MULTI-USE FIRELINE HANDTOOL DESIGN
Welcome, Bruce is a current senior at Central Washington University completeing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering Tecnology. This site displays the details and scope of his senior project, a multi-use fireline handtool.
Background:
When working on a wildfire there are many tasks that require specific hand tools for different jobs. Some of these tasks are fire line construction, brushing, and mop-up. Many times a firefighter on a small squad or engine can be working on a section of line and require a different tool than they have. This results in them calling over someone else to complete the task. Many times the preferred tool is a sturdy scraping tool such as the Combi or Rhino. These tools leave the firefighter unable to cut into larger wood requiring a Pulaski. The Pulaski provides a hoe end that is effective in grubbing soil but not for scooping or moving it. If a tool could perform the qualities of a Rhino but also allow the firefighter to chop into wood this would improve the effectiveness of an individual firefighter on the line. This need motivated the start of this project.
Engineering Merit:
This project applies several of the engineering concepts and tools gained through the CWU MET program. This project requires research and analysis of material properties such as hardness and toughness to determine the appropriate material for the job. These concepts were used in Metallurgy. The designed tool will be required to endure repetitive impacts. To ensure it does this, careful thought will be put size and structural shape of both tool ends using the concepts learned in Statics, Strengths, and Dynamics. It will be necessary to analyze the forces the tool is expected to handle and determine the location and limits for bending stress, shear stress, and deformation. These values all support the tool material selection.
Scope:
Within this projects boundarys the focus is on the tool head itself. This includes the material selection, shape, and structure of the multi-use head. The designed tool head will then be constructed and tested by the designer. The design of the tool is required to meet the need for scraping and chopping on the fire line
The success of the project is based on the performance of the final tool. The tool should fit in with all other hand tools used for fire suppression. The scraping end of the tool will remove soil more effectivly than the standard pulaski. The axe end will chop easily through branches and roots giving extra purpose to this surdy fire line tool.
To read the current project report please select the "Engineering Report."