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Design and Fabrication of Hydraulic Scissor Lift

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MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 81
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

Design and Fabrication of

Hydraulic Scissor Lift

Doli Rani* Nitin Agarwal

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Department, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Department,
Sunderdeep Group of Institutions, MIT, Moradabad, U.P., India
Ghaziabad, U.P., India
e-mail:rdoli80@gmail.com

Vineet Tirth
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Department,
MIT, Moradabad, U.P., India

ABSTRACT

The following paper describes the design as well as analysis of a hydraulic scissor lift having two levels. Conventionally a scissor lift or jack
is used for lifting a vehicle to change a tire, to gain access to go to the underside of the vehicle, to lift the body to appreciable height, and
many other applications. A Scissor lift is the type platform that can usually move vertically. This mechanism is achieved by the use of link,
folding support in crisscross pattern known as a Pantograph. The upward motion is achieved by the application of pressure to outside of the
lowest set of support elongating the crossing pattern and propelling the work platform vertically. This paper describes the complete study of
components (hydraulic cylinder, scissor arms, spacing shaft and platform), selection of materials and analyzes the dimensions of components
along with their sketches with the help of design software CATIA V5 followed by stress analysis on COMSOL. Further fabrication of all the
parts and assembly is carried out.
Keywords: Hydraulic Scissor, COSMOL, Scissor lift, Hydraulic circuit, software CATIA V5.

provide maintenance. Other uses include use by fire brigade and

І. INTRODUCTION emergency services to access people trapped inside buildings,
Elevated work platforms are mechanical devices that are used or other dangerous heights. Some can be fitted with specialist
to give access to areas that would previously be out of reach, equipment, for example allowing them to hold pieces of glass to
mostly on buildings or building sites. They are also known as install window planes. They are temporary measures and usually
Aerial Work Platforms (AWPs). They usually consist of the work mobile, making them highly flexible as opposed to things such
platform itself – often a small metal base surrounded by a cage as lifts or elevators [2].
or railings and a mechanical arm used to raise the platform. The However generally they are designed to lift fairly light loads
user then stands on the platform and controls their ascent or and so cannot be used to elevate vehicles, generators or pieces
descent via a control deck situated there [1]. of architecture for which a crane would more likely be used. In
Some forms of aerial work platform also have separate controls some cases however elevated work platforms can be designed
at the bottom to move the actual AWP itself while others are to allow for heavier loads. Depending on the precise task there
controlled entirely on the platform or towed by other vehicles. are various different types of aerial work platform which utilize
Most are powered either pneumatically or hydraulically. This separate mechanisms and fuel sources. The most common type
then allows workers to work on areas that don’t include public is the articulated Elevated Work Platform, (EWP) or ‘hydraulic
walkways, such as top-story outdoor windows or gutters to platforms’ (and also known as boom lifts or cherry picker).
MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 82
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

A pantograph is connected in a manner based on parallelograms

so that the movement of one pen, in tracing an image, produces
identical movements in a second pen. If the first point traces a
line drawing, an identical, enlarged, or a pen will draw miniatur-
ized copy fixed to the other. Using the same principle, different
kinds of pantographs are used for other forms of duplication in
areas such as sculpture, minting, engraving and milling [1-3].

Fig. 2

Fig. 1
Fig. 3
ІІ. Working principle
COMPONENTS OF SCISSOR LIFT
Because of the shape of the original device, a pantograph also
SCISSOR ARMS
refers to a kind of structure that can compress or extend like
an accordion, forming a characteristic rhomboidal pattern. This PLATFORM
can be found in extension arms for wall-mounted mirrors, tem- BASE FRAME
porary fences, scissor lifts, and other scissor mechanisms such PINNED JOINTS
as the pantograph used in electric locomotives and trams [3].
SPACING SHAFT
A Scissors lifts provide the most economical, dependable, and
HYDRAULIC CIRCUIT
versatile method of lifting heavy loads. Scissors lifts have few
moving parts, are well lubricated, and provide many years of 1. Scissors arms
trouble free operation. These lift tables raise the loads smoothly
Leg deflection due to bending is a result of stress, which is driven
to any desired height, and can be easily configured to meet
by total weight supported by the legs, scissors leg length, and
the specific speed, capacity, and foot print requirement of any
available leg cross section. The longer the scissors legs are, the
hydraulic lifting application. Each scissors lift is designed and
more difficult it is to control bending under load. Increased leg
manufactured to meet the industry safety requirements set forth strength via increased leg material height does improve resistance
in ANSI MH2 9.1, and is by far the most popular and efficient of to deflection, but can create a potentially undesirable increased
all styles of scissors tables used in material handling applications. collapsed height of the lift.
MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 83
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

2. Platform Structure mechanical disadvantage of their lifting geometry. As a result,

Platform bending will increase as the load’s center of gravity there are tremendous stresses (and resulting deflection) placed
moves from the center (evenly distributed) to any edge (eccentri- on the scissors inner leg member(s) that are designed to resist
cally loaded) of the platform. Also, as the scissors open during these cylinder forces. And, as already mentioned above with any
rising of the lift, the rollers roll back towards the platform hinges change in column length of the lifting actuator/cylinder, resulting
and create an increasingly unsupported, overhung portion of the vertical lift movement is 5 times that amount of change.
platform assembly. Eccentric loads applied to this unsupported
end of the platform can greatly impact bending of the platform. 9. Load Placements
Increased platform strength via increased support structure Load placement also plays a large part in scissors lift deflection.
material height does improve resistance to deflection, but also Off-centered loads because the scissors lift to deflect differently
contributes to an increased collapsed height of the lift. than with centered, or evenly distributed, loads. End loads (in-
line with the scissors) are usually shared well between the two
3. Base Frame scissors leg pairs. Side loads (perpendicular to the scissors),
Normally, the lift’s base frame is mounted to the floor and should however, are not shared well between the scissors leg pairs and
not experience deflection. For those cases where the scissors lift must be kept within acceptable design limits to prevent leg twist
is mounted to an elevated or portable frame, the base frame must (unequal scissors leg pair deflection) – which often results in
be rigidly supported from beneath to support the point loading poor roller tracking, unequal axle pin wear, and misalignment
created by the two scissors leg rollers and the two scissors leg of cylinder mounts.
hinges.
10. Lift Elevations during Transfer
4. Pinned Joints As mentioned above, degree of deflection is directly related to
Scissors lifts are pinned at all hinge points, and each pin has a change in system pressure and change in component stress as a
running clearance between the O.D. of the pin and the I.D. of result of loading and unloading. Scissors lifts typically experience
its clearance hole or bushing. The more scissors pairs, or pan- their highest system pressure and highest stresses (and therefore
tographs, that are stacked on top of each other, the more pinned the highest potential for deflection) within the first 20% of total
connections there are to accumulate movement, or deflection, available vertical travel (from the fully lowered position).
when compressing these designed clearances.
ІІІ. DESIGN ANALYSIS
5. Hydraulic Circuit – Air Entrapment
Design Considerations
All entrapped air must be removed from the hydraulic circuit
through approved “bleeding” procedures – air is very compress- Considerations made during the design and fabrication of a port-
ible and is often the culprit when a scissors lift over-compresses able work platform being elevated by two hydraulic cylinders
under load, or otherwise bounces (like a spring) during operation. is as follows:
(a) Functionality of the design
6. Hydraulic Circuit – Fluid Compressibility (b) Manufacturability
Oil or hydraulic fluid will compress slightly under pressure. And Economic availability, that is general cost of materials and
because there is an approximate 5:1 ratio of lift travel to cylinder fabrication techniques employed.
stroke for most scissors lift designs (with the cylinders mounted
horizontally in the legs), there is a resulting 5:1 ratio of scissors Design Analysis
lift compression to cylinder compression [4].
1. Cylinder
7. Hydraulic Circuit – Hose Swell Bore = φ80
All high pressure, flexible hosing is susceptible to a degree of
hose swell when the system pressure is increased. System pres-
sure drops slightly because of this increased hose volume, and
the scissors table compresses under load until the maximum
system pressure is reestablished. And, as with compressibility,
the resulting lift movement is 5 times the change in oil column
height in the hose.

8. Cylinder Thrust Resistance

Cylinders lay nearly flat inside the scissors legs when the lift is
fully lowered and must generate initial horizontal forces up to
10 times the amount of the load on the scissors lift due to the
Fig. 4: Standards for single acting cylinders.
 MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 84
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

Pressure = 315 bar; Material – structure steel st-42 hollow tube; 5. Base
Tensile strength = 42kgf/mm2 = 412.02 N/mm2; FOS = 4 [5].
The base structure is built-up of C – channels and hollow bars
Hoop stress induced can be found by are usually used in engineering applications due to their high
t = di/2 × {√st + (1– 2μ)p / st-(1+μ)p –1} (1) rigidity, strength as compared to the other bars, the chosen C
Outer Diameter = d + 2 to (2) channel is ISMC (Indian standard medium weight channel).
The supports and the two cylinders are flexibly coupled to the
Where to = stress imparted on the tube. But the standard size is
Φ75; therefore a cylinder of 75 / 50 is used; since the available base there by not transmitting the full load on to the base. The
size is Φ75mm then Thickness t, total load on the platform and load kept on it is taken by the two
cylinders and four supports which are made up of C – Channels.
t = (D – d) (3)

ІV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

2. Design of Piston Rod
For piston rod material of mild steel EN – 8, σt = 541.9856 N MATLAB environment was used for the design calculations
/ mm2. But the piston rod diameter is rounded off to 32 mm in while Maple15 was used for the simulation of the model. The
order to sustain buckling load. The internal resistance of piston simulation enables the engineer to calculate the pressures and
is given by; forces of the hydraulic cylinders. Results from the Simulated
Force F= Area × Stress (4) Model Maple software was used to simulate Figures 5 and 6
which presents the 3-D model and 2-D hydraulic circuit of
3. Design of End Cover an elevated hydraulic cylinder work platform. This is a proto-
Material used Mild steel; Based on strength basis type model comprising of various components which include:
probes, hydraulic cylinder, spool and check valve, atmospheric
F = d × tc × σt (5)
pressure source, orifice, and the Boolean step (associated with
The thickness is found by industrial formula
the switch logic). We had challenges with the actual hydraulic
tc = d √ (3 × σw / 16 × P) (6) cylinder and the arms though. They were several hit and trials
Where σw = working stress in making the motion between the arms joint and the hydraulic
cylinders which with precise selection of the center rod which
4. Piston Head the cylinder will operate.
Piston head diameter is 49.794 – 49.970 mm the clearance is
given as the piston is used to slide forward and backward. The
piston head length is chosen based on piston seals to fox and
width also no of seals to fix.
To check the piston rod for column action
When a structure is subjected to compression it undergoes visibly
large displacements transverse to the load then it is said to
buckle, for small lengths the process is elastic since the buckling
displacements disappear when the load is removed. For one end
fixed and other end free C = 0.25 Let Fcr = Critical buckling
load; σy= yield point; L = length of rod; I = radius of gyration;
K = Minimum radius of gyration and is given by
K = √ I / A (7)
Critical load using Euler’s Formula
Fcr = C × π2 × E / (L / K) 2 (8)
Fcr = π 2 × E I / 4 L2 (9)
Where the Slenderness ratio, L / K is 73.75,
Fig. 5: Model of Hydraulic scissors Lift
MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 85
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

The operations of the lift is controlled by controlling the rate

of descent by altering the open area of an orifice that chokes
the flow of hydraulic fluid back into the sump, while the rate
of ascent is controlled by the open area of a spool valve, along
with the system pressure and cylinder dimensions. The effect of
increasing the load on the gantry can also be investigated. Four
plots were generated from the simulation, which explains the
operations of the behaviour of the circuit.

Fig. 8: Volumetric flow rate against time (probe is located at the same
Fig. 6 2: D Schematic of the Hydraulic Circuit of the Scissor Lift place with the pressure probe)

Fig. 7: Pressure against time (between port A and the port to the Fig. 9 (a): force against time
check valve)
MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 86
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

The density to be used for the calculation is constant since all

the components are fabricated with the same material (steel).
Also, the load acting on the top base is taken as the weight of
the system.
Table 2

S.No. Quantity Value

1. Stress at the cylinder, stc 58.8

2. Load at piston rod,L 61850.10537

3. Diameter of piston rod, Dp 24.0176

4. Minimum thickness of 11.5069

End cover, Tc

From the results obtained above, it can be seen that work is safe
because the hoop stress being induced is less than tensile stress
under certain conditions. This result agrees with the objective
of the project because the hydraulic cylinders and the scissors
arms have the strength to actuate both its maximum weight and
the top base.

Fig. 9 (b): Stroke (length) against time V. CONCLUSIONS

Figure 9: Both force and stroke (length) against time (the probe 1. The design and fabrication of a portable work platform
is located at the connecting line between the hydraulic cylinder elevated by a two hydraulic cylinders was carried out
and the box geometry of the model). The values of the results successfully meeting the required design standards.
obtained from MATLAB computations are tabulated in Table
2. The portable work platform is operated by hydraulic
4.2 by inputting the parameters in Table 4.1 using the equations.
cylinder which is operated by the hand pump.
Table 1: Input variables and values associated with the design
3. The scissor lift can be design for high load also if a suitable
S.No. Component Variables/ Value Unit high capacity hydraulic cylinder is used.
symbols
4. The hydraulic scissor lift is simple in use and does not
Outer diameter,
1. 70.00 Mm required routine maintenance. It can also lift heavier loads.
Do
For the present dimension we get a lift of 5 ft, the scissor
Cylinder Inner diameter,
50.00 Mm lift can lift a load of 1.5 – 2 tons.
Di
5. The main constraint of this device is its high initial cost,
Pressure 315 Bar
but has a low operating cost. The shearing tool should be
End cover stress EST 107.5 MPA heat treated to have high strength. Savings resulting from
2.
the use of this device will make it pay for itself with in
Factor of safety FOS 4 – short period of time and it can be a great companion in
3.
any engineering industry dealing with rusted and unused
4. Tensile stress Sts 103 N/mm2 metals.
Tensile stress on
piston rod Stp 135.5 N/mm2 6. The device affords plenty of scope for modifications for
further improvements and operational efficiency, which
5. Working stress Wst 800 N/mm2 should make it commercially available and attractive.
6. Piston head
Dph
49.794–
Mm
Hence, its wide application in industries, hydraulic pres-
diameter 49.970 sure system, for lifting of vehicle in garages, maintenance
7. Young Modulus E 207 GPA of huge machines, and for staking purpose. Thus, it is
recommended for the engineering industry and for com-
8. Yield point
Ypst 250 MPA mercial production.
stress
MIT International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, August 2015, pp. 81-87 87
ISSN 2230-7680 © MIT Publications

REFERENCES [5]. Khurmi, R.S. and Gupta, R. K., ‘Theory of Machines’, 2nd Edition,
Chaurasia Publishing House, Ltd., 2006.
[1]. Barsel, R.K., ‘Fluid Mechanics’, 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 1998. [6]. Understanding Scissor Lift Deflection, retrieved online at www. Autoquip.
[2]. Gupta, R.K., ‘Machine Design’, 4th Edition, Eurasia Publishing House, Ltd., com, 21/04/2011.
2006.
[7]. WCB Standards: A324 Forklift Mounted Work Platforms Retrieved Online
[3]. Franklin Mill, ‘Aerial Lift Safety: Operating Requirements’ retrieved
online: 21/04/2011. 21/04/2011.
[4]. Hedge, R.K., ‘Mechanical Engineering Science’, 3rd Edition, John Wiley &
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