Used Yard Spotter Pomona - Tow tractors, also called tow tugs or towing tractors are popular for moving loads horizontally in airports, arenas, warehouses, manufacturing plants and other large buildings. These machines can tow numerous trailers in a train or snake-like formation. Tow tractors can move aircraft into and outside of airport locations such as terminals and hangars.
The tractive effort concept is how loads move from place to place. Tractive effort refers to the total amount of traction a vehicle deploys on the ground. Heavier loads require more tractive effort compared to lighter loads. Based on this principle, the tow tractor works by lifting a part of the load it is towing while making sure the load’s wheels remain on the ground. The tractive effort is increased by the unit’s hydraulic mast. This has been engineered to produce downforce on the drive wheel directly under the mast. The traction created by this process enables the tow tractor to pull very large and heavy loads.
Types of Tow Tractors
Heavy-duty tow tractors and load carriers are two types of tow tractors.
Load Carriers
Numerous businesses need to transport items of different sizes on a regular basis including manufacturing, parcel delivery services and airport baggage. Tow tugs or load carrier tow tractors are excellent for these jobs as they can maneuver single items stacked on wheeled platforms for streamlined transport.
The category that load carrier tow tractor models fall into includes forklift trucks, cranes and pallet jacks. Load carrier tow tugs do not transport items from high places such as shelves or platforms. They only move cargo at ground level. Therefore, the load must already be on wheels or on a wheeled platform, ready to be transported. Wheeled platforms are called skates, trollies and bogies. The tow tug is attached to the trolly similar to train cars being attached to a locomotive. Typically, the tow tug features a steel coupling male-end that attaches to a female-end on the trolly’s front. The back of the trolly has a male-end steel coupling that can then be used to attach multiple trollies onto a single tow tug, transporting all the trollies in a train-like formation.
Tow tractors with a train of trollies enable a wider range in the type of items that can be transported and in the types of conditions they can be transported. Different trolly types are on the market to facilitate better transportation customization. Many trollies can be connected since they are compatible with one another. This means several different types of trollies can be used in a single train allowing greater flexibility for operations.
A key benefit of using a load carrier tow tractor is that operators can enjoy a clear view instead of relying on forklifts. Load carrier tow tractors transport trollies in a forward direction which decreases the safety concerns common with reverse forklift operations. These safety considerations are of special importance in busy areas such as manufacturing floors and airports.
Towing many items at once saves time and money compared to relying on forklifts to move single things. They are safe and easy to maneuver. A key benefit of these units is that typically, the operator doesn’t need a license. This is because the load is not lifted from the ground so it does not fall under the usual restrictions and licensing required of standard forklifts, cranes and other load lifting equipment.
There are three kinds of load carrier tow tractor units to choose from; pedestrian, stand-in and rider-seated.
Pedestrian Tow Tractors
A walk-behind model that can transport wheeled loads is called a pedestrian tow tractor. These machines may go by the names of electric hand tug, electric tugger, electric tug or tow tractor. These compact machines are simple to use and can maneuver easily.
Stand-in Tow Tractors
Stand-in tow tractors are the most popular design for industries that involve order picking and horizontal transport in manufacturing. They provide a secure platform for the driver to operate while still having a smaller footprint than that of the rider-seated tow tractors.
Rider-Seated Tow Tractors
The rider-seated tow tractors are similar to the stand-in tow tractors with the exception they provide a seated platform for the driver. These models are commonly used for transporting loads over farther distances such as moving checked baggage from the airport check-in to the aircraft at the terminal. Rider fatigue is decreased with sit-down units for more efficiency and productivity.
Heavy Duty Tow Tractors
The pushback concept is commonly used in aviation for cargo and large passenger planes. Pushing an aircraft back from the airport terminal without using the aircraft’s own power is the pushback concept. Heavy-duty tow tractors are known as pushback tugs or pushback tractors complete this task.
Pushback tractors are designed with a low profile design to enable them to move under the aircraft's nose in order to attach to the aircraft. Since the aircraft weight is heavy, these units need to be heavy in order to retain adequate ground friction to move the aircraft. A common tractor for moving large aircraft can weigh in up to fifty-four tons. Their driver’s cab has the ability to be lowered and raised for increased visibility during reversing.
The unit is called a pushback tow tractor or pushback tug but it is additionally used to move aircraft in situations where taxiing is not safe or practical including into and outside of aircraft maintenance.
The two subtypes of pushback tow tractors include conventional tow tractors and towbarless tow tractors.
Conventional Pushback Tow Tractors
Conventional tugs use a tow bar to connect the tug to the nose landing gear of the aircraft. The tow bar is laterally fixed at the nose landing gear; however, it is possible to make height adjustments with slight vertical movements. The tow bar that attaches to the tug can pivot vertically and laterally. Acting like a giant lever, the tow bar can rotate the nose landing gear. Each aircraft type has a unique tow fitting so the towbar also acts as an adapter between the standard-sized tow pin on the tug and the type-specific fitting on the aircraft's landing gear. Heavy-duty towbars required for sizeable aircraft ride on their own wheels when they are disconnected from the machine. The hydraulic jacking mechanism is attached to the wheels, allowing the towbar to lift to the correct height in order to mate with the tug and the aircraft. The same means are used in reverse during the pushback process to raise the towbar wheels from the ground. The towbar is capable of being connected at the tractor’s rear or front, depending on if the machine needs to be pulled or pushed. Depending on whether the aircraft needs to be pushed or pulled, the towbar can be attached to the front or rear of the tractor.
Towbarless Pushback Tow Tractors
Towbarless tractors work without a towbar and scoop up the aircrafts’ nose landing gear to lift it off of the ground instead. This allows better control of the aircraft and higher speeds; it may also eliminate the need to have a worker in the cockpit to apply the aircraft's brakes. As there is no need to maintain numerous towbars, simplicity is the main advantage of this unit. Greater control and responsiveness while moving the aircraft is achieved with this direct connection of the tug to the landing gear.
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