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The battery-powered Sherpa

August 21, 2001

Game show candidates might succeed in carrying a washing machine up several flights of stairs in record time - but for normal mortals this represents an enormous feat of strength and patience. People are well advised not to attempt it alone and spare themselves potential back problems - unless of course aided by a transport device. Until now, such devices have only been suitable for specific tasks such as loading and unloading vehicles, transporting items on flat surfaces, or lifting heavy weights. When it comes to a slight bend in a stairway, such equipment ceases to serve its function. Moreover, these devices are often bulky and require skill and force to operate. A new and versatile design features none of these disadvantages. With the advice and support of the Fraunhofer Patent Center PST, the inventor has recently taken out a patent on his device and the Reng Blechtechnik GmbH company is in the meantime manufacturing it under license.

"The essential difference between this new transport device and others is its flexible load center", emphasizes Thomas Thurm, an engineer at the PST. "Using a motor-driven spindle, the operator can adjust the device to its optimal height. Two built-in dry-cell batteries provide the necessary electrical power." The balanced load can be transported on flat surfaces on the same principle as the conventional wheelbarrow - but with greater ease. The interesting part comes when stairs are involved or the device has to be loaded into a small truck: A movable rail, supported from below, allows the load to be lifted to a higher level and its weight to be rebalanced over the two wheels. The rail is then retracted ready for the next stage to commence. With this function, the device virtually lifts itself into the transporter. If, in spite of the low level of exertion, the user needs to take a breather, both the load and the device remain firmly positioned in the middle of the flight of stairs by means of a brake-block system.

If, for example, game machines or safes have to be fixed on a wall, the transporter holds them at the desired height using its electromagnetic brake. During the design phase, particular care was taken to ensure that the device takes up minimum additional storage space. "Together with the Reng company, we have brought the electronic Sherpa to commercial maturity", summarizes Thurm. "And together with the inventor, we are now seeking a competent partner to handle sales of the product. This device promises to open up completely new fields of application for transport companies, suppliers and installation specialists."

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft