Payload Monitoring Comparison

• US 20150362358A1
• Filed: 06/12/2014
• Published: 12/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Inventors: Jensen, Jeffrey E.
• Granted Patent: US 9,605,994 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/08 for incorporation in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/64 Percentage-indicating weighing apparatus, i.e. for expressing the weight as a percentage of a predetermined or initial weight
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06393 Score-carding, benchmarking or key performance indicator [KPI] analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/08 Construction

Abstract

Real time monitoring and comparison of bucket payload and truck payload during a loading process allows calculation of material lost in transfer between the loader and the truck. The lost or spilled material represents increased costs due to additional trips of the loader to fully load trucks and also in non-value added worksite cleanup time. The payload monitoring system can not only evaluate the mass of material lost over a period of time but can also calculate the value of that lost material using real time commodity pricing. The period of time can range from a single bucket dump to a workshift or longer. Payload masses and/or calculated values may be communicated directly between vehicles or may be communicated in conjunction with a central station.

Claims

1. A method of measuring material lost during vehicle loading using a controller, the method comprising:

receiving, at the controller, a bucket payload mass of a material delivered via a bucket of a loader to a truck;

receiving, at the controller, a truck payload mass of the material received via the bucket of the loader at the truck;

calculating, at the controller, a lost material mass of the material as a difference between the bucket payload mass and the truck payload mass.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the controller, a commodity value of the material; and

calculating, at the controller, a value of the lost material mass.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising calculating, at the controller, a cumulative lost material mass of the lost material mass for the loader over a period of time.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising calculating, at the controller, a cumulative value of the cumulative lost material mass of the lost material mass for the loader over the period of time.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the controller is incorporated in another controller of the loader and receiving, at the controller, the truck payload mass comprises receiving the truck payload mass via a wireless network in communication with the truck.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the controller is separate from the loader and the truck,

wherein receiving the bucket payload mass comprises receiving the bucket payload mass via a first wireless network connection with the loader;

and

wherein receiving the truck payload mass comprises receiving the truck payload mass via a second wireless network connection with the truck.

7. A system for use in measuring material lost during vehicle loading at a worksite, the system comprising:

a loader having a bucket;

a bucket payload monitor that reports a first payload mass of the material delivered via the bucket of the loader;

a truck configured to carry the material;

a truck payload monitor that reports a second payload mass of the material loaded onto the truck via the bucket of the loader; and

a controller that subtracts the second payload mass from the first payload mass to generate a lost payload mass.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising a reporting system that generates a business metric using the lost payload mass.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the business metric is a monetary value of the lost payload mass.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the monetary value of the lost payload mass is calculated at the controller as a function of a commodity value of the material and the lost payload mass.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the commodity value of the material is based on a real-time commodity price of the material that is received at the controller.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the business metric is a calculated number of extra trips, a time to clean up the lost payload mass at the worksite, or a cost of operating the loader during the calculated number of extra trips and cleanup time.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is part of a payload control system of the loader and the second payload mass is reported via a wireless network to the loader.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the business metric is reported at an operator display of the loader.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is part of a central station and the first payload mass is reported via a wireless network from the loader to the central station and the second payload mass is reported via the wireless network from the truck to the central station.

16. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to calibrate a first test mass of the material delivered via the bucket and a second test mass of the material received at the truck under a no-lost payload mass loading condition.

17. A controller for use in measuring a lost material mass that occurs during transfer of a material from a loader to a truck at a worksite, the controller comprising:

a memory that stores program modules and data;

a processor coupled to the memory that executes the program modules;

an input that receives a bucket payload mass from the loader and a truck payload mass of the material delivered from a bucket of the loader to the truck;

a program module stored in the memory that, when executed by the processor, subtracts the truck payload mass from the bucket payload mass to produce the lost material mass.

18. The controller of claim 17, further comprising another program module that uses a commodity value of the material to calculate a value of the lost material mass.

19. The controller of claim 17, further comprising an other program module that stores successive values of the lost material mass to generate a cumulative lost material mass over a period of time.

20. The controller of claim 19, wherein the other program module uses a commodity value of the material to calculate a value of the cumulative lost material mass over the period of time.