I am speaking only of boom pumps. When a pump, for whatever reason, reaches relief pressure; what good is done by its continuing to pressure out? A better, safer solution would be for a pump that has reached relief pressure to automatically go to reverse. Right now, it is up to the operator to make the determination as to when to stop the pump from going over relief. I ask why. As soon as his personal level of discomfort is reached; he will then do what needs to be done… put the machine in reverse. He may well at that time, after a brief respite in reverse, throw it back into forward and repeat the folly of seeing what gives way first. There is no other way to say it. Will a clamp fail, will a hose burst, will the plug come out of the tip hose at a thousand miles an hour flailing away at whom or whatever is the closest while shooting pressurized concrete on and into all in the area? Would it not be better for everyone if the machine, which is the first to know it is pressured out, just went ahead and did the logical, safe sensible thing and put its self in reverse?

I am interested in your feedback

Perhaps not that hard to implement. Transducer readings might allow a subtle self shifting back and forth to keep from plugging tighter, even before a typical reaction time to reach for the reverse button. Good idea!

sanys concrete pump have this feature , where they peak pressure, they switch over to reverse

Good idea, though I can see the mess behind the pump now,and how would the pump decide how many reverse strokes it needed,if it would automatically just relieve pressure that would be great,but r/mix drivers cant keep it in the pump now I would hate to see it with auto reverse,but I'm sure you could get the horn to blow when it switched to reverse.Sounds like if it was done rite it would  be a good idea,especially for training,red.hoses,and a good general safety device,as long as you could override when dealing with rough mixes

Thats a great idea bob. Whenever pumping a low slump or a tight mix now I keep one eye on my psi reading on the controlbox but it lags a bit. I'll hear a plug or rockjam before the display reads on the box. Another saftey circuit cant hurt ever. especially considering the dangers of overpressure. And the mess of overflowing the hopper. Who cares! my hopper would never win a beauty contest.

Any suggestions on what Bob could do to stay busy ,other than to sit around and dream up stuff like this?

I kinda like 'em how they are now.  Sometimes it pressures out right at the S-tube when you're fighting a rough load.  I wouldn't like it if it automatically shifted into reverse in a situation like that.  Using the cross-over feature and manually putting it in reverse when fighting a harsh load, to me, is a better way.  One would have to figure out a way for the pump to be able to sense that the high pressure was coming from a plug in the line or at the tip vs. back at the pump then maybe...but then again...do we need another electronic sensor to go bad?

If you can't tell where a plug is and the pump is blowing up lines, hoses or elbows, maybe more education for the operator is in needed.  What happens when these gizmos fail and you've got a dumbed down 'button-pusher' that doesn't have the ear for the job because he's always relied on safety sensors? 

Keep it simple

What about when this safety feature fails???  Suppose the operator is a six month rookie who has never had to "sense" a plug.  All of the sudden the reducer blows apart or the entire system dry packs because the guy never had to think before. 

  This is the problem with tecnology-it fails.  Teach your operators to think, because I guarantee they will need to use their heads at some time.   I'm not trying to downplay safety.  I just think we rely on it too much as a substitute for competent operators.

You are correct. There is no substitute for good training and education. An operator is still responsible for what is going on out there and needs to have the training to deal with the issues.

My thought on this is that, like all safety features, this is there to help, not replace. It would need to be made so that it could be turned off. I liked the idea of having the machine make only a couple of reverse strokes.

It is an idea, a thought, a concept and a work in progress. This exactly why I solicited your input.

Thanks  ;~)