Road Construction Machine, Leveling Device, as well as Method for Controlling the Milling Depth or Milling Slope in a Road Construction Machine

• US 20090311045A1
• Filed: 04/12/2007
• Published: 12/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wirtgen America Incorporated (Deere & Company)
• Original Assignee: Wirtgen GmbH (Deere & Company)
• Inventors: Hähn, Günter, Jurasz, Jaroslaw, Tewes, Günter
• Granted Patent: US 7,946,788 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 404/75
• CPC Class Codes: E01C 23/088 Rotary tools, e.g. milling drums for forming recesses to receive marking materials E01C23/0946
• CPC Class Codes: E01C 23/127 rotary, e.g. rotary hammers

Abstract

In a road construction machine (1) for the treatment of road surfaces with a milling drum (3) height-adjustable with regard to the milling depth, with a leveling device (4) with at least one controller (6a, 6c) which receives set values for the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3), and with at least one exchangeable sensor (A, B, C) or with several switchable sensors for registering the current actual value of the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3) relative to a reference surface, where the controller (6a, 6c) effects a milling depth control and/or a slope control for the milling drum (3) conditional on pre-determined set values and the currently measured actual values of the at least one sensor (A, B, C) by returning an adjustment value for achieving or maintaining the set value during the milling operation, where the leveling device (4) is provided with an indication and setting device (2) for indicating and setting operating parameters for the at least one sensor (A, B, C), it is provided that the indication and setting device (2) of the leveling device (4), in addition to an indication and setting unit (2a, 2c) provided for the at least one sensor (A, C) currently in use, is provided with an additional indication and setting unit (2b) for a selectable sensor (B) that is to be exchanged for the sensor (A, C) currently in use.

Claims

1. Road construction machine (1) for the treatment of road surfaces with a milling drum (3) height-adjustable with regard to the milling depth, with a Leveling device (4) with at least one controller (6a, 6c) which receives set values for the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3), and with at least one exchangeable sensor (A, B, C) or with several switchable sensors for registering the current actual value of the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3) relative to a reference surface, where the controller (6a, 6c) effects a milling depth control and/or a slope control for the milling drum (3) conditional on pre-determined set values and the currently measured actual values of the at least one sensor (A, B, C) by returning an adjustment value for achieving or maintaining the set value during the milling operation, and where the Leveling device (4) is provided with an indication and setting device (2) for indicating and setting operating parameters for the at least one sensor (A, B, C),

characterized in that

the indication and setting device (2) of the Leveling device (4), in addition to an indication and setting unit (2a, 2c) provided for the at least one sensor (A, C) currently in use, is provided with an additional indication and setting unit (2b) for a selectable sensor (B) which is to be exchanged for the sensor (A, C) currently in use.

2. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the Leveling device (4) is provided with a device (10) for the switchover of sensors (A, B, C) which, upon activation of a switchover command, effects switchover of the Leveling device (4) from the at least one current sensor (A;

C) to at least one pre-selected other sensor (B) without interruption of the milling operation and without any erratic alteration of the current adjustment value for the setting of the milling depth and/or for the setting of the slope of the milling drum.

3. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the currently measured actual value for the milling depth and/or for the slope of the milling drum (3) of the at least one selected other sensor (B) can be set, latest at the time of switchover, to the same, last measured actual value for the milling depth and/or for the slope of the previously used sensor (A;

C).

4. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the set value for the milling depth and/or for the slope of the milling drum (3) can be set, latest at the time of switchover, to the currently measured actual value for the milling depth of the at least one selected sensor (B).

5. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that, in case of a deviation of the measured actual values of the selected other sensor (B) from the previously used sensor (A;

C), the adjustment value for the setting of the milling depth and/or the setting of the slope can be altered by means of a pre-setable transition function.

6. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the switchover device is provided with an indication and setting device (2) which enables a pre-selection of the other sensor (B) and the pre-setting of operating parameters of the other sensor (B).

7. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the Leveling device (4) is provided with two controllers (6a, 6c), the sensors (A, C) of which are arranged parallel to the rotating axis of the milling drum (3) at a lateral distance to one another, and which control the milling depth independently of one another on the left and right side of the machine (1).

8. Leveling device (4) for a height-adjustable milling drum (3) of a road construction machine (1) in accordance with claim 1, with at least one controller (6a, 6c) which receives memorizable set values for the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3), and with at least one exchangeable sensor (A, B, C) or with several switchable sensors (A, B, C) for registering the current actual value of the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3) relative to a chosen reference surface, where the controller (6a, 6c) effects a milling depth control and/or a slope control for the milling drum (3) conditional on pre-determined set values and the currently measured actual values by returning an adjustment value for achieving or maintaining the set value for the milling depth and/or milling slope during the milling operation, where the Leveling device (4) is provided with an indication and setting device (2) for setting operating parameters for the at least one sensor (A, B, C),

characterized in that

the indication device (2) of the Leveling device (4), in addition to an indication and setting unit (2a, 2c) provided for the at least one sensor (A, C) currently in use, is provided with an additional indication and setting unit (2b) for a selectable sensor (B) which is to be exchanged for the sensor (A, C) currently in use.

9. Leveling device in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that a device (10) is provided for the switchover of sensors (A, B, C) which, upon activation of a switchover command, effects switchover of the sensors (A, B, C) from the at least one current sensor (A;

C) to at least one pre-selected other sensor (B) without interruption of the milling operation and without any erratic alteration of the current adjustment value for the setting of the milling depth and/or for the setting of the slope.

10. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the reference surface is a road surface (12).

11. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the reference surface is a horizontal plane.

12. Road construction machine in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the reference surface is a freely definable pre-selected plane.

17. Leveling device in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the reference surface is a road surface (12).

18. Leveling device in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the reference surface is a horizontal plane.

19. Leveling device in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the reference surface is a freely definable pre-selected plane.

13. Method for controlling the milling depth or milling slope of the milling drum (3) of a road construction machine (1) by registering the current actual value of the milling depth and/or the slope of the milling drum (3) relative to a reference surface using at least one exchangeable or switchable sensor (A, B, C), where a milling depth control and/or a slope control for the milling drum (3) is effected conditional on pre-determined set values and currently measured actual values during the milling operation by returning an adjustment value for achieving or maintaining the set value,

characterized in that

when exchanging a currently used sensor (A, C) for a pre-selected other sensor (B), the control of the milling depth and/or the slope is effected, without interruption of the milling operation, by setting the set values and actual values of the sensor (B) by means of an additional indication and setting unit (2b), prior to switchover, in such a fashion that the current adjustment value for the setting of the milling depth and/or for the setting of the slope of the milling drum (3) is not altered in an erratic fashion.

14. Method in accordance with claim 13, characterized in that, when switching over from the last used sensor (A;

C) to the pre-selected other sensor (B), the current actual value of the other sensor (B) is set to the same, last measured actual value of the last used sensor (A;

C).

15. Method in accordance with claim 14, characterized in that, when switching over from the last used sensor (A;

C) to the pre-selected sensor (B), the currently pre-determined set value is set to the actual value of the other sensor (B).

16. Method in accordance with claim 13, characterized in that, when switching over from the last used sensor (A;

C) to the pre-selected sensor (B), in case of a deviation of the actual values of the selected other sensor (B) from the previously used sensor (A;

C), the currently measured set value is altered by means of a pre-setable transition function starting from the current adjustment value at the time of switchover to the adjustment value resulting on account of the difference in the actual values.