Ropes for lock gates: Components in steel construction for hydraulic engineering

Technical Meeting Experiences with Ropes – Lenzburg 2003

 In modern industrial society, inland navigation is the most economic and environmentally friendly way for the transportation of goods as well as of passengers. Ship lifts and locks are crucial devices in negotiating the differences in altitude along rivers and canals in inland navigation. The hutches of ship lifts and the lock gates are predominantly operated with rope drives. These ropes must be safe and reliable with continual availability. Ship locks can have a stroke of up to 25 m. Figure 1 shows a sketch of the rope drive of a lock gate on the Main-Danube Canal near the city of Erlangen. The two counterweights are connected with the gate via ropes running over sheaves.

Author: W. Vogel