DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF MODIFIED FOUR-POST LIFT FOR LIGHT-DUTY VEHICLES

Abstract

The value of human life cannot be underestimated as far as the growth and development of every establishment is concerned. In many workshops, garages and companies, standard and appropriate tools and equipment are used to ensure safe, efficient and rapid discharge of work and also save people’s lives. In motor vehicle most repairs, maintenance and servicing cannot be done without the assistance of a lift, Vehicle lift generally overcome drudgery, injuries, increase timeliness and efficiency in the workplace This paper presents the design and analysis of a modified and improved version of the existing four poles lift that will lift the vehicles effectively and safely from the ground so that the underside of the vehicles can be accessed, as well as elevating the vehicles to an ergonomic working height. The new design incorporates more specific capabilities and features such as lifting the entire vehicle, lifting only the front or rear end of the vehicle, tilting from the front or rear end of the vehicle and a simple exclusive mechanical lock at each pole among others. The required load capacity and preferable materials structural steel, cast iron and carbon steel were selected and comparative analysis was carried out to determine the effectiveness of the device in lifting loads of up to 7 tons, when static structural analysis was performed on the design the results show that equivalent Von-Misses stress for structural steel, cast iron and carbon steel annealed are 50.4MPa, 66.9MPa, 51.4MPa respectively. In terms of deformation, carbon steel 1020 annealed and structural steel has the lowest deformation value compared with cast iron. The unit is considered safe to use after imposing maximum loads without failure which are higher than the rated load of light-duty vehicles.