Beijing Great Wheel
Beijing Great Wheel | |
---|---|
General information | |
Status | Went into receivership in 2010 |
Type | Ferris wheel |
Location | Chaoyang Park, Beijing, China |
Coordinates | 39°56′58″N 116°28′47″E / 39.94944°N 116.47972°E |
Height | 208 m (682 ft) |
The Beijing Great Wheel, (simplified Chinese:
The Great Wheel Corporation originally forecast the wheel would start turning on August 1, 2008, one week in advance of the Beijing-hosted 2008 Summer Olympics.[1] In 2007, Chinese state media reported that construction had begun, with completion delayed until 2009 due to design issues.[1] Completion was subsequently rescheduled for 2010.[2][3]
On 3 May 2010 it was reported that Great Beijing Wheel Co., the company set up to build the wheel, had gone into receivership after breaching the conditions of a loan, with Ferrier Hodgson and Zolfo Cooper appointed as administrative receivers.[4]
Design[edit]
If it had been completed, the wheel would have had a diameter of 198 m (650 ft), and each of its 48 air conditioned observation capsules would have been able to carry up to 40 passengers.[5]
It would have been rotated by four drive units, each capable of producing over 16 million lb-ft of torque and comprising a pair of hydraulic drive modules, each module containing a hydraulic power unit driving four hydraulic motors. Each of the 32 hydraulic motors was to have powered a planetary gearbox driving rubber tyres against the wheel's circumferential rim.[5]
An automated boarding system would have enabled the wheel to rotate continuously while passengers boarded and disembarked the capsules via electric feeder vehicles.[5]
It was expected that, on a clear sunny day, passengers would have been able to see the Great Wall of China in the mountains to Beijing's north.[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Beijing begins construction of world's biggest wheel Archived 2013-07-05 at the Wayback Machine AFP 2007-11-05
- ^ "Beijing Great Wheel may face more delays". straitstimes.com. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
- ^ "Introduction". greatwheel.com. Archived from the original on 2010-01-27. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
- ^ "Beijing Ferris wheel company in receivership - IFR". FinanzNachrichten.de. 3 May 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ^ a b c "Hydraulics powers Great Wheel of Beijing". hydraulicspneumatics.com. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ^ Great Wall old hat as Beijing eyes Great Wheel Reuters 2007-11-05, Ben Blanchard