Crane structural design for agricultural use

It was noticed that when it comes to moving agricultural products, using one-tonne Big-Bags, on small and medium-sized farms, there is a gap in the current crane market. These farms do not need two-jointed equipment, so this work aims to develop the mechanical design of such equipment. A geometry was developed, seeking the appropriate dimensions for the equipment to carry out its proposed activities, considering its use in conjunction with a Ford Cargo truck. Once the geometry had been defined, all the loads to be considered in the project were determined, as well as safety factors and load increase factors, using the ABNT NBR 14768 standard. After this, using the finite element method, a mechanical assessment of the main components was carried out, determining the thickness of the plates suitable for the equipment to be functional; in addition, the rack and pinion system responsible for the equipment’s rotation system was analytically dimensioned. The result was a piece of equipment capable of handling big bags.