SAFETY GUARDING OF MANUALLY LOADED, MOBILE WOOD CHIPPERS WITH POWER FEEDS

摘要

A serious accident involving a mobile wood chipper where a young operator sustained an amputated arm prompted an investigation of the circumstances of the accident and the machine design. The use of mobile woodchippers has increased in recent years, and they are now widely used by arboriculturalists and conservation and landscaping contractors to convert unwanted wood and brush into woodchips for mulch. The accident highlighted the potential for the operator to become inadvertently entangled with the fed material while feeding the chipper, and consequently to be drawn into the hopper and towards the feed rollers and blade - the danger zone. The design of the wood chipper, through the guarding and control and safety devices should aim to minimise the possibility of this occurring. The majority of woodchippers on the market are of a similar basic design, but it became apparent that small differences in the guarding and the configuration of the control/safety devices could mean large differences in the degree of protection provided. This paper describes some of the work done in making an appraisal of these machines, and in producing recommendations for design to inform the European Standard drafting process.