flate plate design

huangyhg

flate plate design
i have a 100x50x6 rhs with another splitting it in the middle all welded together making a "t"shape but flat. this is for a lifting basket for a forklift and the rhs is for the forks to slot into but i need to design the frame for lift by crane also.
if there is a udl along the top how do i go about designing the top and bottom plates of the rhs to take the load through the plates top and bottom? any examples or method would be of great help.  
can you not simply keep the existing wall and full pen butt weld the new section against it?  ie: does the joint have to be hollow?
a sketch might help, but i think your question is clear.  
if you can't keep the web, you might just have to consider the top plate as a beam element, or the entire section as a frame.
cheers,
ys
b.eng (carleton)
working in new zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...
the joint has to be hollow to allow the forks to enter but the rhs sections either side will be butt welded to the end i just need to prove the open rhs in the middle will transfer the moment through its top and bottom plate so its sort of acting like a ub with a web section cut out the middle with a udl along the top.  
do you mean the forks enter through the rhs you're designing?  so there are two holes, one on each side of the rhs, to allow the forks to pass through into the 't' butted rhs?
i'm sorry, but i'm affraid i don't see that working... load dependant, of course, but without any web you don't have a shear tranfer, except around the outside of the penetration.  you can try to line the hole with a tube capable of taking the load around, but this would be quite a thick tube.
sound like you might have a situation where you're creating a hinge.  post a sketch if you want more help.
cheeers,
ys
b.eng (carleton)
working in new zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...
for similar cases i've previously just welded a short stub of hss above or below, and at right angles to, the main hss section. in some cases i have also used a "box" consisting of three plates and the bottom face of the hss, which avoids the rounded corners hss generally have.
cutting through the section may be giving you the lowest resistance under the highest demand depending on loads and geometry.
heres a shetch of what is looks like best i could do gives you a better idea.
stu:
respectfully, you'll need help to make this work if you can't analyse is on your own.  are you a structural engineer?
the forces may pass through the joining shs sections, but i don't think it will be as effective as you would hope.  depending on exactly where the loads come onto the frame this may or may not work.  also lining the palet with a shs section might be able to make it strong enough.
i think you need some help, and more than anyone can provide online.  gwynn's suggestion would be easier to make work with much less analysis.
good luck,
ys
b.eng (carleton)
working in new zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...