tkkyj Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Wow, a cable tension sensor. That is actually really cool. I still don't understand if (or how) S&S towers are immune from this kind of problem. Do they have tension sensors for their cables? are there simply so many cables that no individual cable bears enough force to cause damage? How often are they replaced? It seems like the motion of an S&S tower would put more stress on the cables to me. I guess the nature of the S&S system is such that the cable is going to come down with the passengers no matter what... it never sits stationary at the top and always moves wih the vehicle. The cable on the Intamin ride stays stationary at the top while the car detaches and falls. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajinaz Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 The strangest part of the story is that they were running the other cars again "within hours." I would think that they would at least wait for the manufacturer to inspect the ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
signal Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I'm sure some parks will be routinely checking drop tower cables each day. I see how its kind of hard to check 1000+ feet of cable each day, but it could save a person's limb or life if this ever happens again. Or they could just install those pressure sensors on older drop towers, because they seem to work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teacups Make Me Sick Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 ^Nobody says to make checking the cables daily...but they should be checked fairly regularly. Just like they do with coasters. I'm curious as to how does a park check the tension on these wires. Do they use the same type of "pulsar" technology as they do in aircrafts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astroworldfan1 Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I still don't understand if (or how) S&S towers are immune from this kind of problem. Do they have tension sensors for their cables? are there simply so many cables that no individual cable bears enough force to cause damage? How often are they replaced? S&S Towers do not use cables like INTAMIN. S&S uses air power to launch their towers. I think they use air to bring them up to the tower, too. I'm pretty sure S&S doesn't use cables. -Tatum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBannedKid Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 They use cables in a loop with a piston-head like part in the middle. This part is in the air chamber and is pushed up and down with air pressure. Yes, there are cables. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verticalzero Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I'll never ride these drop towers, far 2 scary for me. Pic of snapped cable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linearinduction Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 The strangest part of the story is that they were running the other cars again "within hours." I would think that they would at least wait for the manufacturer to inspect the ride. Each Side of the Tower is an Independent Ride System, Only this "Side" or Ride System was affected by the cable break. I'm sure the park inspected the other Ride Systems/Cables before re opening the attraction. - Sid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBru Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Strange to see these two rare incidents happen so closely... Luckily, no one was hurt on this one! What year did this one open? Do other Intamin G2 Freefalls have those sensors? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markieb Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Call it how you want, but I personally am done with Drop Towers. 2 times is not a coincidence! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swimace Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 S&S Towers do not use cables like INTAMIN. S&S uses air power to launch their towers. I think they use air to bring them up to the tower, too. I'm pretty sure S&S doesn't use cables. They still use cables, it's not like a big gust of air just blows the car up and down the tower. The compressed air is what powers the launch, but they still need something that attaches to the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niiicolaaah Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Yeah... these drop towers used to be one of my favorite types of rides, but now I'm not sure if I really want to ride one again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexinla Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 The strangest part of the story is that they were running the other cars again "within hours." I would think that they would at least wait for the manufacturer to inspect the ride. I think the strangest part is that people would actually get ON the ride when they see that some cable snapped, tangling from the towers. I would just say thanks but no thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
halltd Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I don't think I'll be riding another Intamin drop tower again. After the SFKK accident, I said there must be a design flaw if the cable can snap into the path of the riders so easily. Everyone said I was crazy and this was just some freak accident. Well, it's no freak accident if it happens again in less than a year. The story doesn't say if the e-stop was manual or automatic. But, I'm not going to trust my limbs on that type of ride to a teenage ride op. I guess the good thing is this happened on the stand-up side where limbs are less likely to be flailing about like on the sitting side. Does anyone more familiar with the S&S version of the ride know if this same type of accident is possible? What happens if the cable snaps on one of those rides? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkkyj Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 In my opinion, it is conceivable that a serious accident involving a cable could occur on an S&S ride, but I think it is much less possible. On the S&S towers, the cable is always travelling at the same speed (and direction) as the vehicle. It is likely that even a broken cable would continue to travel with the vehicle (rather than remaining stationary at the top like the Intamin ride). Of course, after a bounce on the S&S tower, the cable could theoretically snag something. But in these two events, the cable dig not snag part of the ride structure. The cable is intended to stay stationary on the Intamin ride while the vehicle detaches and falls. I would like to know more about the safety system on the S&S towers, too... can they sense a broken cable? can the ride be stopped after it is in motion? I assume air is gradually bled (possible leaking where the cable enters the cylinder) as the ride cycles. Can this bleed be stopped completely so that the vehicle can stop midway up the tower? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haux Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I don't understand how stuff like this happens. Does anyone have a drawing of the cables on these Intamin drop rides? I'd like to see where all those cables go and how they manage to get beneath the riders. I assume the cables are all above the riders on the mechanism that hooks on to the cars, and they're pulled from inside the tower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkkyj Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 ^ I haven't brushed up on the accident in a while, but if I remember right one of the two cables snapped on the way up and dangled below the vehicle as it raised to the top of the tower (mated to the catch car). When the vehicle releases, that dangling cable is going to stay there, attached to the catch car, while the vehicle drops. At some point, that dangling cable (perhaps during the snapping motion) caught the passenger, and as the vehicle dropped, the cable (and her foot) stayed stationary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterLine Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I believe that the cable on the S&S towers is merely a guide cable, and could possibly be used as a backup failsafe in case of a freak failure with the ride's compression and/or pistons. The cable on S&S towers are not at all similar to Intamin ones, as there is not nearly as much stress on the S&S cables, and inspected regularly for any sort of fraying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBru Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Would this type of accident be possible on the Intamin G1 Freefalls (my personal favorite), sense the riders are enclosed in their ride vehicle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkkyj Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Not as much stress? There are 4 cables for all 4 sides of the S&S tower. EDIT: I mean 1 cable per side. A total of 4 for the 4-sided vehicle. There are 2-3 cables for EACH side of the Intamin tower. The S&S operates at forces greater than gravity; Intamin is a freefall. The S&S cables repeatedly pull in two alternating directions. Perhaps the S&S cables are much stronger, but I think they see greater loads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterLine Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 No, not as much stress. The Intamin cables physically pull the cars to the top of the tower, where as the S&S cables are guides, and the air and pistons inside the towers push and pull the trains up and down. So no, they don't endure as much stress, they can hold the weight of the cars, but don't physically endure the stresses of alone hoisting the entire car to the top of the tower. Factoring in the weight might also have something to do with it, along with the fact that the cables themselves on the Intamin rides are not looping, rather one cable from end-to-end... S&S towers have the cable looped around pulleys from top to bottom. I have no clue, however it might have something to do with the actual pulley system, and the way they are lubricated (both S&S and Intamin rides) which effect cable wear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
halltd Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 edit: The post above mine wasn't there when I replied. But, your explanation makes sense. Yeah, and the S&S cables are actually used to propel the ride carriage in both directions. On the Intamin towers, that cable is ONLY used to lift the ride carriage to the top of the tower and then lower the catch car back to the bottom. So the S&S cables definitely see more stress - or at very least more varied stress. From reading of the results of the accident report, the girl's feet were entangled in the cable only once the ride carriage was released from the top of the tower. So, the cable snapped, didn't hit any of the people, the carriage continued to the top of the tower, then dropped. On its way down, the dangling cable wrapped itself around the girl's feet and severed them. That's why the report said if the e-stop had been pressed in the time between the snap and the ride carriage reaching the top, no one would've been injured. Thinking about that, it almost seems like the S&S towers would put riders at greater risk. How does an e-stop on the S&S towers work anyway? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterLine Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I believe e-stops on S&S towers basically put the pistons in lockout mode, and freeze the car where it is, and then slowly releases pressure back down to loading level, as it would be entirely rare that all the cables on the tower would break causing the ride to freefall to doom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkkyj Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 This is something how the intamin works... On the left, two cables attached to the catch car, mated to the vehicle. Middle, broken cable dangling from the catch car, still mated to the vehicle. Right, vehicle drops while the catch car and dangling cable remain at the top of the tower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBru Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 ^^^(Regarding the SFKK accident) No no no, as the cars were going up, her feet became tangled in the loose cable. She was trying to get them off (stated in her, well...statement) as they reached the top. When the cars dropped, the catch car, cable, and her feet remained stationary. If the E-Stop had been pressed, the cars would not have rapidly moved away from the top of the tower, she could have untangled her feet, and everyone would be fine---despite a few minor cuts and scrapes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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