Compactor System And Methods

Abstract

A compactor system includes a tipped drum having a plurality of tips, and a drum axle rotatably coupling the tipped drum to a frame. The compactor system further includes a sensor configured to sense a parameter indicative of a height of the drum axle above a surface of a material substrate, and an electronic control unit configured to output a compaction progress signal responsive to inputs from the sensor. Related methods of preparing a work area with a compactor system, and determining a compaction state of a material substrate, are also disclosed.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present disclosure relates generally to compactor systems and material compaction strategies, and relates more particularly to monitoring compaction progress by way of sensor data indicative of axle height of a tipped drum compactor.BACKGROUND[0002]A wide variety of different compacting systems are used in the preparation of earthen fill and compaction of other materials in civil engineering projects such as construction, road building and landfill activities. Self-propelled two-wheel and four-wheel compactors, tow-behind systems, and others are well known and widely used. Engineers have recognized for many years that the capacity of substrate materials to remain stable over time, support loads or serve as a barrier to liquids, as well as other properties, can depend in significant part upon compacting a given material to a certain compaction state. Simply passing a compactor over a work area will tend to increase the relative compaction state of the residen...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent describes a method and system for preparing a work area with a compactor system having a tipped drum. The method involves compacting the material substrate within the work area by moving the compactor system such that the outer surface of the tipped drum rotates in contact with the material substrate. The tipped drum is supported on radially projecting drum tips, and the sensor senses a parameter indicative of the axle height of the tipped drum relative to the surface of the compacted material substrate. The sensor data is received by an electronic control unit, which outputs a compaction progress signal based on the sensed parameter. The technical effect of this patent is to provide a more efficient and effective method for preparing a work area with a compactor system having a tipped drum.

Problems solved by technology

Local variations in material composition or moisture content within a work area, as well as changes in moisture content over time can also result in non-uniformity in compaction state even where compactor coverage has been uniform.

Like many heavy-duty construction machines, compactors can be quite expensive to operate, and thus unnecessary work or remedial actions create undesired expense.

While such mechanisms are fairly precise, density of compacted material alone may not be the factor of most interest.

Moisture content can affect density measurements, and may change over time due to precipitation and evaporation, resulting in material presumed to be ideally compacted based on density measurements, but which in fact is not.

Rut depth measurements, however, often require manual activities by personnel at a work site and / or only provide a snapshot of the compaction state of the material at one location.

Moreover, forming ruts over the entire surface of a work area with a machine having certain specifications, and then measuring rut depth, is impractical.

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