Massive mechanical animals

3rd Quarter 2013 Hydraulic systems & components

When it walks out of the large warehouse, the majestic 12 metre high mechanical pachyderm carries 50 passengers on board. It is like architecture in motion. The massive 48 ton elephant walks at speeds up to 3 km/hr, roars, moves its legs, ears, tail and eyes, sprays water and blows air from its realistic trunk. On the back of the Great Elephant, it’s like being on the fourth floor of a moving house, with a breathtaking view over the site of the former shipyards. Inside it is a hive of activity – propelled by a 450 horse power motor, 60 cylinders, 2000 litres of oil and a complex system of jacks, pulleys and gears.

Les Machines de l’Ile is an unprecedented artistic project. Born out of the imagination of two artists, it is a blend of the imaginary world of Jules Verne and the mechanical universe of Leonardo da Vinci. Previously a shipping yard, Les Machines de L’lle was conceived to attract tourism into a dilapidated area of the Nantes dockyard, the birthplace of Jules Verne.

The Great Elephant is driven by electrohydraulics. It pumps up to 600 lpm of hydraulic fluid from two 130 cc variable-displacement axial piston pumps. The pumps drive a pair of 60 cc variable-displacement bent-axis piston motors located in a drive module. In addition 44 hydraulic cylinders and six pneumatic cylinders create the lifelike motion of the star attraction. Most of the action is controlled by 51 proportional hydraulic valves with integrated electronics and fault monitoring control.

The company which produced the elephant also builds many other mechanical animals, but the sheer size and motion of this beast makes it the star attraction.

Further reading:

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