Scissor Lifts Make Great Toys

So many industrial products and process find alternative uses in the arts.

Paint isn't just a surface coating, but a means of visual expression and interpretation. Modern art sculptors have been using welding and brazing techniques for decades to create obtuse structures. Steampunk has become a clothing and aesthetic style that idolizes 19^th Century steam-powered machinery.

And, in what is perhaps the performing art's introduction to industrial machinery, scissor lifts now participate in ballet. No really, have a look.

While as, um--beautiful, as that was, it's likely that the composer was simply living out a childhood fantasy of playing on scissor lifts. They do look like giant toys after all. It's unlikely though that the composer understood the industrious nature of his playthings.

Scissor lifts owe their mechanical capability to the pantograph. A pantograph is a series of linked parallelograms with hinged intersections that allow the operator to elongate the mechanism while still maintaining the integrity of the geometric figure. The structural components of the pantograph serve as opposing line segments within adjacent parallelograms; geometric changes are therefore uniform across the mechanism. True vertical lift is accomplished by using components of equal length.

When two pantographs are arranged so as to actuate from a single drive they extend correspondingly and loads can be balanced between them. A calculator exists for computing the linear input force required according to where the drive supplies power to the scissor mechanism, be it upon the base or a center pin .

Motor-driven propulsion is a valuable attribute in many situations requiring scissor lifts. This allows workers to position the lift on an as-needed basis which is particularly useful in maintenance and construction applications. 'Slab' lifts are restricted to paved, smooth surfaces; rough terrain lifts rely on robust tires and four-wheel drive to traverse off-road conditions.

To improve lift agility, manufacturers rely on a sharp turning radius and a short wheelbase. Parking brakes ensure lift location, and tires and casters come in non-marking, off-road, anti-slip, press-on, and urethane varieties. Economical and legal reasons prohibit scissor lifts from road travel; they are hauled or towed between job sites. However, some scissor lifts may be flatbed or railcar-mounted for specialty applications. Many mobilized lifts utilize outriggers for further foundational stability.

Furthermore, the control, maneuverability, and power source of a scissor lift is critical to its utility, other characteristics better describe the vertical capabilities of the lift.

• Stroke: this is the range of height safely attained by use of a scissor lift. This is directly correlated with the number of scissor intersections and the length of the components used in the pantograph.
• Size: this is the dimensions of the work platform elevated by the lift. Many lifts feature an extendable platform to increase the area's square volume.
• Capacity: the maximum burden that the lift is designed to safely support, be it personnel or freight.
• Tilt: in cargo-lifting situations it may be helpful to have a lift table that can pitch its load to an angle to make the load more accessible.

You can see IHS GlobalSpec's complete scissor lift selection guide here.

Also, if you have a scissor lift, remember that you should not operate it with your judgment impaired or on the road, like this idiot [language].

(Image credits: Wikipedia; Taylor Rental; IHS GlobalSpec; Craig Boyce)