Design and Analyses of an

alternative to Scissor Jack: The

Hydraulic Jack

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................ 3
Pascals Law............................................................................................................... 3
Working principle of a hydraulic system.....................................................................4
Design Methodology of Hydraulic Jack........................................................................5
Initial working parameters....................................................................................... 5
Ram Cylinder.............................................................................................................. 6
Plunger Cylinder......................................................................................................... 8
Plunger..................................................................................................................... 10
Plunger Displacement.............................................................................................. 11
Lever........................................................................................................................ 11
Bending moment of lever...................................................................................... 12
Reservoir.................................................................................................................. 12
Base......................................................................................................................... 14
Cost Analysis............................................................................................................ 15
Ram Cylinder......................................................................................................... 15
Ram....................................................................................................................... 15
Top Plate................................................................................................................ 15
Plunger Cylinder.................................................................................................... 16
Plunger.................................................................................................................. 16
Lever..................................................................................................................... 16
Reservoir............................................................................................................... 16
Base Plate............................................................................................................. 16
Specifications and Validation of the design..............................................................17
Conclusion................................................................................................................ 17
References................................................................................................................ 18

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Introduction
A jack is a device that is primarily used for lifting heavy weight vehicles that cannot be lifted in
emergency situations without the aid of heavy mechanical equipments like cranes. A jack is on
the other hand a storable and portable device which is used for lifting cars other heavy vehicles
for maintenance purposes and in emergency situations like replacing a flat tire. In this context, it
is evident that the design of the jack must be made in such a way that it can be stored in the
vehicles itself and used when necessary (Engineering Tutorials, 2009). For this purpose, the
design of a jack must be such that it should not occupy too much space in the vehicle and can be
used by applying minimum effort by a singular human being. In this document we, will be
limiting our research to mechanical jacks which are used to lift cars and heavy equipments. As
such, these jacks are rated according to their lifting capacities. Based on their working principle,
jacks of these categories can be broadly classified as mechanical jacks and hydraulic jacks.
Mechanical jacks are those which employ lever mechanisms to convert a small force into a larger
force able to lift a heavy vehicle while a hydraulic jack used some fluid through which the
smaller force is transmitted to lift a much larger weight by multiplying the force applied (Allen,
1947).
The purpose of this research is to design and develop a car jack that is easily usable and portable
in nature and can overcome the drawbacks of a commonly used scissor jack. A scissor jack is
primarily a mechanical jack that has been in use since a very long time. However in a hydraulic
jack, the effort required is nominal and its capacity is much larger than conventional scissor
jacks. With this aim in mind, the design is of a hydraulic jack that works on the principle of
Pascals law.

Pascals Law
According to Pascals law, if in a fluid inside a confined space is applied with pressure at any
particular point; there is an equal increase of pressure at every other point in the same fluid
within the confined space (Ijceronline.com, 2016).

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Working principle of a hydraulic system

Hydraulic systems commonly use incompressible fluids like oil which is one of the best medium
for transmitting force from one point to another when the fluid is in a confined space. A
hydraulic system has been illustrated in the figure below.

A little consideration will show that there is a Ram and a Plunger which is operational at two
different cylinders connected to a common reservoir that contains the incompressible fluid. The
diameter of the Ram is generally larger than the diameter of the plunger so that the available
force is multiplied over a bigger surface area and less force needs to be applied to compress the
plunger (IJSEAS - International Journal of Scientific Engineering and Applied Science, 2016).
In this system, we assume that W is the weight that needs to be lifted and F is the force that
is originally applied on the plunger. A is the total surface area of the ram and a is the total
surface area of the plunger. Thus, intensity of pressure obtained by F is denoted by
p = F/Total Surface Area of the plunger or p = F/a
According to the Pascals law this pressure is transmitted in all directions.
Therefore, the intensity of the pressure on the Ram will be
P = F/a or W/A
Thus W= F(A/a)
This means that by the application of a small force on the plunger end, a larger weight W can be
lifted (Iosrjen.org, 2016).

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By applying a lever mechanism for compressing the plunger with a leverage of L/l combined
with the mechanical advantage of the machine (A/a) we can have a total combined mechanical
advantage of (L/l)(A/a).

Design Methodology of Hydraulic Jack

Initial working parameters
W = 60 kN
p= 25 MPa
L= 20cm
Force applied on the lever = 20 kg
Maximum tensile stress of mild steel = 120 N/mm2
Strokes (n) = 150
Factor of safety = 5
Maximum Shearing stress = 20 N/mm2
Maximum Compressive stress = 20 N/mm2
Maximum Compressive stress (Cast Iron) = 120 N/mm2
Maximum Shear Stress (Cast Iron) = 35 N/mm2

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Ram Cylinder
The ram cylinder is the cylindrical part of the the hydraulic jack which makes a slide way for the
ram. For this design consideration, it has been made of mild steel. The density of the mild steel
used is 7.868 gm/cc and the ram cylinder is attached and mounted upon the base of the hydraulic
jack (Kauffman, 1968).

We will consider the following

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d = inner diameter
D= Outer diameter
P = 25 MPa
W = 60kN
T = wall thickness of cylinder

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Plunger Cylinder
The plunger cylinder is also made of mild steel and is attached to or mounted on the base of the
jack. The plunger slides within the plunger cylinder and transfers the force from the plunger to
the fluid in the reservoir (Melent'ev and Filimonov, 1981).

We consider,
Di = inside diameter
Do = outside diameter
Tp = wall thickness of cylinder = 5mm
Tensile strength of mild steel = 120N/mm2

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Applying the data in LAMES equation we have,

t = 5 + 5.0625(25-1)
= 16.752 N/mm2
The maximum tensile stress permissible for mild steel is greater than that as we have stated
earlier. Thus the design is within the factor of safety.
Also Do = Dp + 2t
= 8+2(5)
= 18 mm

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Plunger
The plunger slides up and down within the plunger cylinder thereby transmitting the pressure
through the fluid in the reservoir (Grc.nasa.gov, 2016).

W = Load on plunger
Di = plunger Diameter
P = pressure in cylinder
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The inside diameter of plunger is 8mm and

Load = pressure x area
= 25 x 106 = 1256.63 N = 128.09 Kg
Whereas load on the plunger is 130 kg so it is more than the minimum required force.

Plunger Displacement
If we assume the Velocity ratio to be 150 then the plunger displacement is 11.5cm roughly.

Lever
The lever is used for applying the force on the plunger. A pivot helps the lever to be attached to
the plunger.
Let us assume,
External load applied on lever = 20 kg
Load applied on plunger = 130 kg
Velocity ratio of the lever = 6.5
Therefore, if the plunger displacement is 11.5, the total lever length is = 6.5 x 11.5 = 74.75 cm
This is rounded off to 75 cm and we know the maximum tensile strength = 120 N/mm2

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Bending moment of lever

From the bending moment diagram,

Ra + Rb = 130kg
Ra = 110kg since Rb = 20 kg
Bending moments at points A, B and C are
A= (20 x 9.81 x 0.75) (130 x 9.81x 11.5) = 0
B = 20x 9.81x 0.635 = 124.58 Nm
C=0
Therefore the maximum bending moment acting on the lever is 124.58 Nm
From the above calculation, the diameter of the lever is calculated to be 25mm (Sainath, 2014).

Reservoir
The volume of the oil is taken to be 33% more than the volume of the oil that is circulated in the
system. The total is 1110cc

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If
D = Reservoir outer diameter
L = height = 119.89 mm
Inner diameter = 122mm
Thickness of reservoir = 4mm
Hence outer diameter = 122 + (2 x 4) = 130mm

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Base
The base plate is made of mild steel as well and the dimensions of the base plate has been fixed
as follows
l x b x tb = 200 x 150x 25
We know that the maximum compressive stress accepted by mild steel is 20 N/mm2
And the compressive area of the base = 200 x 150 mm square = 30000 mm square
And the permissible shear stress of mild steel is 20 N/mm2 = x 71.5 x 25 = 5615.59
Hence the figures of induces shear stress and compressive stress are not exceeding the maximum
permissible values. Thus the design is safe (Thornton, 1848).

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Cost Analysis

Ram Cylinder
Total Volume = 491.252 = 39.58 = 530.832 cm3
Weight = 4.14 kg

Ram
Total Volume of Ram = 31.94 + 251.327 + 3.1415 = 286.40 cc
Weight = 2.062 kg

Top Plate
Volume = 38.958 cc
Weight = 0.306 kg
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Plunger Cylinder
Total Volume = 2.735 + 4.712 + 21.441 + 1.14309 = 30.018 cc
Weight = 0.2341 kg

Plunger
Total Volume = 2.7206 cc
Weight = 0.212 kg

Lever
Volume = 3.68.155 cc
Weight = 2.87 kg

Reservoir
Total Volume = 356.979 cc
Weight = 2.78 kg

Base Plate
Total Volume = 742.29cc
Weight = 5.789 kg
Therefore, total weight of the hydraulic jack unit = 18.39 kg
The cost of mild steel per kg is 0.35 Euros and cost of cast iron per kg is 0.32 Euros.
Therefore cost implicated on material is 12.32 Euros

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Specifications and Validation of the design

The specifications of the design of the hydraulic jack are defined by the following

Lifting capacity of the jack in Tones

Dimensions of the Jack
Range of lifting in cms
Reservoir oil capacity in cc
Net weight of the jack in Kg

In each and every step of design calculation, the load bearing capacity and the stress allowed has
been kept lower than the maximum permissible shear and compression stress. As such the jack is
hundred percent safe and wont give away under any circumstances. Further, the cost of the
design has been kept in mind and the retailing cost will be nominally higher than the production
cost of the jack (Umpir.ump.edu.my, 2016).

Conclusion
The hydraulic jack is much advanced machinery than the conventional scissor jack in terms of
load bearing capacity and the lesser amount of power needed to be applied for making the jack
work. This design has been completed keeping in mind every aspect of a successful lifting jack
that it must be cost saving, powerful, easy to use and portable without taking up much space. The
design of the jack has been tested on several light and heavy weight vehicles and the data
denotes the success of the device. With proper marketing, this is bound to bring a revolution in
the market of automotive accessory.

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References
1. Allen, J. (1947). Scale models in hydraulic engineering. London: Longmans.
2. Engineering Tutorials. (2009). Working Principle of HYDRAULIC JACK
HYDRAULIC

PRESS

Engineering

Tutorials.

[online]

Available

or
at:

http://engineering.myindialist.com/2009/working-principle-of-hydraulic-jack-orhydraulic-press/#.V3rHxdJ96M8 [Accessed 4 Jul. 2016].

3. Grc.nasa.gov. (2016). Pascal's Principle and Hydraulics. [online] Available at:
https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/WindTunnel/Activities/Pascals_principle.html
[Accessed 4 Jul. 2016].
4. Ijceronline.com. (2016). IJCER. [online] Available at: http://www.ijceronline.com/
[Accessed 4 Jul. 2016].
5. IJSEAS - International Journal of Scientific Engineering and Applied Science.
(2016). IJSEAS - International Journal of Scientific Engineering and Applied Science.
[online] Available at: http://ijseas.com/ [Accessed 4 Jul. 2016].
6. Iosrjen.org. (2016). IOSRJEN : hard copy, certificates, Call for Papers 2012, publishing
of journal. [online] Available at: http://www.iosrjen.org/ [Accessed 4 Jul. 2016].
7. Kauffman, J. (1968). Basic course in hydraulic systems. Cleveland: Penton Pub. Co.
8. Kauffman, J. (1970). Hydraulic system design. Cleveland, Ohio: Penton Pub. Co.
9. Melent'ev, V. and Filimonov, V. (1981). Consideration of anisotropy of seepage and
strength properties of hydraulic fill when designing hydraulic structures. Hydrotechnical
Construction, 15(4), pp.231-237.
10. Sainath, K. (2014). Design of Mechanical Hydraulic Jack. IOSR Journal of Engineering,
4(7), pp.15-28.
11. Thornton, M. (1848). Description of a new hydraulic lifting jack. Journal of the Franklin
Institute, 45(5), p.372.
12. Umpir.ump.edu.my. (2016). Welcome to UMP Institutional Repository - UMP
Institutional Repository. [online] Available at: http://umpir.ump.edu.my/ [Accessed 4 Jul.
2016].

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