Motorized ADA Vehicle Ramp

April 16, 2012

An automotive manufacturer of an ADA (American Disabilities Act) compliant vehicle ramp needed a motor to enable someone in a wheelchair to easily enter and exit the vehicle. It was critical that the ramp have a zero-failure rate with a manual override option since the ramp comes out of the floor and lowers to the ground, allowing wheelchairs to have a smooth transition from the ground onto the ramp and into the vehicle. In order to accurately position the height of the ramp, Groschopp added a two channel encoder to send feedback to the motor.

Knowing that the motor would see a range of weather and road conditions, cold temperature bearings, a watertight cord connector with custom crimping, and increased ingress protection were essential to the motor design. An additional obstacle with this project was that Groschopp’s motor needed to mate to an existing gearbox the customer had. This was achieved with a custom bolt-hole pattern with a tighter tolerance than standard.


Challenges

  • 1,200 lb capacity
  • Temperature range from -40°C to 60°C
  • Able to withstand vibrational shock loads
  • Harsh environmental/road conditions
  • Secondary custom output shaft to integrate with the encoder

Solution

  • PM8018 12v motor with a custom bolt-hole patterns
  • Closed-loop control to provide feedback on the position of the ramp
  • Tight tolerances on the output shaft and pilot to mate to the provided gearbox
  • Cold temperature bearings and IP54 rated construction

How to use the Motor Search Tool

Narrow your search by selecting motor type, gearbox, voltage, and phase options for your desired motor.

Select a dominant variable: choose one of the three parameters to narrow your search. The selected variable determines which slider bar you will be able to manually move.

Use the slider corresponding to your dominant variable to further narrow your motor selection. The other sliders will automatically move to show available ranges based on the range of your selected variable.

Results will upload as your search criteria changes. If you have any questions regarding your results or how to use the search tool, you can chat with us using the green tab on the left-hand side of your screen.


Note: Groschopp Universal motors are custom built to fit your application so no additional options are available to narrow the search. Selecting the Universal motor type will prompt a message taking you to the Universal product page.

Not sure what you need?

One of our team members would be happy to help. Contact us at 800-829-4135 or by email at sales@groschopp.com. You can also chat with us using the green tab on the left side of your screen.

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Universal Motors

Groschopp Universal motors are custom built to fit your application so no additional options are available to narrow the search. Standard frame sizes and motor features can be found on the Universal page.

go to Universal page