HAMPDEN TOWNSHIP – Opening the new Orrs Bridge is as simple as tying a knot – 40,000 of them.Workers are continuing construction of a new bridge over the Conodoguinet Creek on Orrs Bridge Road with the help of a knot-tying robot.
TyBot is a rebar-tying robot that assists contractors during bulk-tie operations, according to a press release.Bridges have a lattice of rebar that reinforces the concrete. In order to meet construction codes, the rebar must be tied.Danielle Proctor, TyBot business development and DBE specialist, said Wednesday during a media demonstration that the robot completes its work autonomously. “It’s like a Roomba. A really, really big Roomba,” Procter said.
However, humans are still necessary for TyBot to function. Quality control technicians feed Tybot wires as well as double-check its work.
RELATED: With April revenue down 30 percent, PennDOT counting on ‘boost’ that federal aid would provide
RELATED: Highway and bridge construction projects affected by the coronavirus pandemic to resume in Pa. on May 1: PennDOT
Procter said TyBot’s ties are successful between almost 99 percent of the time.
The robot is not preprogrammed and simply looks for intersections and will tie wires at each one it sees.The TyBot does not replace human workers but instead assists with tedious tasks that cause humans aches and pains, TyBot Regional Sales Manager Sal Pasquarelli explained.It’s how to better use your people and eliminate the backbreaking, redundant heavy lifting,” Procter added.Humans still have to tie 10 percent to 15 percent of the wires on the outside of the bridge, but TyBot does the rest.One person averages 100 to 150 ties an hour. TyBot can complete approximately 1,000 ties an hour. The Orrs Bridge has approximately 40,000 ties.
READ MORE
Recent Comments