{"id":5541,"date":"2022-12-31T13:11:30","date_gmt":"2022-12-31T19:11:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/?p=5541"},"modified":"2023-07-26T10:06:22","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T16:06:22","slug":"how-commercial-operator-clutches-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How Commercial Operator Clutches Work"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Commercial Operator Clutches are one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2020\/08\/21\/commercial-door-operator-safety-systems\/\">safety devices<\/a> that operator manufacturers use to keep their doors from causing injuries or damage. The clutch will slip, which keeps the operator from forcing the door open or shut if something is obstructing it. If you need to replace your clutch, we have instructions on our blog post about <a href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-to-replace-the-clutch-on-a-commercial-jackshaft-operator\/\">how to replace the clutch on a commercial jackshaft operator<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How Commercial Operator Clutches Work\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MGfKvGRxPgk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In this video, we use a vise grip and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.liftmaster.com\/for-homes\/garage-door-openers\">LiftMaster operator<\/a> to demonstrate how commercial operator clutches work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The clutch connects to the operator&#8217;s motor by a v-belt and a pulley. Under normal circumstances, the motor turns the v-belt, which turns the pulley, which turns the shaft, which transfers torque through several other <a href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2020\/11\/06\/liftmaster-model-j-drive-components\/\">drive components<\/a> to open or close the garage door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, if there is something obstructing the garage door, the increased resistance will cause the clutch to slip. This keeps the operator from trying to force the door open or shut. As a result, whatever or whoever is obstructing the door will hopefully suffer fewer injuries or less damage. For example, if by mistake the door closes on someone, the clutch slipping will keep the full strength of the motor from coming down on top of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-1024x520.png\" alt=\"With a vice grip fastened onto the shaft to keep it from turning, the clutch slips so the torque from the motor is not transferred to the shaft\" class=\"wp-image-5542\" width=\"459\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-1024x520.png 1024w, https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-300x152.png 300w, https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-768x390.png 768w, https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-1536x780.png 1536w, https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener.png 1654w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 459px) 100vw, 459px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>Using a vise grip to obstruct the operator so that the clutch slips<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This is accomplished by having the pulley from the motor not connect directly to the shaft. Instead, springs and a pressure plate hold it in place. This indirect connection is strong enough to open and close a garage door, while still allowing the clutch to slip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We hope this will give you a better understanding of how <a href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/parts\/garage-door-commercial-operator.html\">commercial operator<\/a> clutches work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Commercial Operator Clutches are one of the safety devices that operator manufacturers use to keep their doors from causing injuries or damage. The clutch will slip, which keeps the operator from forcing the door open or shut if something is obstructing it. If you need to replace your clutch, we have instructions on our blog [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5028,247],"tags":[4046,4043,3986],"class_list":["post-5541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-how-garage-doors-work","category-products","tag-clutches","tag-commercial-operators","tag-liftmaster"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.2 (Yoast SEO v25.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How Commercial Operator Clutches Work - DDM Garage Doors Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Operator clutches are one of the safety devices on commercial operators. In this video, we demonstrate how commercial operator clutches work.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Commercial Operator Clutches Work\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Operator clutches are one of the safety devices on commercial operators. In this video, we demonstrate how commercial operator clutches work.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"DDM Garage Doors Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-12-31T19:11:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-07-26T16:06:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-1024x520.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Philip Kendall\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Philip Kendall\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/\",\"name\":\"How Commercial Operator Clutches Work - DDM Garage Doors Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/31\/how-commercial-operator-clutches-work\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Using-a-Vice-Grip-to-obstruct-the-opener-1024x520.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-12-31T19:11:30+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-26T16:06:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ddmgaragedoors.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f1686791653061ecd9cb116f4408829b\"},\"description\":\"Operator clutches are one of the safety devices on commercial operators. 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