UTV-Mounted Jib Crane

UTV-Mounted Jib Crane ATV S Sometimes a little help lifting makes the difference between getting a job done and not getting it done A jib crane mounted in the bed of a UTV or pick-up is handy for a lot of jobs around the farm says Gary Roberson associate professor and extension specialist at North Carolina State University     As a consultant for the North Carolina AgrAbility project he works with students to design and develop assistive technology for farm use     They started by purchasing a jib crane available in many sizes through a variety of vendors The crane has a 1 000-lb rating capacity Roberson notes but smaller sizes are also available Instead of making a permanent mount the students built a substructure bracket under the vehicle bed to hold the crane It can be removed and installed easily according to need     “It’s still a work in progress ” Roberson says “We are converting hand winches to electric winches and also designing baskets on the end of the boom to make it stable and so you can slide things off     “This one is much less expensive than commercial lifts and it’s something a farmer can fabricate or can have fabricated locally ” Roberson says     His goal is to finish an extension publication by the end of the summer to make the design available to the public     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Gary Roberson Biological and Agricultural Engineering NCSU 3110 Faucette Dr Campus Box 7625 Raleigh N C 27695 ph 919 515-6715; gary_roberson@ncsu edu

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