Influence of the Operating Conditions of a Cable Carrier on the Dynamic Characteristics

This study investigates the dynamics characteristics of a cable carrier with respect to the variations in carrier length and axially moving speed. The characteristic equation of the carrier’s lateral vibration is derived from the configuration of blocks connected through pin joints. Then, the modal characteristics and stability behavior of the carrier are obtained by solving the characteristic equation numerically. Results show that natural frequencies decrease as the carrier speed increases, particularly around the stability boundaries. The instability of divergence and flutter occurs as the carrier speed increases. In addition, the critical speed at the stability boundary is observed to be inversely proportional to the carrier length, which requires a tradeoff between the carrier’s workspace and the productivity of the carrier.