a single wheel caster and can be done in an exponential sense by developing a dual wheel caster. This can be a common application problem in aerospace applications where a delivery to the production floor is serviced through a "basement" configuration. In these applications where millions of pounds of weight are support above a active process—floor loading is very critical to know and design for. Caster Concepts engineering group has developed ways to directly test the actual floor load footprint for a given application using a specific caster configuration.
4. There is a need for easier swiveling when the cart is fully loaded. The heavier the load is on a wheel (greater load per square inch) the more force it will take to swivel a caster. This is a product of load per square inch and the coefficient of friction of the wheel material and the floor material at the time force is supplied to swivel the caster. When this occurs the swiveling wheel will be "scrubbed" on the floor during the swiveling action. When heavy loads and wide tires are utilized to carry the specified load the swiveling many times can only be done with powered equipment causing damage to the cart or the casters. The use of dual wheel in this type of application can allow the swiveling to take place with much less force. The reason for this is in a dual wheel configuration there is very little "scrubbing" of the wheels. As the force is applied causing a dual wheel caster to swivel, one wheel will turn clockwise while the other wheel rotates counter clockwise reducing wheel "scrubbing" and making the swiveling of heavy loads a much simpler process.
Dual Wheel caster configurations in heavy duty application can be a very useful way to solve a multitude of problems are discussion today are targeted 4 key areas that will hopefully assist you in the proper design and configuration of your industrial caster needs and applications. The Caster Concepts, Inc engineering staff is willing to assist with the most difficult application issues.
At Caster Concepts, Inc we will work with you to help you find the product that best fits your needs. Caster Concepts, Inc. is an ISO 9001-2000 certified designer and manufacturer of a comprehensive line of industrial casters, ranging from a medium-duty series to a heavy-duty series to meet any application. CCI also manufactures caster wheels to withstand impact, corrosion, temperature extremes and chemicals found in harsh industrial environments. These multi-functional casters and wheels serve a variety of applications in the industrial, automotive, food service, aerospace, material handling and other demanding markets. Learn more about the entire family of Caster Concepts companies – Reaction Industries, The Machine Center, Fabricating Concepts, and Triple E Manufacturing, by visiting the most comprehensive web site in the caster industry at: www.casterconcepts.com.
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