Safety
It is vital to consider the safety of electric gates. An improperly installed automatic gate without proper safety devices may result in serious injury or death.Many manufacturers now produce 12V, 24V, 120V, and 230V operators, electric & hydraulic which are capable of detecting the difference between an obstacle and the effects of the wind on the gate leaf.
The 240V supply like all electrical additions have to be part P certified. If you already have power supplied to the gate then P certificate does not apply. Machinery directives EN 12453 and EN 12445 are the regulations concerning gates. Whoever installs the gate is the one responsible for the conformity. The major points are the maxmium amount of force at certain test points. Example - a maxium of 400N of force can be applied in the last 50 cm of travel of a gate, during the mid travel of a gate the amount is 1400N. Most gate kits can be fitted so that these limits are not reached and so meet the requirements. Please also be aware that many gate installers have never heard of these regulations If in doubt contact the main equipment suppliers to discuss in more detail.
Safety devices
Risk assessments should always be undertaken to ensure that gates are fitted with appropriate safety devices protecting all crush and cutting areas that the moving gate creates
Photo beams
A standard on most gate systems, one or two infra red beams are recommended to prevent gates closing on to vehicles or pedestrians It is better to prevent an impact than act after the impact has happened
In ground loops
These are magnetic field generators that are able to detect metal when it passes into the field. The detector gives a signal to the gates either causing the gates to open or preventing the gates from closing.
Bump edges
The earliest safety edges used air pressure to activate a switch when crushed but the safety edge would fail if the air chamber was damaged. A different version has a tensioned wire inside a rubber strip which activates a switch when moved, Resistive safety edges contain a metal core when crushed the resistance of the metal core changes and this is detected by a monitored control panel.