Picking Model 2.

FROM WORK to EFFORT

2.- FROM WORK AND EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

Distribution:

Author: John Bofarull Guix jgb2012@sky.com

CONTENTS

Independence of time window

Friction
Torque Traction and Levers
Glance at Future Possibilities
Notes
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.1/6

Picking Model 2. FROM WORK to EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

INDEPENDENCE OF TIME WINDOW

Mechanical Work is a physical quantity with dimensions Newton metre = [N][m] the same as [mass][length^2][time^-2]. Work is scalar, and the
standard unit is [J] Joule, Energy (NIST), Work measures the energy spent to move a load along a path. Energy is the currency of everything in physics and
life. There is a historical and consistent evolution in economics away from valuing the tokens to perform business towards the capacity to keep records and
prevent forgery (gold, metals, bills, Bitcoin blocks), and also towards valuing the true sources of Work capacity. In transport the benefit comes from safely
and timely moving goods, the right amount of them, delivered to customers according to orders. Energy is what any propulsion and transportation system
needs to move. It is on every appliance bill in the shape of [kWh].

let's simplify:

The general formulation of mechanical work simplifying to thrust force on same direction of path is:

2
2

= = 1 = 1 =
This vector product shows that

parallel to the straight line between start and end point of C path
1.- the only contribution to work is components of force
2.- mechanical work is independent of the time window [t1 t2] length.
Let

= where the scalar with value the distance between C path start point 1 and end point 2 , and . If
, like falling objects, then we could remove the vector notation and write Work= F*d.
at all the time parallel to

be the straight line section

were frictionless, constant and

Transportation within a warehouse is not free fall, but as we are going to see, under certain conditions, a similar simplification is possible. The actual paths
and thrusts to move loads may have components perpendicular to

in order to reach

from

but

removes thrust contributions not

and any route ripple departing from the straight line section requires the opposite to go back on track and eventually reach 2 from 1
parallel to

FRICTION
Friction is the drag counterforce generated against direction of
attempted advance.
When friction is unknown,

does not get out of the

integral as when frictionless (outer space), and Work is path

dependant. However great deal of investment is done on really flat
surface to achieve null angle of repose which is when object on
slope begins sliding. The static friction coefficient is determined
finding what slope angle that makes a body start sliding downwards,

tan() ~ .
On the right hand side a few representative friction coefficients:
Considerable investment is done on pump trucks, leggers and all other
equipment, in order to reduce kinetic friction coefficient
low enough to:

consider static friction null

neglect peak friction as equal kinetic friction
and when rolling, not sliding, kinetic friction is constant regardless of the velocity, given the low values of the range considered
Rewording: on Earth there is always friction. We need and want friction, otherwise it is not possible to start, stop, and manoeuvre, but:
we want it independent of velocity, which is achieved by using as hard as reasonably possible surfaces (wheels and floor),

and we need it as low as possible, because

= =

this pointing backwards to advance direction

is called normal force, and is the force opposed to weight done by any surface onto objects laying on such surface.

This means that the only drag that the transporter has to solve is proportional to load weight through a coefficient that we have managed to reduce as
much as reasonably possible.

= therefore = =
The term Effort is used in [1] as Force, but in this text let's call Effort to the varying parameters because is constant, and has no units, it is
So, following the above simplifications, the transporter has to propel the load with

just a coefficient, also constant at pedestrian and legger velocities, the same for all operational hand pump trucks.

is proportional to can be used on each straight line section of the routes followed by transporters. The word Effort is hereon in this
text means the amount of mass and distance covered on a given straight line section, and is proportional to Work.
Work has units [mass][length^2][time^-2], or [N] [m], or [kW] [h] physical magnitude (not a vector). Splitting these two terms also prevents mixing
Work with 'w' and 'WEIGHT', the GLS variables used for weight. EFFORT = MASS * DISTANCE is the basic operation to calculate transporter effort along
transporter routes or trajectories.

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.2/6

Picking Model 2. FROM WORK to EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

TORQUE TRACTION AND LEVERS

Rolling
platforms like
the ones on
page 1.1 are
essentially
combined class
2 and class 3
levers
(NAVEDTRA
14037)
In this public
training manual

denotes

force EFFORT.

So far we have seen how much is going to cost (in energy), now let's see how to do it, always choose the right tool. Transporters need not drag loads like
some historians claim Egyptian slaves did, on wooden skids. Some other historians claim that Egyptian slaves used metal cylindrical rots. In modern rolling
platforms, when wheels correctly balanced, and aligned (parallel and perpendicular to ground surface), the above mentioned friction between ground and
platform is transferred to the wheel, to the wheel bearings.
Traction is the name for pull/push force. From automotive basics:

= where =

: engine torque, : overall efficiency of power train, : transmission ratio, : driving axle ratio. wheels Radius
Wheels help

adding Mechanical Advantage behaving like levers. Mechanical Advantage =

specific type of torque multiplier. Levers trade arm length for needed force to move same mass
the aid of the right lever, less work is required (

= .

Levers are a

A less powerful actor can move a load with

) to move the same load.

On Earth, no matter what teachers tell you, there is no such thing as frictionless scenarios.

= +
= is proportional to a body's angular momentum
= time variation. For rotation about fixed axis
=
Torque [N][m]:

equivalent to
= linear momentum, in Newton's 2nd law: =
which leads to Newton's 2nd Law for circular force around fixed axis:
Friction always exerts a toll on any mechanical work:

)
(

= where

is the angular acceleration and

is the Inertia Moment: = 2

over the entire mass m

Inertial moment calculation example van Biesen's: of 8 spoke wagon

wheel, each spoke 0.5m and 0.75kg and rim 2.8kg:
I=8*Ispoke+Irim = 8(1/3*M_spoke*L^2)+M_rim*L^2= 1.2
On the right hand side, from Learneasy Inertia moments from some shapes.
Linear

mechanical

work

and

circular

work

if the wheel is too small, it will have to spin faster

to generate same amount of Work. The bigger the better regarding circular
work, smaller torque force required, but the motor has to divert more
energy to wheels when should focus on pulling.
Since pallet trucks, LOP and PPTs move at relatively low speed moving
heavy loads on really flat and clean surface, the concern of the tractor
designer does not apply here.

Hand pallet trucks require manual traction, colleague on foot, so to help pulling, small wheels are preferred, but if you make them lighter, still hard enough,
trading off a bit of wheel mass for a slightly bigger wheel, you will help colleagues every time pulling to start rolling. Since LOP and PPT are electrically
propelled, the start pull is no so such of a concern. A heavier smaller wheel is desired, yet a thin hard rubber tyre is applied to add adherence when turning
at higher speeds, avoid slipping when breaking, as well as absorbing nails, wood bits, dolly chunks and many other debris that from time to time becomes
unavoidable.

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.3/6

Picking Model 2. FROM WORK to EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

GLANCE at FUTURE POSSIBILITIES

Null Ground Friction
In August 2015 Toyota publicly announced press note a hoover board
prototype built with technology developed by Evico. Please note that despite
not visible, the hoover board requires tracks, similarly to railway tracks. In
the hoover board demo the tracks are buried. Evico is currently focussing
effort at producing magnetic levitation based bearings. Without friction,
from the conservation of movement,
= is not pervasively
brought to zero by friction, propulsion resembling outer space manoeuvring;
unless applying counter-thrust, objects keep moving.

Quad-copters to scan inbound

There is hand held bar code model called WASP. I did not find any bar code
scanner mounted on quad-copters, but given the advanced state of quadcopters development, a sample:

D'Andrea's Edinburgh presentation of quad-copters

Lexus' Amazing in motion
High voltage power lines inspection, Steadycopter
Amazon quad-copters parcel delivery
Kumar's pelicans count oranges on trees without GPS

May be London Mayor Mr Johnson's vision of London sky becoming a drones

highway for parcel delivery (Pultarova's December 2014) is not going to
materialize yet, but perhaps indoor swarm development has more
immediate potential to help scan inbound: if scanning drones take the
burden of approaching inbound goods, retrieving details by scanning,
relaying such data to scanners and operations office at the same time, each
scanner would be able to invest more time browsing the available inbound
database, being able to pair more available goods to database inputs per
hour, as well as do it more comfortably.
RobotsPodcast RoboHub Talking Robots robots.net GoRobotics.net IEEE Automaton Engadget Robot News Robotics Trends Robotics Business Review
Robotland robots dreams Hizook The Robot Report Gizmodo Robotics News Robot Launch Pad Robot Economics Flexibility Envelope Tech Emergence
Robocosmist

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.4/6

Picking Model 2. FROM WORK to EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

NOTES
Definition of Work, this one from the Dictionary of Energy by C Cleveland C Morris, ed. Elsevier Knovel

1. The (useful) transfer of energy to a body by the application of a force, causing the body to move a certain distance in the same direction as the applied
force; in one-dimensional motion, work is a the product of the force (F) and displacement (d). Work is not accomplished unless there is a measurable
displacement. The application of force alone does not constitute Work.
2. Any physical or mental activity that has some practical value, especially an activity that produces revenue or accomplishes some desired goal.
The initial 'let's simplify' includes the following:
No rotation Work
Most of times turning radius are large enough and turning velocities are low enough to neglect related Momentum. Seldom but regretfully it happens, if
a loader turns too fast and for instance last cage did not have front on, some spillage may occur. Same on tramming, when moving tall heavy pallets
extra care must be taken not to turn too fast. Since all rigid bodies:

2

is Torque and angular velocity
= 1
where
maintains constant direction (contained within a plane)
=
= is the surface of area with unit vector where rotation is constrained.
where is rotation angle and
2
=

Then =
1

= = =

where C is the trajectory rotated within [t1 t2]. Only when

then

constant and Torque

Since all transporter trajectories are here decomposed into straight line sections, all

with T constant then

= 0

and therefore there is no rotation work.

No change of temperature Work

Energy conservation law states

= where comprises Work related to both exact and inexact differentials, and throughout the
= 0 because ambient temperature within each room is kept

above simplification, only path independent work is considered. Heat change

constant.
No gravity work

=
=
and here constant.

is mass [kg], and gravity acceleration per [kg] on Earth surface, with [g]=m/s^2=9.81 m/s^2
Regardless of fall path = 2 1
where

Let's assume that loads are moved at same height throughout the warehouse. All hard working pickers know it is not really true when it comes to
picking single thin layer on CHEP pallet, compared to picking nicely prepared orders in roller cage shelf. Reach trucks also offload double stacked
orders, but such changes are really small compared to daily walked distances by pickers, and the warehouse floor is flat and at same level
throughout all picking related areas.
No Rolling Resistance
Rolling resistance is defined as the loss of energy caused by tyre deformation under constant rolling. So besides having
smaller friction coefficient, when using hard surfaces (wheels and floor with similar high hardness compared to tyres),
there is no tyre compression because no air pressured tyres are used.
Picture and definition, respectively from: http://www.real-world-physics-problems.com/rolling-resistance.html and
http://www.schwalbetires.com/tech_info/rolling_resistance

E H fields free
Electromagnetic fields on loads and transporters are several orders of magnitude below any value that can possibly and physically induce movement.

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.5/6

Picking Model 2. FROM WORK to EFFORT

September 2013 - October 2015.

A Glance at Torque Multipliers

Additionally, for LLOP PPT
and Reach, the inclusion of
torque multiplier (gear
box)
further
improves
mechanical
work,
and
heavier loads can be
moved, because friction
being proportional to load,
more work is required
from the motor. Example
of torque multiplier:

Without torque multiplier

Disassembly

In 100 Nm

out 2500 Nm

with torque multiplier

John Bofarull Guix

jgb2012@sky.com

2.6/6