Types
Overhead crane
Overhead crane being used in typical machine shop. The hoist is operated via a wired
pushbutton station to move system and the load in any direction
An overhead crane, also known as a bridge crane, is a type of crane where the hook-
and-line mechanism runs along a horizontal beam that itself runs along two widely separated
rails. Often it is in a long factory building and runs along rails along the building's two long
walls. It is similar to a gantry crane. Overhead cranes typically consist of either a single beam
or a double beam construction. These can be built using typical steel beams or a more
complex box girder type. Pictured on the right is a single bridge box girder crane with the
hoist and system operated with a control pendant.
Double girder bridge are more typical when needing heavier capacity systems from 10
tons and above. The advantage of the box girder type configuration results in a system that
has a lower deadweight yet a stronger overall system integrity. Also included would be a
hoist to lift the items, the bridge, which spans the area covered by the crane, and a trolley to
move along the bridge.
The most common overhead crane use is in the steel industry. At every step of the
manufacturing process, until it leaves a factory as a finished product, steel is handled by an
overhead crane. Raw materials are poured into a furnace by crane, hot steel is stored for
cooling by an overhead crane, the finished coils are lifted and loaded onto trucks and trains
by overhead crane, and the fabricator or stamper uses an overhead crane to handle the steel in
his factory. The automobile industry uses overhead cranes for handling of raw materials.
Smaller workstation cranes handle lighter loads in a work-area, such as CNC mill or saw.
Mobile Crane
The most basic type of mobile crane consists of a truss or telescopic boom mounted on a
mobile platform - be it on road, rail or water.
Truck-mounted crane
A crane mounted on a truck carrier provides the mobility for this type of [Link],
these cranes are able to travel on highways, eliminating the need for special equipment to
transport the crane. When working on the jobsite, outriggers are extended horizontally from
the chassis then vertically to level and stabilize the crane while stationary and hoisting. Many
truck cranes have slow-travelling capability (a few miles per hour) while suspending a load.
Great care must be taken not to swing the load sideways from the direction of travel, as most
anti-tipping stability then lies in the stiffness of the chassis suspension. Most cranes of this
type also have moving counterweights for stabilization beyond that provided by the
outriggers. Loads suspended directly aft are the most stable, since most of the weight of the
crane acts as a counterweight. Factory-calculated charts (or electronic safeguards) are used by
crane operators to determine the maximum safe loads for stationary (outriggered) work as
well as (on-rubber) loads and travelling speeds.
Truck cranes range in lifting capacity from about 14.5 short tons (12.9 long tons; 13.2 t) to
about 1,300 short tons (1,161 long tons; 1,179 t).
Sidelift crane
A sidelifter crane is a road-going truck or semi-trailer, able to hoist and transport ISO
standard containers. Container lift is done with parallel crane-like hoists, which can lift a
container from the ground or from a railway vehicle.
Rough terrain crane
A crane mounted on an undercarriage with four rubber tires that is designed for pick-
and-carry operations and for off-road and "rough terrain" applications. Outriggers are used to
level and stabilize the crane for hoisting.
These telescopic cranes are single-engine machines, with the same engine powering
the undercarriage and the crane, similar to a crawler crane. In a rough terrain crane, the
engine is usually mounted in the undercarriage rather than in the upper, as with crawler crane.
All terrain crane
A mobile crane with the necessary equipment to travel at speed on public roads, and
on rough terrain at the job site using all-wheel and crab steering. AT‘s combine the
roadability of Truck-mounted Cranes and the manoeuvrability of Rough Terrain Cranes.
AT’s have 2-9 axles and are designed for lifting loads up to 1,200 tonnes (1,323 ST;
1,181 LT).
Crawler crane
A crawler is a crane mounted on an undercarriage with a set of tracks (also called
crawlers) that provide stability and mobility. Crawler cranes range in lifting capacity from
about 40 to 3,500 short tons (35.7 to 3,125.0 long tons; 36.3 to 3,175.1 t).
Crawler cranes have both advantages and disadvantages depending on their use. Their main
advantage is that they can move around on site and perform each lift with little set-up, since
the crane is stable on its tracks with no outriggers. In addition, a crawler crane is capable of
traveling with a load. The main disadvantage is that they are very heavy, and cannot easily be
moved from one job site to another without significant expense. Typically a large crawler
must be disassembled and moved by trucks, rail cars or ships to its next location.
Railroad crane
A railroad crane has flanged wheels for use on railroads. The simplest form is a crane
mounted on a flatcar. More capable devices are [Link] types of crane are
used for maintenance work, recovery operations and freight loading in goods yards.
Floating crane
Floating cranes are used mainly in bridge building and port construction, but they are also
used for occasional loading and unloading of especially heavy or awkward loads on and off
ships. Some floating cranes are mounted on a pontoon, others are specialized crane barges
with a lifting capacity exceeding 10,000 short tons (8,929 long tons; 9,072 t) and have been
used to transport entire bridge sections. Floating cranes have also been used to salvage
sunken ships.
Crane vessels are often used in offshore construction. The largest revolving cranes can be
found on SSCV Thialf, which has two cranes with a capacity of 7,100 tonnes (7,826 ST;
6,988 LT) each.
Aerial crane
Aerial crane or 'Sky cranes' usually are helicopters designed to lift large loads.
Helicopters are able to travel to and lift in areas that are difficult to reach by conventional
cranes. Helicopter cranes are most commonly used to lift units/loads onto shopping centers
and highrises. They can lift anything within their lifting capacity, (cars, boats, swimming
pools, etc.). They also perform disaster relief after natural disasters for clean-up, and during
wild-fires they are able to carry huge buckets of water to extinguish [Link] aerial cranes,
mostly concepts, have also used lighter-than air aircraft, such as airships.
Fixed
Exchanging mobility for the ability to carry greater loads and reach greater heights due to
increased stability, these types of cranes are characterised by the fact that their main structure
does not move during the period of use. However, many can still be assembled and
disassembled.
Tower crane
Tower cranes are a modern form of balance crane that consist of the same basic parts. Fixed
to the ground on a concrete slab (and sometimes attached to the sides of structures as well),
tower cranes often give the best combination of height and lifting capacity and are used in the
construction of tall buildings. The base is then attached to the mast which gives the crane its
height. Further the mast is attached to the slewing unit (gear and motor) that allows the crane
to rotate. On top of the slewing unit there are three main parts which are: the long horizontal
jib (working arm), shorter counter-jib, and the operators cab.
The long horizontal jib is the part of the crane that carries the load. The counter-jib carries a
counterweight, usually of concrete blocks, while the jib suspends the load to and from the
center of the crane. The crane operator either sits in a cab at the top of the tower or controls
the crane by radio remote control from the ground. In the first case the operator's cab is most
usually located at the top of the tower attached to the turntable, but can be mounted on the jib,
or partway down the tower. The lifting hook is operated by the crane operator using electric
motors to manipulate wire rope cables through a system of sheaves. The hook is located on
the long horizontal arm to lift the load which also contains its motor.
A tower crane rotates on its axis before lowering the lifting hook.
In order to hook and unhook the loads, the operator usually works in conjunction with a
signaller (known as a 'dogger', 'rigger' or 'swamper'). They are most often in radio contact,
and always use hand signals. The rigger or dogger directs the schedule of lifts for the crane,
and is responsible for the safety of the rigging and loads.
A tower crane is usually assembled by a telescopic jib (mobile) crane of greater reach (also
see "self-erecting crane" below) and in the case of tower cranes that have risen while
constructing very tall skyscrapers, a smaller crane (or derrick) will often be lifted to the roof
of the completed tower to dismantle the tower crane afterwards.
Self-erecting crane
Four self-erecting tower crane mounted on the roof of 1st observatory (height 375 m) of
Tokyo Sky Tree (Tower tip and two crane operator as of 497 m)
Generally a type of tower crane, these cranes, also called self-assembling, jack-up crane or
"Kangaroo" cranes, lift themselves from the ground or lift an upper, telescoping section using
jacks, allowing the next section of the tower to be inserted at ground level or lifted into place
by the partially erected crane itself. They can thus be assembled without outside help, and can
grow together with the building or structure they are erecting.
For an animation of such a crane in use see this video[3] (here, the crane is used to erect a
scaffold which in turn contains a gantry to lift sections of a bridge spire).
Telescopic crane
A telescopic crane has a boom that consists of a number of tubes fitted one inside the other. A
hydraulic or other powered mechanism extends or retracts the tubes to increase or decrease
the total length of the boom. These types of booms are often used for short term construction
projects, rescue jobs, lifting boats in and out of the water, etc. The relative compactness of
telescopic booms make them adaptable for many mobile applications.
Note that while telescopic cranes are not automatically mobile cranes, many of them are
often truck-mounted.
Hammerhead crane
The "hammerhead", or giant cantilever, crane is a fixed-jib crane consisting of a steel-
braced tower on which revolves a large, horizontal, double cantilever; the forward part of this
cantilever or jib carries the lifting trolley, the jib is extended backwards in order to form a
support for the machinery and counter-balancing weight. In addition to the motions of lifting
and revolving, there is provided a so-called "racking" motion, by which the lifting trolley,
with the load suspended, can be moved in and out along the jib without altering the level of
the load. Such horizontal movement of the load is a marked feature of later crane design.
These cranes are generally constructed in large sizes, up to 350 tons.
The design of hammerkran evolved first in Germany around the turn of the 19th century and
was adopted and developed for use in British shipyards to support the battleship construction
program from 1904 to 1914. The ability of the hammerhead crane to lift heavy weights was
useful for installing large pieces of battleships such as armour plate and gun barrels. Giant
cantilever cranes were also installed in naval shipyards in Japan and in the US. The British
Government also installed a giant cantilever crane at the Singapore Naval Base (1938) and
later a copy of the crane was installed at Garden Island Naval Dockyard in Sydney (1951).
These cranes provided repair support for the battle fleet operating far from Great Britain.
The principal engineering firm for giant cantilever cranes in the British Empire was Sir
William Arrol & Co Ltd building 14. Of around 60 built across the world few remain; 7 in
England and Scotland of about 15 worldwide.[33]
The Titan Clydebank is one of the 4 Scottish cranes on the Clydebank and preserved as a
tourist attraction.
Level luffing crane
Normally a crane with a hinged jib will tend to have its hook also move up and down as the
jib moves (or luffs). A level luffing crane is a crane of this common design, but with an extra
mechanism to keep the hook level when luffing.
Gantry crane
A gantry crane has a hoist in a fixed machinery house or on a trolley that runs
horizontally along rails, usually fitted on a single beam (mono-girder) or two beams (twin-
girder). The crane frame is supported on a gantry system with equalized beams and wheels
that run on the gantry rail, usually perpendicular to the trolley travel direction. These cranes
come in all sizes, and some can move very heavy loads, particularly the extremely large
examples used in shipyards or industrial installations. A special version is the container crane
(or "Portainer" crane, named by the first manufacturer), designed for loading and unloading
ship-borne containers at a port.
Deck crane
Located on the ships and boats, these are used for cargo operations or boat unloading and
retrieval where no shore unloading facilities are available. Most are diesel-hydraulic or
electric-hydraulic.
Jib crane
A jib crane is a type of crane where a horizontal member (jib or boom), supporting a
moveable hoist, is fixed to a wall or to a floor-mounted pillar. Jib cranes are used in industrial
premises and on military vehicles. The jib may swing through an arc, to give additional
lateral movement, or be fixed. Similar cranes, often known simply as hoists, were fitted on
the top floor of warehouse buildings to enable goods to be lifted to all floors.
Bulk-handling crane
Bulk-handling cranes are designed from the outset to carry a shell grab or bucket, rather than
using a hook and a sling. They are used for bulk cargoes, such as coal, minerals, scrap metal
etc.
Loader crane
A loader crane (also called a knuckle-boom crane or articulating crane) is a hydraulically-
powered articulated arm fitted to a truck or trailer, and is used for loading/unloading the
vehicle. The numerous jointed sections can be folded into a small space when the crane is not
in use. One or more of the sections may be telescopic. Often the crane will have a degree of
automation and be able to unload or stow itself without an operator's instruction.
Unlike most cranes, the operator must move around the vehicle to be able to view his load;
hence modern cranes may be fitted with a portable cabled or radio-linked control system to
supplement the crane-mounted hydraulic control levers.
A rolloader crane is a loader crane mounted on a chassis with wheels. This chassis can ride
on the trailer. Because the crane can move on the trailer, it can be a light crane, so the trailer
is allowed to transport more goods.
Stacker crane
A crane with a forklift type mechanism used in automated (computer controlled) warehouses
(known as an automated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS)). The crane moves on a track
in an aisle of the warehouse. The fork can be raised or lowered to any of the levels of a
storage rack and can be extended into the rack to store and retrieve product. The product can
in some cases be as large as an automobile. Stacker cranes are often used in the large freezer
warehouses of frozen food manufacturers. This automation avoids requiring forklift drivers to
work in below freezing temperatures every day.
Mechanical principles
Cranes can mount many different utensils depending on load (left). Cranes can be remote-
controlled from the ground, allowing much more precise control, but without the view that a
position atop the crane provides (right).
The stability of a mobile construction crane can be jeopardized when outriggers sink into soft
soil, which can result in the crane tipping over.
There are three major considerations in the design of cranes. First, the crane must be able to
lift the weight of the load; second, the crane must not topple; third, the crane must not
rupture.
[edit] Lifting capacity
Cranes illustrate the use of one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage.
The lever. A balance crane contains a horizontal beam (the lever) pivoted about a
point called the fulcrum. The principle of the lever allows a heavy load attached to the
shorter end of the beam to be lifted by a smaller force applied in the opposite direction
to the longer end of the beam. The ratio of the load's weight to the applied force is
equal to the ratio of the lengths of the longer arm and the shorter arm, and is called the
mechanical advantage.
The pulley. A jib crane contains a tilted strut (the jib) that supports a fixed pulley
block. Cables are wrapped multiple times round the fixed block and round another
block attached to the load. When the free end of the cable is pulled by hand or by a
winding machine, the pulley system delivers a force to the load that is equal to the
applied force multiplied by the number of lengths of cable passing between the two
blocks. This number is the mechanical advantage.
The hydraulic cylinder. This can be used directly to lift the load or indirectly to move
the jib or beam that carries another lifting device.
Cranes, like all machines, obey the principle of conservation of energy. This means that the
energy delivered to the load cannot exceed the energy put into the machine. For example, if a
pulley system multiplies the applied force by ten, then the load moves only one tenth as far as
the applied force. Since energy is proportional to force multiplied by distance, the output
energy is kept roughly equal to the input energy (in practice slightly less, because some
energy is lost to friction and other inefficiencies).
The same principle can operate in reverse. In case of some problem, the combination of
heavy load and great height can accelerate small objects to tremendous speed (see trebuchet).
Such projectiles can result in severe damage to nearby structures and people. Cranes can also
get in chain reactions; the rupture of one crane may in turn take out nearby cranes. Cranes
need to be watched carefully.
Stability
For stability, the sum of all moments about any point such as the base of the crane must
equate to zero. In practice, the magnitude of load that is permitted to be lifted (called the
"rated load" in the US) is some value less than the load that will cause the crane to tip
(providing a safety margin).
Under US standards for mobile cranes, the stability-limited rated load for a crawler crane is
75% of the tipping load. The stability-limited rated load for a mobile crane supported on
outriggers is 85% of the tipping load. These requirements, along with additional safety-
related aspects of crane design, are established by the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers in the volume ASME B30.5-2007 Mobile and Locomotive Cranes.
Standards for cranes mounted on ships or offshore platforms are somewhat stricter because of
the dynamic load on the crane due to vessel motion. Additionally, the stability of the vessel or
platform must be considered.
For stationary pedestal or kingpost mounted cranes, the moment created by the boom, jib, and
load is resisted by the pedestal base or kingpost. Stress within the base must be less than the
yield stress of the material or the crane will fail.
3 Types
o 3.1 Overhead crane
o 3.2 Mobile
3.2.1 Truck-mounted crane
3.2.2 Sidelift crane
3.2.3 Rough terrain crane
3.2.4 All terrain crane
3.2.5 Crawler crane
3.2.6 Railroad crane
3.2.7 Floating crane
3.2.8 Aerial crane
o 3.3 Fixed
3.3.1 Tower crane
3.3.2 Self-erecting crane
3.3.3 Telescopic crane
3.3.4 Hammerhead crane
3.3.5 Level luffing crane
3.3.6 Gantry crane
3.3.7 Deck crane
3.3.8 Jib crane
3.3.9 Bulk-handling crane
3.3.10 Loader crane
3.3.11 Stacker crane
