Force Calculations

 
  • With a click of your mouse you can calculate the forces that are applied throughout a system.
     
  • The forces can be displayed on your screen (as shown to the right) and displayed in mouse ScreenTips (as shown below).

  • Rope angles can be displayed (the angles are displayed in red if they exceed the critical angle of 120°). Learn more about angles here.
     
  • The forces can be calculated in kilograms, kilonewtons, or pounds.
     
  • The mechanical advantage, safety factor, and maximum load are displayed on the Status Bar.

 

Flexible options let you specify:

  • The weight of individual gear such as loads and litters (you can even specify the weight of a single carabiner),
     
  • The friction of gear (including carabiners, pulleys, and brake bar racks),
     
  • Where force labels are displayed, and
     
  • Whether forces should be automatically recalculated.

The force calculations understand the complexities of friction, Prusiks, the difference between raising and lowering, rope angles, etc. For example, the forces on a typical 3:1 system are much different when raising than when lowering (when the "ratchet" Prusik holds the load).

Although RescueRigger cannot solve every system, it can solve amazingly complicated systems (click here to see a large, although low-resolution and impractical, example).

 

 Overload Symbols

 
 
  • Overload Symbols warn you of a potentially unsafe system based on the calculated forces.
Forces are within limits
Forces exceed your safety factor
Forces exceed the gear's strength
  • You specify the Safety Factor (e.g., 10:1) in the Options dialog. If the safety factor is exceeded, a warning symbol () identifies the overloaded gear. 
     
  • You specify the Strength of each piece of gear in the system in the Properties dialog. If the forces exceed the gear's strength, a breakage symbol () is displayed on the overloaded item.
     
  • The Overload Symbols apply to all gear, including individual rope segments.

Watch a free training video that explains RescueRigger's force calculations.

 

Click here for more information about RescueRigger

 

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