Dump Body Position Detection Gets National Attention

We’ve spoken in the past about the use of our limit switches as Dump Body position detection indicators, but recently this application was highlighted in a dramatically viral way.

As Carlos Escobedo and his father were travelling down the East Loop in Houston Texas, they noticed this completely oblivious dump truck driver heading down the highway with the dump body extended in all its glory. Despite attempts by Carlos and other motorists to warn the truck driver, the best Carlos could do is pull out the cell phone to video this extraordinary collision.  (WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE)



The force of this collision was such that it completely flipped the dump truck, and sent pieces of the overhead sign flying all over the highway, endangering motorists and shutting down the entire highway for several hours. Miraculously, no one was killed.

The Case for Mandatory Dump Body Detect

This is not the first video taken of this kind of incident, and the fact is that thousands of drivers of construction vehicles and bucket trucks make this mistake occasionally, hopefully with less spectacular consequences.
Manufactures of work trucks have long been aware of this potential safety hazard and started to add dump body detectionto vehicles years ago to try and prevent such scenarios.  CPI waterproof limit switches have been selected for this critical safety function by a number of different vehicle makers over the years owing to the high reliability and durability requirements this application presents.

CPI Solution to Dump Body Position Detection

Most commonly chosen for this application is a sealed E1 Limit switch like our B9112, housed in a simulated roller spring actuator bracket as shown. This switch is available in either normally open or closed variations.
This configuration has a number of properties that really make it ideal for this application.

• The Santoprene sealed switch is 100% waterproof
• The bracket is 100% high grade stainless steel and not prone to rusting or degradation over the life of the switch when exposed to harsh environments.
• Actuation travel is approximately .81” but can be customized to your needs.
• Switches are qualified to up to 1 million cycles, likely to outlive the trucks they are used in.
• The switches are IP 68 rated

Other mounting brackets include straight lever mounts, roller lever, and flush mount lever variations to fit into any form factor available.

Final Thoughts On Dump Body Detection

While dump body detection is not currently required by law, smart work truck manufactures are not risking it. The potential safety issues are too extreme, and the cost of wiring a robust limit switch to a dashboard light is minimal. Plus, CPI has switches already qualified into this application. It’s kind of a no-brainer…(-:

Whatever your vehicle safety requirement, the odds are that CPI has a switch that is a perfect, durable fit for it. Contact us today. 

Original content posted on https://www.cpi-nj.com/blog/dump-body-position-detection-gets-national-attention/