Abstract
CMEFS-1.0 proposes a simple specialized trailer system built around an existing remotely controlled firefighting robot such as the Magirus AirCore TAF35-C.The CMEFS trailer architecture is not restricted to the TAF35-C. Other remotely operated firefighting robots or compact firefighting apparatus may be accommodated when their dimensions, mass, center of gravity, loading requirements, water requirements and operating reaction forces fall within the engineered capacity of the trailer.
The lateral stability member shall be installed/positioned on the side and at the extension required to produce a restoring moment opposing the measured operating overturning moment. The final side, extension and effective mass are engineering variables determined by analysis and testing, not predetermined by this disclosure.
The invention does not attempt to redesign the firefighting robot.
Instead, CMEFS provides the missing transportation and mobile-support system:
A large-capacity water tanker pulls a specially engineered flatbed trailer carrying the firefighting robot, supplies it with water through a controlled hose connection, and allows the robot to operate from an elevated position alongside the roadway while the tanker/trailer combination moves at a validated low operating speed.
The robot is transported longitudinally on the trailer then is unloaded on site and turned in the direction loaded back onto the trailer in the position that is needed to put roadside fires out.
At the fire location, a purpose-built hydraulic side-loading ramp extends completely outward, pivots downward to the ground, and permits the robot to drive straight off the trailer.
After deployment, the robot can maneuver on the ground and position itself for conventional operation.
The same ramp then retracts beneath the trailer and becomes part of a second function:
an adjustable lateral stability/ballast member for the moving firefighting configuration.
During mobile operation the ramp does not contact the roadway.
Instead, its hydraulic extension is controlled within a mechanically defined range to alter the trailer's lateral mass distribution and restoring moment.
The system may additionally investigate manually installable ballast modules mounted over the robot's existing front fork assembly where the manufacturer's fork configuration and engineering analysis permit such use.
The central concept is intentionally simple:
Move the water, the robot and the operator-support equipment together instead of asking firefighters to carry the firefighting system into every dangerous roadside location.
The elevated position of the robot may also provide a useful tactical advantage because the water-delivery point is higher above the ground than a conventional ground-level robot position. This may improve line-of-sight, obstacle clearance and some water-application geometries. It must not, however, be assumed that simply raising the robot increases its manufacturer's published throw distance; the actual effect must be measured.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Caldwell, Michael Victor Mr., "CMEFS-1.0 Caldwell Mobile Elevated Fire Suppression System Special-Purpose Mobile Water-Tanker Trailer for Transporting, Elevating, Stabilizing, and Operating a Remote Firefighting Robot", Technical Disclosure Commons, ()
https://www.tdcommons.org/dpubs_series/11457