Operating method and device for operating automated container quay cranes

• US 20040073358A1
• Filed: 11/25/2003
• Published: 04/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Wichner, Wolfgang
• Granted Patent: US 6,965,823 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/124
• CPC Class Codes: B66C 13/063 electrical
• CPC Class Codes: B66C 13/085 electrical
• CPC Class Codes: B66C 13/46 Position indicators for suspended loads or for crane elements
• CPC Class Codes: B66C 13/48 Automatic control of crane drives for producing a single or repeated working cycle; Programme control

Abstract

An operating method for container quay cranes used to load and unload container ships by means of a PC with a monitor in a crane driver'"'"'s cabin. The operating method is carried out by means of a touchscreen and enables the crane to reach its target according to specification in a fully or partially automatic manner.

Claims

1. Operating method for container quay cranes for loading and unloading of container vessels, with a PC with a monitor in a crane driver'"'"'s cabin, characterized in that the operating method is carried out with a touch screen and a computer, wherein the operating method makes it possible to reach targets of the crane in a fully or partially automatic manner according to parameters transmitted to the computer:

2. Operating method according to claim 1, characterized in that selected target parameters can be set.

3. Operating method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the targets that are preset by the automatic control, can be reconstructed on the touch screen before they are reached by the crane.

4. Operating method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that several operating modes are provided, for example for fully automatic travel or for fine-positioning, with switching between the operating modes enabled.

5. Operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that different loading and unloading modes for the containers can be set.

6. Operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that an operating mode “

Training Operation”

can be set.

7. Operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that an operating mode “

Lead”

can be set.

8. Operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that learning functions can be set.

9. Operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the actions to be performed by crane operators are displayed.

10. Container crane operating touch screen, in particular for carrying out the operating method according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the touch screen has a dark background color, in particular dark blue, and touch fields are indicated in signal colors.

11. Container crane operating touch screen according to claim 10, characterized in that the touch screen includes symbolically depicted details of a ship and a crane.

13. Container crane operating touch screen according to claims 10, 11 or, 12, characterized in that in addition to the touch fields and the symbolically indicated details of the ship and the crane, there are provided fields for indicating information in text form and in numeric form.

14. Container crane operating touch screen according to one or more of the claims 10 to 13, characterized in that the touch screen has at least one conspicuous information bar with lettering, in particular an information bar that extends across the touch screen, that indicates the actual operating state or includes operating information.

15. Container crane operating touch screen according to claim 14, characterized in that the information bar also provides operating instructions to the crane operator before an operating step is initiated.

16. Container crane operating touch screen according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that the information bar also displays to the crane operator information about the next required operating step and that the information bar changes its color depending of the type of the displayed contents.

17. Container crane operating touch screen according to one or more of claims 10 to 16, characterized in that the touch screen can be operated through touching or with a mouse arrow of a PC mouse.

18. Container crane operating touch screen according to one or more of claims 10 to 17, characterized in that its touch screen program can be programmed and changed in an object-oriented fashion, in particular by using the program Win CC distributed by Siemens AG.

12. Container crane operating touch screen, characterized in that actual target settings, container positions and system states are indicated by color changes.