Case Study: Automotive Damper Drive Shaft Assembly Lift Assist

Application: Pick up customer's automotive damper and drive shaft assembly and then install them to the vehicle slowly moving down the assembly line. The drive shaft and damper assembly weighed close to 80 pounds when assembled, and were being attached to the moving vehicle every 20 seconds.

Problem: Customer had a model change and their current tool no longer would work once parts were shipped in from overseas. Since the drawings did not match the sample parts, engineering was in a bind and needed 4 tools within a month.

Solution: Because of the high cycle application, we looked for the easiest way to grip the part. In this case, we came up with a simple mechanical lift assist which trapped the part around a center tab, using a secondary mechanical clamp around the damper for stability. The clamp/trap device around the tab on the shaft was manufactured out of UHMW in order to prevent product damage. The industrial lift assist device was integrated with a Zimmerman air balancer allowing for feathering of the lift assist at pick up and set down.

Result: we provided the customer with a mechanical ergonomic lift assist to lift customers automotive damper/drive shaft assembly. They received the four lift assist tools within the delivery time frame. SolidWorks drawings were provided for approval, giving the customer a very good idea of how the car manufacturing machine lift assists would operate. The combination of a high speed balancer and a simple mechanical lift assist was a good match for this high cycle application.

Ergonomic Partners can visit your facility and provide an on-site lifting demonstration of the Gorbel G-Force intelligent assisted lifting device (IAD). Please contact us today. Ergonomic Partners serves clients from coast to coast, Canada, and Mexico, and especially focused in the states of Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, Florida, and Oklahoma.