Bendy trailers

[McColm]

Hi Guys,
I work in a industrial park down in Erith Kent and I get to see different types of rigs and trailers. Our European friends use rear wheel steering a lot which is slowly filtering through to the British trucker. In London and in some other cities bendy bus were/are used. These are great if you have long straightish roadsbut tight corners are a pain. The technology is out there, could the trailer be fitted with a pivot and clever gizmos so the trailer can almost be at right angles.
Cars that tow caravans don't suffer the same fate. Trucks that tow a second trailer are slightly better but the linkage arm tends to a bit long.
This might need an extra set of steering wheels on the trailer. This idea is used to transport large buildings as seen on the TV series "Mega Moves", but I have never seen it used on any fleet vehicles.

[Hobbes]

If you want to transport a building (or any rigid structure), having the trailer articulate in the middle isn't going to solve the problem. The length of the load is the limiting factor.
That said, trailers can be amazingly maneuverable these days.

This image shows a Goldhofer modular platform trailer (SPMT, self-propelled modular trailer): each set of two wheels can turn 360°, so the module can pivot or crab-steer as needed.


The same technology can also be used on towed trailers.


PS: why start this topic in a storage area for old group builds?

[kitnut617]

You mean like this, something that I did the design and drafting for.  20'-0"W x 76'-0"L x 15'-0"H




Then there's always a house move, something we had to get off the highway for as it came trundling down the road near where we live.

[Captain Canada]

I see what you're saying.....but I don't like the idea for public roadways. Trailers are designed to follow a tractor for a reason....if they started swinging out or turning in other manners there would be all sorts of mashups going on. On those long ladder trucks that were used by US Fire Depts., there was a man steering them on the back axle.

[McColm]

Couldn't this be used on a smaller scale ,to deliver goods to the stores?

[McColm]

There is the Whiffland where the Suez Canal has become blocked and one of the ways to get your ship from the Med out to sea is to go overland.

[kitnut617]

forgot to mention, bendy buses don't work a darn on ice & snow, as Calgary City found out when they got theirs

[Captain Canada]

Imagine how many wheels you'd need to hold up a ship !

[scooter]

On those long ladder trucks that were used by US Fire Depts., there was a man steering them on the back axle.

Some departments still use them.  About 15 or so years ago, my brother in law told me a story about Union City (NJ) Fire Department doing tiller training...and taking out three or four cars in the process.

The rear two or four sets of wheels on the M1000 HETS trailer pivot as well, assisting in turning, IIRC.

[McColm]

Imagine how many wheels you'd need to hold up a ship !

Sounds like a whiff challenge. I normally build in 1/72, so that's no.1/144  or something smaller?

[Hobbes]

Imagine how many wheels you'd need to hold up a ship !

The largest loads ever transported by road are on the order of 10,000 tons. This is done by coupling lots of SPMTs.

[Captain Canada]

Maybe a series of rails side by side ( by side by side by side.....)

[Rheged]

Imagine how many wheels you'd need to hold up a ship !

The Greeks had a word for it:- DIOLKOS

Attached is a reference to the diolkos of   Corinth

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diolkos

[kerick]

Check this out. I don't know what they are hauling but it must be heavy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szF2QY_0wtE

I was in Utah at the Utah Test and Training Range when a Titan solid fuel rocket motor was brought in. One truck was pulling and one truck was pushing a rig with more wheels than I could count. And they made it around the 90 degree corner on the two lane road to get to the site. After unloading, the motor was set on fire as the fuel was old and unstable. It burned for a half hour and produced the biggest smoke cloud I ever saw. Wish I had pictures of that!

[Hobbes]

You can estimate the weight by the number of axles on the trailer; this load is limited by law, often to 8-10 tons per axle. I counted 8 x 2 x 2 = 32 axles, so ~300 tons.