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Airchain

FM radio airchain emulation — AGC, four-band squash, emphasis, clipper and transmission artifacts behind one big SQUASH knob.

VST3 / AUmacOS14 presets
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support@squaresmile.de Köln, Germany

Free · A Squaresmile app

The bridle calculator that teaches you the math.

RiggingSense turns stage statics into something you can grab: drag loads across a truss and watch the hoist readings move, drag a bridle apex and watch leg tension explode at flat angles — with every formula solved step by step using your numbers.

Free — 30-second signup, no card 11 languages · kg, kN & lb A learning tool — not a certification tool
Live demo — drag the slider: bridle angle45°

At 45° each leg carries 0.71 × the load. Drop below 30° and every leg carries more than the whole load.

How it works

Grab the rig. Watch the numbers. Read the math.

01

Set up a scenario

Beam, two-hoist truss or overhang — drag loads along it, toggle truss self-weight and chain weight, or drag a bridle apex between two anchors.

02

Watch it react

Reactions, leg tensions and bending moments update live. Uneven hoists get flagged; a load past the last hoist triggers the uplift lesson.

03

Read the math

The "Show the Math" panel solves every step with your numbers substituted in — no black box, ever.

04

Train your intuition

Adaptive quiz, levels 1–9: estimate first, get graded, then walked through the full solution. XP, streaks, badges.

Features

The statics course you never got, as a tool.

Beam & truss sandbox

Ground beams, two-hoist trusses and overhangs on one engine — with self-weight, chain weight, skew warnings and the classic tipping-truss uplift case.

The bridle module

Geometry-driven: drag the apex, read per-leg angle, length, tension and its vertical & horizontal components — with the landmark curve every course opens with.

Step-by-step math

Every calculator walks the formula with your numbers, line by line. Locale-aware formatting in 11 languages, kg / kN / lb.

WLL & safety factors

MBS ÷ safety factor = WLL, hoist classes (D8, D8+, C1) in plain language, and a live check against your sandbox's worst hoist load.

Gamified training

Start easy, level up as you get better — tolerances tighten from ±15 % to ±5 %. Wrong answers open the full explanation and the glossary.

Share & print

Every scenario is a link — send "solve this rig" to a colleague. Named saves sync to your account; print a clean scenario sheet.

In the tool

The sandbox, mid-lesson.

RiggingSense's Truss & hoists sandbox: a 250 kg point load at 3 m on an 8 m truss, with hoist readings of 186.3 kg and 123.8 kg, the reaction check summing to 310 kg, and the maximum bending moment of 524.3 kg·m.
An off-center 250 kg load on an 8 m truss — the upstage hoist reads 186.3 kg, the check sums the reactions back to the load, and the bending moment lands where the span tables care.

Who it's for

For everyone who learned rigging on the job.

Stagehands & riggers

Put numbers under your intuition — why the upstage motor reads more, and what a 30° bridle really does.

FOH & monitor engineers

Understand what your PA hang does to the truss and the points, and speak the rigger's language at load-in.

Tour & production managers

Read span tables, WLLs and rigging plots with confidence — and know which questions to ask before signing off.

FAQ

Quick answers.

Is this a certified rigging calculator?

No — deliberately not. RiggingSense teaches the statics; real rigs are verified by certified riggers and engineers against manufacturer data and the applicable standards (DGUV V17/18, SQP2, DIN EN 17206). The tool says so on every page and every printout.

What math does it cover?

Beam and truss reactions (including overhangs and uplift), superposition with self-weight and chain weight, maximum bending moment, two-leg bridle tensions (symmetric and asymmetric) with force components, and WLL = MBS ÷ safety factor.

Does it work on a tablet?

Yes — it is designed for tablets and desktops (768 px and up). Dragging is touch-friendly, and every drag has a keyboard and numeric-input equivalent.

What units does it use?

kg by default because that is how the trade talks, with kN or lb one toggle away — and a glossary entry explaining the kg vs. kgf vs. kN distinction properly.

Ready when you are

Understand your next rig, don't just trust it.

Create a free Squaresmile account and you're in — one login unlocks RiggingSense and every other Squaresmile app.

The Squaresmile suite

More tools on Squaresmile — one free account

Every browser tool below is free the moment you sign up. Create one account and the whole toolbox follows you from gig to gig — no installs, no app store.

Show day

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Train your senses

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