Loading weight detection device for weighing cargo of a mobile body

• US 10,132,674 B2
• Filed: 10/22/2014
• Issued: 11/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology
• Original Assignee: Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology
• Inventors: Watanabe, Yutaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Huls, Natalie
• Application Number:
  US15/031,735
• Publication Number:
  US 20160265960A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,490 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/022 for weighing wheeled or rolling bodies in motion G01G19/045 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/08 for incorporation in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/086 wherein the vehicle mass is dynamically estimated
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 3/16 measuring variations of frequency of oscillations of the body

Abstract

A loading weight detection device applicable to various mobile bodies can accurately detect loading weight with minimized number of input variables. It includes a touch panel 33 receiving input of vehicle body weight m_a and initial setting cargo weight m_b0; an oscillation detection part 20 detecting cargo vehicle oscillation; an arithmetic part 31 functioning as natural vibration identifying means for identifying natural vibration in self-weight direction as vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value, based on oscillation data detected by an oscillation detection part 20; a storage part 32 storing vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value identified by an arithmetic part 31 with cargo having initial setting cargo weight of m_b0 loaded on cargo vehicle, vehicle body weight m_a, and initial setting cargo weight m_b0 as initial setting data, arithmetic part 31 calculating total weight M, being based on vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value identified and initial setting data.

Claims

1. A loading weight detection device that detects the cargo weight of a cargo having an unknown weight that is loaded on a mobile body based on a correlation of oscillation and weight determined from a known cargo weight loaded on the mobile body, comprising:

an initial setting input means for receiving an input of a vehicle body weight of said mobile body, a breadth between virtual springs in said mobile body, and the known cargo weight;

an oscillation detection means for detecting an oscillation of said mobile body;

a natural vibration identifying means for identifying, on the basis of oscillation data that has been detected by the oscillation detection means, the natural vibration in a self-weight direction of said mobile body as a vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value, and the natural vibration around a vehicle axis of said mobile body as a horizontal oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value;

a storage means for storing a first data comprising a first vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value and a first horizontal oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value that have been identified by said natural vibration identifying means with cargo having said known cargo weight being loaded on said mobile body, and said vehicle body weight, said breadth between the virtual springs, and said known cargo weight that have been received by said initial setting input means as initial setting data;

a total weight calculation means for calculating a total weight of said mobile body that is loaded with said cargo having the unknown weight on the basis of applying second data to a correlation derived from the first data, wherein the second data comprises a second vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value and a second horizontal oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value that have been identified by said natural vibration identifying means with said cargo having an unknown weight being loaded on said mobile body; and

a reporting part for reporting the unknown weight, wherein the unknown weight is determined by the difference of said total weight and said vehicle body weight.

2. The loading weight detection device according to claim 1, wherein said natural vibration identifying means applies fast Fourier transformation to time series oscillation data that has been detected by said oscillation detection means to identify said vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value and said horizontal oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value.

3. The loading weight detection device according to claim 1, wherein said vertical oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value and said horizontal oscillation center-of-gravity-specific natural vibration value that are identified by said natural vibration identifying means are natural vibration frequencies.

4. The loading weight detection device according to claim 1, wherein said total weight calculation means calculates a total weight of said mobile body in consideration of the height in the vertical direction from the oscillation center axis to the center-of-gravity location of said mobile body, the displacement in the horizontal direction from the oscillation center axis to the center-of-gravity location of said mobile body, and the static inclination angle of a cargo bed in said mobile body.