The Burke Brise Soleil is the name given to the movable
sunshade atop the Milwaukee Art Museum. This sunshade consists
of a pair of wing-like structures, each made of 36 steel ribs
ranging in length from 24 to 105ft. Twenty two hydraulic cylinders,
11 each side are stroked simultaneously to operate cranks attached
to the main shaft. The cranks swing 90 degrees to open and close
the sunshade in under 10 minutes. The Oilgear control system
makes all this possible at a touch of a button.
Rear-pivot-mounted
hydraulic cylinders with rod-eye hinges extend to
operate cranks that rotate a wing-opening shaft.
The Oilgear
electronic control system provided in this application
has been programmed to open, close, and move the sunshade
to different positions according to a programmable time-table.
Giving the sunshade a life of its own, but the ability
to intervene anytime it is felt necessary is also possible.
The programmed time-table can be overridden manually
at anytime from the guard desk.
The electronic control system also monitors weather
conditions to quickly react to a variety of situations.
Because of the large surface area of the wings, the
structure is vulnerable to high winds. Two winds sensors
are connected to the control system to monitor wind
gusts and automatically closes the sunshade upon reading
a wind gust over 23mph for more than three seconds.
The system is also equipped with a lightning sensor
that
indicates when a lightning strike is possible, which
in turn triggers the system to automatically close
the
sunshade and is a high-wind condition. Watch the video.
None of these
fancy dance steps the sunshade does would be possible
without the Oilgear designed, constructed and installed
power unit. Each 30-Hp motor drives tandem PVWH11 pumps
with servo control. The pumps sets work together as one
unit to move the sunshade. However if one of the pump
sets is out of service the other can move the structure
at half the normal speed.In the event of a power failure
the structure can be moved using manual overrides provided
on the power unit.
Tandem
Oilgear PVWH11 axial-piston pumps are rated at
3500PSI continuous, 4000PSI maximum. Each Section
can deliver 33.7 GPM at 1200 RPM. Servo Control
allows the swash plate to be positioned with closed-loop
accuracy.
More Photos
Below are photos from the construction as well as the grand
opening celebration.
