THE SCIENCE OF HAND TRUCKS

Also known as two wheeled dolly or sack truck, the hand truck is an invaluable piece of equipment. Widely used in store rooms and warehouses, they are sometimes also used to transport baggage at train stations and other similar environments. Hand trucks are now available in some variety, some can even be used when going up or down flights of stairs, but they are all based around the same basic design.

The hand truck operates using the concept of leverage. Levers operate by multiplying mechanical force from one end – the ‘effort’ (in this case the person pushing the truck), so that it can be applied with more force to another object – the ‘load’ (boxes being pushed). In a basic sense a lever is a rigid object that is used with an appropriately placed pivot or fulcrum in order to achieve this increase in force. There are three basic classes of levers, the hand truck is a first class lever – the pivot is located between input effort and output load, the lever swings about the pivot when force is applied in order to overcome the force of resistance on the opposite side. Other examples of first class levers include see-saws, trebuchets and even shoehorns. In hand trucks the axis is the fulcrum, they are also designed to put the weight burden primarily on the wheels when in use, rather than on the user. One of the first to understand that simple machines do not create energy, they just transform it, was Galileo Galilei, he noted this is in Le Maccanicle in around 1600. With new understanding of these concepts from great minds of the scientific revolution, basic machinery was able to evolve. Levers are still considered one the six simple machines, alongside wheels and axles, pulleys, inclined planes, wedges and screws.

Of course the idea of levers had been around long before Galileo. Archimedes of Syracuse (c.287BC – c.212BC) is said to have had a great understanding of and belief in the lever. In a letter to King Heiro he is claimed to have said, that given a place to stand and a lever, he would be able to move the whole world. Although it has since been discovered that moving the earth with a lever would require mind boggling distances and amounts of time, Archimedes was able to demonstrate the power of levers in another way. He is said to have created the appropriate lever to launch a ship from a harbour by himself.

This may all seemed far removed from hand trucks and similar material handling products. They are tools used every day by companies and other organizations throughout the world, but the physics that explains how they work is rarely considered. It is worthwhile to remember that even primitive tools had to evolve and be understood before any serious technological or mechanical advancement could be made. The hand truck is an example of a basic lever that is still widely used today. It is also advantageous in that it is environmentally friendly, simple to use and durable. They can be cheaper to maintain than some pieces of equipment as they have fewer moving parts that can potentially need replacing. With several kinds available for differing needs, hand trucks are likely to be in use for a while to come.

Virgil Trucks Bio

Following Callum’s stray into popular baseball icons with the bio on Christy Matthewson we will go down a more familiar MUD.com by reviewing the life of a semi-star with some quirky records.

During the depression, it was common for scouts to patrol local sandlots, looking for unrefined talent. During this time in baseball history a disproportionate amount of Southerners dominated organised ball. So when a Detroit Tigers scout stumbled upon an 18 year old outfielder named Virgil Trucks in Birmingham, Alabama he was just working the beaten path that many scouts probably had been.

Teams would offer young players contracts that only paid them a signing bonus, this was the practise at the time as many teams play take the “let’s see what sticks” approach. This was Virgil’s case, and while playing in a Georgia semi-pro league he became a pitcher. Virgil’s talent as a moundsman was evident immediately as he posted organised ball records for strikeouts in the 1938 season with 420. He finished the Class D Alabama League season with a 25-3 record and 2 no-hitters. At only 19 Trucks’ fastball is said to have been clocked over 100mph. The Tigers took notice again and signed him to a minor league contract.

After toiling in the minors for a couple of seasons Trucks made the Tigers in 1942. He joined a contending Tigers team that featured the only pitcher in history, Hal Newhouser, to win back to back MVP Awards. As a 25 year old pitcher Trucks started 20 games and had respectable ERA and WHIP and K numbers. Virgil didn’t suffer in his sophomore season as he replicated his rookie season’s numbers.

Before the 1943 season began, Virgil’s major league career was interrupted by war. He was recruited by Mickey Cochrane to come to Chicago to play for the Great Lakes Naval Team. Virgil played for the Tiger great for the ’44 and ’45 seasons. Stats for the Armed Forces Leagues are scarce but sources say Vigil had a 31-1 record during his stint in the Navy.

Virgil, was released from the Navy at the suggestion of Cochrane in September ’45 in an attempt to help out the Tigers who were in a pennant race with the Washington Senators. Having played only a single game in the regular season manager Steve O’Neil had enough confidence in Trucks to start game 2 of the 1945 Series against a Chicago Cubs team that only the night before had got to ace Newhouser early and often, knocking the 25 game winner out in the third inning en route to a 9-0 victory infront of 55,000 Detroit faithful.

Virgil did not disappoint. He shut down the hard hitting Cubbies in game 2 of which would prove to be one of the classic World Series’. The now 28 year old Trucks held the Cubs to one run on 7 hits holding on for the complete game victory. Truck also got the call in game 6 with the Tigers having a chance to clinch but didn’t figure into the 12 inning decision in which the Cubs forced a 7th game that the Tigers won.

Interestingly, due to wartime travel limitations the first three games of the ’45 Series were played in Detroit with the final 4 being played at Wrigley Field. The Tigers lost 2 of 3 at home and had to win 3 of 4 on the road to clinch the series.

Trucks holds the record as the only player to have more wins in the postseason than in the regular season in a single season.

While many players came out off the battlefields and back into baseball, Virgil had been playing ball while in the service. He didn’t miss a beat in the next couple of seasons in Detroit, proving that he was a bona fide major leaguer. He had solid seasons with the Tigers, often pitching 250+ inning and leading the AL in strikeouts in 1949.

Then in 1952 at the age of 35 Virgil’s age seems to be catching up to him as he slipped to a miserable 5-19 with an ERA near 4 and a WHIP at 1.4. However, of his 5 wins, 3 were shutouts and of those 3 shutouts, 2 were no-hitters! He is one of only 4 players to throw 2 gems in a single season.

The next year, Virgil made the all-star team, splitting the season between the Browns and the White Sox. He was revitilised with the change of scenery where he enjoyed his only 20 win season and was in the running for league MVP. It was while playing in St. Louis briefly that Virgil met and befriended a fellow Alabama-born pitcher, Satchel Paige. Despite growing up in the south pre-civil rights Paige and Trucks formed a lasting friendship until Paige’s death.

Trucks finished his career in 1958 at 41 with the Yankees. Trucks worked on the Southern Pacific while he wasn’t on the ballfield but was able to work in baseball as a scout and minor league instructor, mostly with the Tigers until the mid 1970’s.

Trucks is the uncle of Southern rock pioneer Butch Trucks who is the co-founder of the Allman Brothers Band. He is the great-uncle of guitar virtuoso/ having a hot-wife virtuoso Derek Trucks.

Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks' hot wife

Virgil “Fire” Trucks celebrated his 91st birthday this week and he is currently the oldest living pitcher to toss a no-hitter and the last remaining member of the ’45 Tigers World Championship team. Virgil has outlived four wives and currently resides in Shelby County, Alabama.

In-use NOx emissions from Euro V trucks higher than anticipated

The TNO study, which did not include regulatory ESC/ETC emission testing, fell short of implying that the Euro V trucks were out of compliance with emission standards. However, the results of the study “brought to light possible emission control failure and tampering”.

The study has prompted an action by the Dutch government, who warned the European Council that “inadequate engine calibration software” in Euro V trucks may prevent the Netherlands and other Member States from meeting their emission ceilings and air quality limits. The Dutch government suggested that the European Commission negotiates an agreement with the industry to modify the calibration software of existing and new Euro V vehicles and requested that PEMS (portable emission measurement system) measurements be included in the Euro VI comitology regulation currently being prepared by the European Commission.

The issue was considered at the European Council on March 15, 2010. It remains uncertain if the Commission will act on the Dutch requests.

The higher NOx emissions at slower driving conditions are due, at least in part, to high engine-out NOx engine calibration in Euro V trucks with SCR systems. The engines are calibrated for high fuel economy, with engine-out NOx emissions believed to be as high as 8-10 g/kWh. The NOx emissions are then reduced over the SCR catalyst. However, SCR systems are not effective under low exhaust gas temperatures, resulting in relatively high NOx levels under slow driving conditions.

Increased in-use NOx emissions were found in the past in older generations of European trucks, such as by the German UBA, but no regulatory actions followed those reports.

Prentice plans new emissions standards for heavy trucks

Heavy trucks, which account for six per cent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions, will soon be subjected to new emissions standards, Environment Minister Jim Prentice said at a news conference today. “These new regulations would apply to new heavy-duty vehicles and engines manufactured or imported for sale in Canada, starting between the 2014 and 2018 model years,” he said, adding that the new rules will also apply to full-sized pickups, delivery vehicles, buses, freight vehicles, service trucks, garbage trucks and dump trucks. Ottawa will work with the U.S. to harmonize standards, with a draft expected to arrive in the fall.

When small trucks are reviewed, only the six cyl is reviewed. What about the 4 cyl engines?

I would like to buy a small truck to replace my 19 yr old dodge truck. I want something that would haul my driftboat…..1,400 lbs. I look for reviews of small trucks, but all they talk about is the V6 engines. I think maybe a I4 could do everything I want. Does anyone have any experiences with these engines and towing small loads?

Port of L.A. Pays to Clean Up Trucks That Don't Use Port of L.A.

Awful nice of them, one supposes, but perhaps not the wisest use of local public money. Details from the Los Angeles Business Journal:

The plan began in 2008 when, under pressure from environmentalists to improve air quality, the port created the Clean Trucks Program requiring all trucking companies doing business there to aggressively reduce big rig emissions. The old fume-spewing diesel trucks were replaced with cleaner burning models, such as those fueled by clean diesel or liquefied natural gas.

Fearing there wouldn’t be enough low-emission trucks to go around, port officials went a step further. They committed $44 million in public funds as a financial incentive for truck companies to upgrade their vehicles, each of which can cost $150,000.

Specifically, each company participating in the program was given $20,000 for each low-emissions truck it bought. Each of those trucks was committed to make at least 300 pickups or deliveries annually at the Port of Los Angeles over the next five years. (The nearby Port of Long Beach also has a Clean Trucks Program, which is separately managed and has a different incentive program.) All told, officials say, about 100 companies were given subsidies for some 2,100 trucks.

With the end of the program’s first year looming, however, it appears that the companies’ promised goals are far from being met. To date, officials say, only about a third of those given money are expected to deliver on their promise of 300 port trips by the fiscal year’s June 30 end.

“What that means is that about 70 percent will not make the required number of trips the first year even though they’ve signed a contract,” [the port's director of operations John] Holmes said.

Rather than demanding any of the public money back, which the port could try to do, they are going to finagle with the terms of the agreement to let the recession-hit shipping companies off the hook, the story goes on to say. And a predictable detail from a planet called Earth where government subsidies and regulations have a tendency to hobble the small rather than the large: "Small truck companies have long complained the program favors big truck companies because Los Angeles requires that truck drivers be employees, not independent owner-operators."

Street Sweets & Rickshaw Dumpling Trucks

photos by Scott Beale

The Street Sweets and Rickshaw Dumpling trucks spotted last week in the Upper West Side doing their thing in front of the Fairway Market.