run away cart

[SimpleMan]

Originally Posted by sonicj

...a seat switch added to the interlock system would have prevented this. this should be standard equipment for utility vehicles, imo. my 2¢ fwiw.
-sj

Uhhhh....No.
In the beginning these efforts were commendable and saved lives (i.e. neutral safety switches on tractors). Lawsuits or fear of them has caused us to go way overboard with "safety" devices. You cannot make everything idiot proof and we should quit trying to. That cart has a key switch and a parking brake. Only thing needed above that was an operator that knew what he was doing or didn't have his head up his arse. This mentality is why I have to press and hold a button on my lawnmower everytime I back up...pisses me off.

[simple man]

Originally Posted by SimpleMan

Uhhhh....No.
In the beginning these efforts were commendable and saved lives (i.e. neutral safety switches on tractors). Lawsuits or fear of them has caused us to go way overboard with "safety" devices. You cannot make everything idiot proof and we should quit trying to. That cart has a key switch and a parking brake. Only thing needed above that was an operator that knew what he was doing or didn't have his head up his arse. This mentality is why I have to press and hold a button on my lawnmower everytime I back up...pisses me off.

I couldn't agree with you more!
Why should all of us, who do read instructions and who do work safely, have to suffer for the ones that don't?
P.S. I hate those reverse interlocks! I think they make the machine more dangerous as you now have lost the use of two hands!

[sonicj]

Originally Posted by SimpleMan

Uhhhh....No.
In the beginning these efforts were commendable and saved lives (i.e. neutral safety switches on tractors). Lawsuits or fear of them has caused us to go way overboard with "safety" devices. You cannot make everything idiot proof and we should quit trying to. That cart has a key switch and a parking brake. Only thing needed above that was an operator that knew what he was doing or didn't have his head up his arse. This mentality is why I have to press and hold a button on my lawnmower everytime I back up...pisses me off.

is there any practical need for the cart to be able to drive without a operator in the driver's position? nope! a seat switch is a perfectly reasonable, un-intrusive addition to the interlock circuit.

think about your car, what do you have to do to get it to drive once the engine is running? foot on the brake, move the shifter to drive or clutch in, shift to first. its not going to take off without a operator making those conscious moves. now look at a electric golf cart, what does it take to move once the key is in the on position? anything pressed against the go pedal disengages the parking brake and the cart moves forward.

im all for personal responsibility, but even those with excellent situational awareness can slip up or fail to see this particular scenario ahead of time. most of us have been conditioned our entire driving lives that we can safely leave the car running as long as the car is out of gear and the parking brake is on. these types of conditioned habits are very tough to break.

now put yourself in a employer's shoes... do your employees need to be able to drive the cart while not seated in the driver's position? of course not! something as unintrusive as a seat switch is a no-brainer for a commercial service cart.
-sj

[R8cer Ex]

Originally Posted by sonicj

is there any practical need for the cart to be able to drive without a operator in the driver's position? nope! a seat switch is a perfectly reasonable, un-intrusive addition to the interlock circuit.

think about your car, what do you have to do to get it to drive once the engine is running? foot on the brake, move the shifter to drive or clutch in, shift to first. its not going to take off without a operator making those conscious moves. now look at a electric golf cart, what does it take to move once the key is in the on position? anything pressed against the go pedal disengages the parking brake and the cart moves forward.

im all for personal responsibility, but even those with excellent situational awareness can slip up or fail to see this particular scenario ahead of time. most of us have been conditioned our entire driving lives that we can safely leave the car running as long as the car is out of gear and the parking brake is on. these types of conditioned habits are very tough to break.

now put yourself in a employer's shoes... do your employees need to be able to drive the cart while not seated in the driver's position? of course not! something as unintrusive as a seat switch is a no-brainer for a commercial service cart.
-sj

Agreed.

[R8cer Ex]

Hey sonicj,

I used to live in Marianna, Florida and would go to Panama City all the time. To party mostly.

Good times and good peeps down there.

[yurtle]

Originally Posted by SimpleMan

Uhhhh....No.
In the beginning these efforts were commendable and saved lives (i.e. neutral safety switches on tractors). Lawsuits or fear of them has caused us to go way overboard with "safety" devices. You cannot make everything idiot proof and we should quit trying to. That cart has a key switch and a parking brake. Only thing needed above that was an operator that knew what he was doing or didn't have his head up his arse. This mentality is why I have to press and hold a button on my lawnmower everytime I back up...pisses me off.

Originally Posted by simple man

I couldn't agree with you more!
Why should all of us, who do read instructions and who do work safely, have to suffer for the ones that don't?
P.S. I hate those reverse interlocks! I think they make the machine more dangerous as you now have lost the use of two hands!

OMG, We now have two "simple men"?

I concur. I routinely have to disable guards and safety devices on my power tools, in order to use them fully. Just this week, I had to disable the guard on my compound miter saw.

Originally Posted by sonicj

is there any practical need for the cart to be able to drive without a operator in the driver's position? nope! a seat switch is a perfectly reasonable, un-intrusive addition to the interlock circuit.

think about your car, what do you have to do to get it to drive once the engine is running? foot on the brake, move the shifter to drive or clutch in, shift to first. its not going to take off without a operator making those conscious moves. now look at a electric golf cart, what does it take to move once the key is in the on position? anything pressed against the go pedal disengages the parking brake and the cart moves forward.

-sj

When my son was three, he took my wife's keys, unlocked the car, started it, and was attempting to put it in gear when my wife found him. He was an excellent observer, and knew to press the brake while shifting gears.

True story. Would your device prevent that? If not, it needs more work.

You can never idiot proof anything. We'll always find a better idiot.

[simple man]

There's a prime example! As " yurtle " said," I had to disable the guards to use the machine! " Taking the guard off of an angle grinder is the first thing you do after opening the box! Yes, I have been bit by them before, but the tool is virtually useless with the guard in place. I grew up on a farm. We had machinery that was run from open belts. You learned safety at a very young age if you wanted to see more birthdays!