Work machine

• US 8,607,558 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2008
• Issued: 12/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Kawaguchi, Tadashi, Morinaga, Jun, Inoue, Hiroaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Look, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): KRAFT, LOGAN M
• Application Number:
  US12/450,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20100064677A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,090 Days
• Field of Search: 607/13, 604/31, 604/32, 604/42, 318/140, 318/727, 318/798, 318/799
• US Class Current: 60/431
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/123 Drives or control devices specially adapted therefor E02F9/125 and E02F9/128 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2075 of the hybrid type for vehicles in general B60W20/00
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2246 Control of prime movers, e.g. depending on the hydraulic load of work tools
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0814 comprising means for controlling automatic idle-start-stop
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0818 Conditions for starting or stopping the engine or for deactivating the idle-start-stop mode
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2011/0885 Capacitors, e.g. for additional power supply
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/063 Battery voltage
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/0802 Transmission state, e.g. gear ratio or neutral state
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/0812 Power-take-off state
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2300/2011 Control involving a delay; Control involving a waiting period before engine stop or engine start
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 Engine management systems

Abstract

A work machine includes: hydraulic actuators 21, 22, 23, 31, and 32; a capacitor 61 for storing electric power when a generator motor 44 operates as a generator and for supplying electric power when the generator motor 44 operates as a motor; and a swing electric motor 10, the hydraulic actuators 21, 22, 23, 31, and 32 and the swing electric motor 10 are operated by operation of operating levers 50, 70. The work machine includes an idling stop control unit 110 for stopping the idling of an engine 40 and retains the swing electric motor 10 in an operation prohibited state at least on the condition that stored voltage of the capacitor 61 is predetermined voltage or higher when the neutral states of the operating levers 50, 70 continue for a predetermined stop time during operation of the engine 40.

Claims

1. A work machine comprising:

a hydraulic pump driven by an engine;

a hydraulic actuator driven by pressure oil discharged from the hydraulic pump;

a generator motor interfacing with an output system of the engine;

a power storage unit for storing electric power when the generator motor is caused to operate as a generator by the engine and for supplying electric power when the generator motor operates as a motor; and

an electric actuator driven by the electric power supplied from the generator motor or the power storage unit, wherein the hydraulic actuator and the electric actuator are operated according to operation of an operating lever, and

the work machine includes an idling stop control unit having;

an operating lever monitoring unit for monitoring an operated state of the operating lever during operation of the engine;

a neutral state timing unit for measuring a time for which the operating lever is in a neutral state;

an idling stop unit for stopping idling of the engine when the neutral state of the operating lever continues for a predetermined stop time; and

a machine operation prohibiting unit for retaining the electric actuator in an operation prohibited state when the idling stop unit stops the idling of the engine.

2. The work machine according to claim 1, wherein

the idling stop control unit has a machine operation prohibiting parts to stop control by a power supply control unit or to control the power supply control unit in a stopped state so as to bring the electric actuator into a stopped state, and to operate a lock unit for mechanically preventing swing of an upper swing body with respect to a lower running body when the idling of the engine is stopped.

3. The work machine according to claim 1 further comprising

a power supply control unit which is activated to control the supply of the electric power to the electric actuator according to a control signal when the control signal according to the operation of the operating lever is applied to the power supply control unit, wherein

the electric actuator has at least a swing electric motor being configured to swing an upper swing body with respect to a lower running body, and

the idling stop control unit has a machine operation prohibiting unit to stop control by the power supply control unit or to control the power supply control unit in a stopped state so as to bring the electric actuator into a stopped state, and to operate a lock unit for mechanically preventing swing of the upper swing body with respect to the lower running body when the idling of the engine is stopped.

4. The work machine according to claim 1 further comprising

a hydraulic pressure supply control unit to control supply of pressure oil from the hydraulic pump to the hydraulic actuator according to a pilot hydraulic pressure, when the pilot hydraulic pressure according to operation of the operating lever is supplied to the hydraulic pressure supply control unit, wherein

the idling stop control unit has a machine operation prohibiting unit to stop control by the power supply control unit or to control the power supply control unit in a stopped state so as to bring the electric actuator into a stopped state, and to cause a lock unit to mechanically prevent swing of the upper swing body with respect to the lower running body when the idling of the engine is stopped and

the machine operation prohibiting unit cuts off a supply system of the pilot hydraulic pressure to the hydraulic pressure supply control unit when the idling of the engine is stopped.

5. The work machine according to claim 1, wherein

the idling stop control unit stops the idling of the engine and retains the electric actuator in the operation prohibited state on a condition that a predetermined idling stop prohibiting condition is not satisfied when the neutral state of the operating lever continues for the predetermined stop time.

6. The work machine according to claim 5, wherein

the idling stop control unit determines that the idling stop prohibiting condition is satisfied at least when a stored voltage of the power storage unit is lower than a preset threshold value.

7. The work machine according to claim 1 further comprising

a manually-operated operation extending unit, wherein the idling stop control unit has a function of extending the stop time when the operation extending unit is turned on during continuation of the neutral state of the operating lever.

8. The work machine according to claim 7 further comprising

a vehicle-mounted monitor for providing an indication and the manually-operated operation extending unit, wherein

the idling stop control unit has a countdown indicating processing unit for indicating countdown of time until the stop time is elapsed on the vehicle-mounted monitor, and

the idling stop control unit has a function of extending the stop time when the operation extending unit is turned on during indication of the countdown on the vehicle-mounted monitor by the countdown indicating processing unit.

9. The work machine according to claim 7, wherein

the idling stop control unit includes an idling stop processing unit that performs the processing for extending the stop time every time the operation extending unit is turned on.

10. The work machine according to claim 9, wherein

the operation extending unit is a switch having an independent push button unit at an upper portion of the operating lever and outputting an operation signal to the idling stop processing unit when the push button unit is pushed.

11. The work machine according to claim 1, wherein

the machine operation prohibiting unit cuts off a supply system of a pilot hydraulic pressure to the hydraulic pressure supply control unit controlling supply of pressure oil from the hydraulic pump to the hydraulic actuator when the idling of the engine is stopped.

12. The work machine according to claim 1, wherein

the idling stop control unit reduces an engine speed before idling stop.