Trick out your plow with these cool innovations

Robert Beck, an operator out of the Lucile shed just north of Riggins in District 2, is testing out several of his innovations on the Sterling six-wheeler plow truck assigned to him, borrowing some lessons from past experiences. 

Fog lights are positioned up high to cast light forward over the plow, but they also push light out the side. In snowy or foggy conditions, light tends to scatter upward and further cut down visibility for operators. 

“The light hood idea came from my over-the-road truck driving experience driving in all weather conditions all over the country,” Beck said.

Beck’s idea is to use visors, particularly those created by Lightforce, to focus the light better. He put them on his plow with two hose clamps, for approximately $50.

Effective lighting is essential to plowing, and so is product distribution. While sensors measure how much product is applied, Beck said it doesn’t track when products, especially sand, run low.

He purchased and placed motion detectors to gauge when sand runs out in the truck. When the sand drops below a certain level in the truck chute, it activates the motion detector to turn red.

This sensor saves operators the time of having to park the truck, climb the ladder and check the sand levels any time they are concerned they need to return to the shed to load up. Instead, they can wait until the sensor turns red.

“It also helps to show us the actual material drop in the chute in relation to switch-on and -off delays,” Beck said. “This could be useful for turning off a sander when meeting oncoming traffic, so as not to hit them with rocks.”

From a safety perspective, this could also reduce the number of times an operator has to scramble up icy ladders, also decreasing risk.

“Will it endure in the salty and wet environment? I’m testing it now to see how durable it is,” Beck said.

Although his last innovation doesn’t apply to those using CIRUS controllers equipped with a downforce regulator (also known as the Moray Jr.), for Beck it may gather better data.

To track whether the plow is in the up or down position, his Sterling truck relies on a proximity sensor placed on the plow’s stinger (the mechanism responsible for lifting it up or setting it down). Beck said the existing gap between the stinger and the sensor can lead to inaccurate data.

His solution: a spacer to keep the parts of the sensor connected at all times to ensure accurate data collection.

“For years I had these ideas, but now I’m taking the time to implement them,” Beck said. “We’ll see what happens.”

Published 03-06-20