Custom Vehicle Maker Opts for Linear Glides for Tricky Design

by Laura Carrabine, Senior Editor

Special Vehicles Co. (SPEVCO) serves the specialty vehicle industry. Many of its vehicles are seen at high profile events such as the Speed Channel stage at NASCAR races, the Dunkin’ Donuts sampling stations, or at mobile medical facilities for FEMA.

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Rollon’s Compact Rail allows for rail misalignment in both out-of-parallel and out-of-plane conditions.

SPEVCO was recently asked to re-tool Speed TV’s vehicle for NASCAR race week broadcasts. The new design featured a 24-ft box truck that houses a large 20-ft LED screen for broadcast at the events. One of the major issues within the design was that mechanical equipment needed to raise and hold the LED screen. Designers found, however, that there was no space available for the on-site production room. The room is needed for the video production team who control the content displayed on the LED screen.

SPEVCO needed a linear bearing system that provided large tolerances.

According to Luigi Utili, Director of the Engineering Department at SPEVCO, the company has developed expertise in developing PODs, custom-built slide out sections of trucks that add extra square footage to any design. “In this case we designed a 12-ft long POD that slid out three feet, creating an additional 36-sq ft for the video production technicians. Typically we would develop a custom hydraulic system to facilitate the sliding out of the POD but this is a major expense and any opportunity to reduce costs is a major plus for the customer.”

He considered using a linear bearing system to allow for POD sliding. “One option was the Telescopic rail from Rollon Corporation because it is a linear bearing that acts like a heavy duty drawer slide. It would be able to meet the weight requirements of 500-lb,” he added.

Utili continued, “However, the mobile nature of this application meant that parts often shift when the truck is transported from location to location. We needed a linear bearing system that provided quite large tolerances of at least plus or minus 1-1/2-in.”

SERVCO opted for Rollon’s Compact Rail because the system absorbs rotational positioning errors,misalignments between lateral planes, and longitudinal parallelism errors while maintaining the system’s original preload setting.

SPEVCO’s PODs add extra footage to designs.

Rollon placed the raceways on the inside of Compact Rail products to protect them from damage and contaminants while enabling the rail and slider to be mounted into small, compact areas.

Built-in, spring-loaded wipers in the heads and the lateral seals on the sides of the slider ensure they are suitable for harsh, gritty environments. The “Lubed for Life” wipers continually deposit a thin film of oil on the races. Individual sliders can carry up to 3,300 lb.

Speed TVs’s vehicle for NASCAR race week houses a giant 20-ft LED screen.

Utili adds, “The covered raceways were also critical because this is an outdoor application and the vehicles are often parked in muddy fields. Reliability is important because if the POD fails to open, the Speed TV technicians cannot access the control room for the LED screen – rendering the vehicle useless. Since installation, SEPVCO has been commissioned to produce a second vehicle.”

SPEVCO
www.spevco.com

Rollon Corporation
www.rolloncorp.com