Safety Concern

Polymer Craft Machine Development
1

A great concern in your shredder construction video is the placement of the machine’s on / off / reverse switch. I had a nephew fall into an agricultural machine and get terribly injured, and as I looked inside the shredder in operation it gave me the shudders. I could just imagine a hand getting caught if someone absent mindly tried to adjust or free a jammed plastic bottle.

Commercial tree branch shredders have a safety bar that can instantly stop a machine by impacting a bar that surrounds the hopper. I think this idea, combined with placing the main control switch at the top front of the hopper could possibly save someone from a nasty accident.

I have attached an image that shows how the switch could be placed.

500×566 27.2 KB

2

Hi Stuart,
Just a quick note to say thanks for the suggestion! (No idea how to implement it, but then I currently have no idea how to do any of the electrics……) I’d like to think that I’d keep my hands well away from the shredder, but as you say – absent mindedly trying to unjam a bottle – sounds very much like something I’d do….
Thanks again.

3

http://onearmy.world/community/forums/topic/shredder-modifications/#post-69547

4

I like your thinking Stuart.
The lid idea too.

My additional safety concerns:
– whats in the electrical box?
– Motor protection?
– Over current trip?
– Emergency off button?

I know this all adds to the price, but surely the person building theses machines has some kind of responsibility to make them safe(?).

5

The idea by @nuebling actually is the better on I guess, it also prevents shrapnel (by accident throwing in wrong plastics or even metal) from shooting back out and into somebodies face…

6

or even safer: replace the safety bar with a lid, so the shredder can only start when the lid is closed.

7

very good suggestion!