Automatically operated shovel and stone crushing system comprising same

• US 20030019132A1
• Filed: 09/26/2002
• Published: 01/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Construction Machinery Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Construction Machinery Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Hashimoto, Akira, Kurenuma, Toru, Sugawara, Kazuhiro, Ishibashi, Hideto, Nagano, Yoshiyuki
• Granted Patent: US 6,732,458 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 37/348
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 3/437 providing automatic sequences of movements, e.g. linear excavation, keeping dipper angle constant
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 3/438 Memorising movements for repetition, e.g. play-back capability
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2037 Coordinating the movements of the implement and of the frame
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2041 Automatic repositioning of implements, i.e. memorising determined positions of the implement for dipper-arms or bucket-arms E02F3/434, E02F3/437, E02F3/438, E02F3/439 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/205 Remotely operated machines, e.g. unmanned vehicles E02F3/8866 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/26 Indicating devices E02F5/145 takes precedence

Abstract

An automatically operated shovel, which includes a power shovel and an automatic operation controller 50 for making the power shovel reproduce a series of taught operations ranging from digging to dumping, is characterized in that the automatic operation controller is provided with a positioning determination means 511 for determining whether or not the power shovel has reached within a taught position range predetermined based on corresponding one of positioning accuracies set for individual taught positions of said power shovel, and, when the power shovel is determined to have reached within the predetermined taught position range, the automatic operation controller outputs a next taught position as a target position.

Claims

1. An automatically operated shovel including a power shovel and an automatic operation controller arranged on said power shovel for making said power shovel reproduce a series of taught operations ranging from digging to dumping, characterized in that said automatic operation controller is provided with a positioning determination means for determining whether or not said power shovel has reached within a positioning range predetermined based on corresponding one of positioning accuracies set for individual taught positions of said power shovel;

and, when said power shovel is determined to have reached within said predetermined positioning range, said automatic operation controller outputs next one of said taught positions as a target position.

2. An automatically operated shovel according to claim 1, wherein during reproducing operations from an initiation of said digging to an end of said digging, said automatic operation controller outputs, subsequent to outputting one of said taught positions as a target position, a target position based on next one of said taught positions without performing a determination by said positioning determination means.

6. An automatically operated shovel according to any one of claim 1, claim 3 and claim 4, wherein among said positioning accuracies set for said individual taught positions from an initiation of said digging to an end of said digging, said positioning accuracies at said taught positions other than a digging initiating position and a digging ending position are set lower than positioning accuracies at said digging initiating position and said digging ending position.

7. An automatically operated shovel according to any one of claim 1, claim 3, claim 4 and claim 6, wherein said positioning accuracies set for said individual taught positions in a digging operation are set lower than said positioning accuracies set for said individual taught positions in a dumping operation.

8. An automatically operated shovel according to any one of claim 1 to claim 7, wherein said positioning accuracies set for said individual taught positions can be set at will by an operating means arranged on said power shovel or at a position remote from said power shovel.

3. An automatically operated shovel including a power shovel provided with solenoid-operated directional control valves for operating hydraulic cylinders, which are adapted to actuate at least a boom, an arm and a bucket, and a hydraulic motor for driving a swivel superstructure and also with angle detector for detecting angles between said swivel superstructure and said boom, between said boom and said arm and between said arm and said bucket, respectively, a taught position output means for successively reading and outputting taught position data which have been taught and stored, a servo preprocessing means for being inputted with said taught position data and outputting target position data with position data interpolated between said taught position data to allow said power shovel to operate smoothly, and a servo control means for being inputted with said target position data and outputting control signals to said solenoid-operated directional control valves to control said power shovel to a target position, characterized in that said automatic operation controller is provided with a positioning determination means for determining whether or not said power shovel has reached within a positioning range predetermined based on corresponding one of positioning accuracies set for individual taught positions of said power shovel;

and, when said power shovel is determined to have reached within said predetermined positioning range, said automatic operation controller outputs target position data based on next taught position data from said servo preprocessing section to said servo control section.

4. An automatically operated shovel according to claim 3, wherein said automatic operation controller is provided with a computing means for computing positioning accuracies of said swivel superstructure, boom, arm and bucket, respectively, based on said corresponding one of said positioning accuracies set for said individual taught positions;

and said positioning determination means determines whether or not said swivel superstructure, boom, arm and bucket have reached within their corresponding positioning ranges predetermined based on said positioning accuracies, respectively.

5. An automatically operated shovel according to any one of claims 3 and 4, wherein during reproducing operations from an initiation of digging to an end of said digging, said servo preprocessing section outputs, subsequent to outputting final target position data corresponding to said taught position data, target position data based on next taught position data without performing a determination by said positioning determination means.

9. A method for automatically operating an automatically operated shovel to make a power shovel reproduce a series of taught operations ranging from digging to dumping, characterized in that said method comprises the following steps:

(1) commanding taught positions and reproducing operation speeds and positioning accuracies at said taught positions to make said power shovel reproduce said operations;

(2) computing target positions interpolated between said taught positions and taught positions preceding said taught positions to smoothen said reproducing operation;

(3) commanding said target positions in succession;

(4) determining whether or not a final target position out of said target positions, said final target position corresponding to said taught position, has been commanded and, when said final target position is not determined to have been commanded, performing said third step until said final target position is commanded;

(5) when said final target position is determined to have been commanded in said fourth step, determining whether or not said positioning accuracy at said taught position is not smaller than a predetermined value;

(6) when said positioning accuracy is determined to be not smaller than said predetermined value in said fifth step, determining whether or not a current position has reached within a positioning range predetermined based on said positioning accuracy and, when said current position is not determined to have reached within said positioning range, repeating said determination until said current position is determined to have reached within said positioning range; and

(7) when said positioning accuracy is not determined to be not smaller than said predetermined value in said fifth step or when said current position is determined to have reached within said positioning range in said sixth step, commanding a taught position, which is next to said taught position, and a reproducing operation speed and a positioning accuracy at said next taught position.

10. An automatically operated shovel including a power shovel and an automatic operation controller arranged on said power shovel for making said power shovel reproduce a series of taught operations ranging from digging to dumping, characterized in that said automatic operation controller is provided with a delay means such that after a predetermined time has elapsed since an output of taught positions as target position data during reproducing operations ranging from an initiation of digging to an end of said digging, said automatic operation controller outputs next target position data.

12. An automatically operated shovel according to any one of claim 10 and claim 11, wherein said predetermined time set by said delay means is set at a time in which at a time of a light load or no load, said power shovel reaches said target position of said target position data after said taught position is outputted as said target position data.

11. An automatically operated shovel including a power shovel provided with solenoid-operated directional control valves for operating hydraulic cylinders, which are adapted to actuate at least a boom, an arm and a bucket, and a hydraulic motor for driving a swivel superstructure and also with angle detectors for detecting angles between said swivel superstructure and said boom, between said boom and said arm and between said arm and said bucket, respectively, a target position output means for successively reading taught position data, which have been taught and stored, and outputting the same as target position data, a servo preprocessing means for being inputted with said target position data, outputting said target position data and also outputting interpolated target position data to allow said power shovel to operate smoothly, and a servo control means for being inputted with said respective target position data and outputting control signals to said solenoid-operated directional control valves to control said power shovel to a target position, characterized in that said target position output means is provided with a delay means such that after a predetermined time has elapsed since an output of taught positions as target position data from said servo preprocessing means to said servo control section during reproducing operations ranging from an initiation of digging to an end of said digging, said target position output means outputs next target position data.

13. A rock crushing system for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said rock crushing system is provided with a quarried rock accumulation site for accumulating quarried rock dumped downwardly from a carry-in level on which said quarried rock is carried in;

an excavator for bucketing said quarried rock accumulated at said quarried rock accumulation site and dumping the same; and

a crusher for crushing said quarried rock, which has been dumped from said excavator, into crushed stone.

16. A rock crushing system according to any one of claim 13 to claim 15, wherein a bottom surface of said quarried rock accumulation site is located below a level at which said excavator is installed.

17. A rock crushing system according to any one of claim 13 to claim 15, wherein a bottom surface of said quarried rock accumulation site is located at substantially the same level as a level at which said excavator is installed.

14. A rock crushing system for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said rock crushing system is provided with a quarried rock transporting apparatus for transporting quarried rock;

a quarried rock accumulation site for accumulating quarried rock dumped downwardly from a carry-in level on which said quarried rock is carried in by said quarried rock transporting apparatus;

an excavator for bucketing said quarried rock accumulated at said quarried rock accumulation site and dumping the same; and

a crusher for crushing said quarried rock, which has been dumped from said excavator, into crushed stone.

15. A rock crushing system for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said rock crushing system is provided with a quarried rock transporting apparatus for transporting quarried rock;

a quarried rock accumulation site for accumulating quarried rock dumped downwardly from a carry-in level on which said quarried rock is carried in by said quarried rock transporting apparatus;

an excavator for automatically performing work to bucket said quarried rock, which has been accumulated at said quarried rock accumulation site, and to dump the same;

a crusher for crushing said quarried rock, which has been dumped from said excavator, into crushed stone; and

a remote operation system for performing remote operation and control of said automatic operation of said excavator.

18. A quarried rock accumulation site for a rock crushing system for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said quarried rock accumulation site is provided with a bottom on which quarried rock is accumulated;

a first guide wall for guiding quarried rock, which has been dumped from a quarried rock transporting apparatus, onto said bottom; and

a second guide wall for allowing quarried rock, which remains subsequent to bucketing of said quarried rock by an excavator for transferring said quarried rock to a crusher, to return onto said bottom.

19. A quarried rock accumulation site according to claim 18, wherein a surface of said bottom is located below a level at which said excavator is installed.

20. A quarried rock accumulation site for a rock crushing system for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said quarried rock accumulation site is provided with a bottom on which quarried rock is accumulated;

and a guide wall for guiding quarried rock, which has been dumped from a quarried rock transporting apparatus, onto said bottom.

21. A rock crushing process for producing crushed stone, characterized in that said rock crushing process comprises the following steps:

dumping quarried rock, which has been carried in by a quarried rock transporting apparatus, to a quarried rock accumulation site having a bottom surface below a level at which an excavator is installed;

bucketing said quarried rock, which has been heaved at said quarried rock accumulation site, by an excavator and dumping the same to a crusher; and

crushing said quarried rock by said crusher to produce crushed stone.