Automated rollover prevention system

• US 8,019,514 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2007
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Inventors: Clar, Jean-Jacques, Shults, Jamie, Yuet, Fu Pei, Stratton, Kenneth L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Khoi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sample; Jonathan L
• Application Number:
  US11/711,791
• Publication Number:
  US 20080208416A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,658 Days
• Field of Search: 701/2, 701/50, 701/23, 701/26, 701/37, 701/48, 180/271, 180/282
• US Class Current: 701/50
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/0124 Roll-over conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/019 Inclination due to load distribution or road gradient
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/22 Braking, stopping
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/9124 Roll-over protection systems, e.g. for warning or control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/965 Automatic or driver-independent manoeuvre, e.g. for obstacle avoidance or roll-over prevention
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/97 Engine Management System [EMS]
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2230/03 Overturn, rollover
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/12 for automatic initiation; for initiation not subject to will of driver or passenger limiting speed of vehicles other than rail vehicles B60K31/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/1315 Location of the centre of gravity
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0071 Controller overrides driver automatically
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/18 Braking system
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/04 related to roll-over prevention
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18172 Preventing, or responsive to skidding of wheels
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention

Abstract

A control system for a machine is disclosed. The control system may have at least one sensor configured to generate a signal indicative of an inclination of the machine. The control system may also have a controller in communication with the at least one sensor. The controller may be configured to stop operation of the machine in response to the signal.

Claims

1. A control system for a machine, comprising:

at least one sensor configured to generate a signal indicative of an inclination of the machine; and

a controller in communication with the at least one sensor and configured to;

stop operation of the machine in response to the inclination signal indicating an excessive incline;

determine a travel path taken by the machine prior to receiving the inclination signal indicating the excessive incline; and

autonomously control the machine to backtrack through the travel path.

2. The control system of claim 1, wherein the inclination signal indicates a rate of machine inclination.

3. The control system of claim 1, wherein stopping operation includes halting travel of the machine.

4. The control system of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to prevent further travel of the machine until a manual override command is received.

5. The control system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to provide a warning to an operator of the machine when the signal indicates an incline nearing a predetermined threshold.

6. The control system of claim 5, further including a sensor configured to generate a load signal indicative of a loading condition of the machine, wherein the predetermined threshold varies in response to the load signal.

7. The control system of claim 6, wherein the load signal indicates a center of mass of the machine.

8. The control system of claim 1, further including an interface, wherein the machine is remotely controlled by a human operator from the interface.

9. The control system of claim machine of claim 8, wherein the interface is configured to display terrain upon which the machine is located, such that portions of the terrain having a slope greater than a predetermined threshold are visually distinguished.

10. The control system of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor is configured to detect an incline of the machine in both a travel direction and a direction substantially transverse to the travel direction.

11. A method of reducing machine rollover risk, comprising:

detecting a machine inclination;

determining a rollover risk value based on the machine inclination;

stopping machine operation in response to the rollover risk value;

determining a travel path of the machine prior to stopping the machine in response to the rollover risk; and

autonomously reversing operation of the machine according to the tracked movement, until the rollover risk has reduced below a predetermined value.

12. The method of claim 11, further including detecting a machine loading condition, wherein the rollover risk value is based further on the machine loading condition.

13. The method of claim 11, further including preventing further travel of the machine until a manual override command is received.

14. The method of claim 11, further including providing an indication of the rollover risk value to an operator of the machine before stopping the machine operation.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein detecting includes detecting a machine incline angle in both a travel direction of the machine and in a direction substantially transverse to the travel direction.

16. A machine, comprising:

a power source;

a traction device driven by the power source to propel the machine;

a sensor configured to detect machine inclination; and

a controller in communication with the sensor and the traction device, the controller configured to;

warn an operator of the machine when the detected inclination falls within a predetermined range;

stop operation of the traction device in response to the detected inclination exceeding the predetermined range;

determine a travel path taken by the machine prior to encountering an incline exceeding the predetermined threshold; and

autonomously control the machine to backtrack through the travel path.

17. The machine of claim 16, further including a load sensor configured to detect a loading condition of the machine, wherein the predetermined range varies in response to the detected loading condition.

18. A method of monitoring machine rollover conditions, comprising:

detecting a machine inclination;

determining a rollover risk value based on the machine inclination;

determining changes in loading of the machine during travel of the machine, including continuously determining changes in a lateral or longitudinal location of a center of gravity of the machine; and

continuously dynamically updating the rollover risk value based on the continuously determined changes in the lateral or longitudinal location of the center of gravity of the machine.

19. A method of monitoring machine rollover conditions, comprising:

detecting a machine inclination;

determining a rollover risk value based on the machine inclination during travel of the machine;

tracking a location of the machine; and

generating a map based on the tracked location of the machine that includes indications of at least three levels of the rollover risk value for different tracked locations the machine has traversed.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein generating a map based on the tracked location of the machine that includes the rollover risk value includes indexing sampled values of the rollover risk value to positions where the sampled values of the rollover risk were acquired.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising planning navigation of the machine based at least in part on the indexed sampled values of the rollover risk value and the associated positions where those sampled values were acquired.

23. The method of claim 19, further comprising communicating to an operator of the machine a rollover risk associated with at least one position on the map.

24. The method of claim 19, further comprising planning navigation of the machine based at least in part on values of the rollover risk value associated with different positions on the map.

20. A method of reducing rollover risk of a machine having a braking system, a steering system, and at least one movable machine tool, the method comprising:

detecting a machine inclination;

determining a rollover risk value based on the machine inclination during travel of the machine; and

moving the machine tool in response to the detected machine inclination to reduce the rollover risk value.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein moving the machine tool in response to the detected machine inclination to reduce the rollover risk value includes moving the machine tool away from a direction of inclination of the machine.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein the machine tool is an excavation implement.