MOBILE ROCK PROCESSING DEVICE WITH IMPROVED PLANNING OF A DISPATCHY MATERIAL TASK

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a rock processing device for crushing and / or sorting granular mineral material, the rock processing device comprising the following device components: a material feeding device with a material buffer for loading with starting material to be processed, at least one working unit consisting of + at least one crushing device and + at least one screening device, at least one conveying device for conveying material between two device components, a control device for controlling device components of the rock processing device, at least one sensor for detecting at least one operating parameter, wherein the sensor is connected to the control device for signal transmission in order to transmit a detection signal representing the at least one detected operating parameter, at least one output device for outputting information, wherein the output device is connected to the control device for signal transmission in order to transmit information.

[0002] The present invention particularly relates to a mobile rock processing device with a chassis that allows the rock processing device to autonomously change its installation location and / or to autonomously move between an installation location for a rock processing operation and a means of transport for transporting the rock processing device. Due to the generally high weight of the mobile, especially self-propelled, rock processing device, the chassis is usually a crawler chassis, although a wheeled chassis is not excluded as an alternative or in addition to a crawler chassis.

[0003] A rock processing device of the above-mentioned type is known from US Pat. No. 4,281,800. The previously known rock processing device comprises both a screening device and a crushing device and is part of a rock processing plant with a rock mill located downstream of the rock processing device in the material flow. The rock processing device is continuously loaded with material to be processed from a quarry via a conveyor belt.

[0004] In order to align the performance of the rock processing device, which according to US 4,281,800 has an average lower availability per day than the rock mill, but is able to crush rock with less energy than the rock mill, and the performance of the rock mill and thus operate the rock processing plant as advantageously as possible, US 4,281,800 proposes to determine a performance, expressed as quantity of material per time, of the rock processing device for a future period of time on the basis of a performance for a complete period of operation, such as one operating day.The determined output of the rock processing plant and the respective output of the rock mill, on the one hand, and the rock processing device, on the other hand, already completed since the beginning of the operating period under consideration until the time of determination within the operating period under consideration. Depending on the output of the rock processing device determined for the future period, the conveying capacity of the conveyor belt loading the rock processing device should be adjusted for the future period.

[0005] From US 4,909,449 it is known to use a lighting system, such as a type of traffic light system, to indicate to vehicles which are discontinuously loading a rock processing device whether the material feeding device of the rock processing device is immediately ready for newly fed rock or not.

[0006] US 4,909,449 also discloses changing the conveying capacity of a conveying device between the material buffer and a crushing device, depending on the filling level of material to be processed in the material buffer and / or on the motor load of a discharge conveyor device which conveys processed material out of the rock processing device.

[0007] US 2021 / 0325899 A1 discloses the targeted control of a tipper body of a haul truck loading a rock processing device in order to influence the unloading of the haul truck over a desired unloading period. By controlling the truck's engine and hydraulic valves, a specific tipping profile of the tipper body is to be achieved in order to unload the raw material transported in the tipper body toward the rock processing device at a desired material discharge rate.

[0008] The effectiveness of changes in the conveying capacity, for example by changing the conveying speed, of a conveying device for conveying fed-in raw material from the material buffer to the working unit, in particular to a crushing device, always requires a correctly filled material buffer. However, this is not always the case with discontinuous loading of the material buffer. Essentially, it is up to the operating personnel of the loading devices loading the rock processing device, if necessary with the assistance of the machine operator of the rock processing device, to decide on the loading of the material buffer of the rock processing device. As a result, the operation of the rock processing device and thus the product it delivers depend significantly on the skills and experience of the personnel working on the respective devices.

[0009] The lighting system described above indicates the current readiness of the rock processing device for loading depending on the fill level of material to be processed in the material buffer. This essentially only helps, but does not guarantee, that the rock processing device will not be overloaded. However, an undersupply of the rock processing device with material to be processed can still occur, as the lighting system only indicates readiness for loading when it actually exists. If readiness for loading occurs at short notice, the material buffer and the subsequent work unit can run empty or at least be underfilled, with the associated known disadvantages, as personnel at the loading devices may not be able to react quickly enough to the sudden indication of readiness for loading of the rock processing device.

[0010] It is also known to coordinate the performance of rock processing devices arranged in series in the material flow by adjusting the conveying capacity or conveying speed of the conveyor devices continuously conveying between the rock processing devices. In this case, a discharge conveyor belt of an upstream rock processing device is often the loading conveyor belt of an immediately downstream rock processing device. The conveying capacity of the discharge conveyor belt can then be adjusted depending on the operating conditions of the downstream rock processing device. This is essentially unproblematic for the continuous loading of material buffers.The situation is different, however, in an operation with discontinuous material feeding, where there can be pauses of varying length and, above all, unpredictable length between two successive material feedings and where a different quantity of material can be fed in with each discontinuous material feeding.

[0011] It is therefore an object of the present invention to improve a rock processing device of the type mentioned at the outset in light of the problems described above and, in particular, to enable its operation at an economical operating point that is as long as possible.

[0012] The present invention achieves the stated object in a generic rock processing device in that the control device is designed to determine, in an operation with discontinuous material feed of starting material to be processed, on the basis of the at least one detection signal, time information which represents an execution time of a future material feed into the material feed device, wherein the output device is designed to output the determined time information.

[0013] Since the detection signal, as described above, represents at least one sensor-detected operating parameter, the control device can determine the rock processing device's future demand for material to be processed based on the at least one detection signal and thus forecast it as time information. By outputting the determined time information, third parties, such as a machine operator of a loading device, can take note of the time information and thus plan their material input into the rock processing device in advance.Alternatively, the determined and output time information can be processed automatically by a data processing device, such as a control device, of at least one loading device and its loading operation can be set up and carried out taking the time information into account, so that a material feed into the material feed device can actually be carried out at the execution time represented by the time information.

[0014] The at least one operating parameter can be recorded qualitatively and / or quantitatively. If more than one operating parameter is recorded, some of the operating parameters can be recorded qualitatively and others quantitatively. Furthermore, it is also conceivable for at least one operating parameter to be recorded both quantitatively and qualitatively.

[0015] The execution time can be an execution point in time and / or an execution time range. The execution time can specify the earliest possible future point in time at or from which material can or should be fed into the material feeder. The execution time can additionally or alternatively specify a future time period over which material can or should be fed into the feeder.

[0016] The time information can be relative time information related to a reference time, such as the current actual time. The time information can be output in the form of a waiting time until the next material delivery. Alternatively, the time information can be absolute time information, which represents an execution time or the start of an execution period as a time in the relevant time zone. If necessary, the end of the execution period can again be absolute time information or relative time information, preferably related to the start of the execution period. As a rule, however, it will be sufficient to specify the point in time as the execution time from which a material delivery can take place in the future.

[0017] At the time the time information is output by the output device, the execution time represented by the time information is in the future. This is not just a theoretical future due to signal transmission times in the microsecond or nanosecond range, but a future that is at least a few seconds away from the time the time information is output. Often, the execution time will be a few seconds away from the time the time information is output.

[0018] The rock processing device is preferably designed to determine, during operation with discontinuous material feed, an individual execution time as time information for at least two, particularly preferably for more than two, consecutive future material feeds and to output this time information by means of the output device. Thus, the execution times of a series of consecutive material feeds can be individually determined, depending on the at least one operating parameter represented by the at least one detection signal, for the operating situation of the rock processing device that develops in each case as a result of the preceding material feed, and can be output as time information.

[0019] The rock processing device can have only one or more screening devices as the at least one working unit. The rock processing device is then a pure screening plant. Likewise, the rock processing device can have only one or more crushing devices as the at least one working unit. The rock processing device is then a pure crushing plant. In the preferred configuration, the rock processing device comprises both at least one screening device and at least one crushing device. The screening device can be a pre-screen arranged upstream of the crushing device in the material flow, optionally with multiple screen decks, and / or can be a post-screen arranged downstream of the crushing device in the material flow in order to sort the result delivered by the crushing device according to grain size. The post-screen can also comprise at least one screen deck or multiple screen decks.

[0020] The crushing device can be any known crushing device, such as an impact crusher, a jaw crusher, a cone crusher, or a roller crusher. If the rock processing facility has more than one crushing device, these crushing devices can be of the same type or different types. Each individual crushing device can be one of the above-mentioned crusher types: impact crusher, jaw crusher, cone crusher, and roller crusher.

[0021] Although it is fundamentally possible for the control device to determine the time information exclusively from detection signals of the at least one sensor, it should not be ruled out that the control device also takes into account information inputs by a machine operator or another person when determining the time information. For this purpose, according to a preferred development of the present invention, the rock processing device can comprise an input device for inputting information, wherein the input device for transmitting information is connected to the control device for signal transmission. The control device is preferably designed to determine the time information in operation with discontinuous material feed on the basis of the at least one detection signal and information input into the input device.

[0022] The input device can be any input device, such as a keyboard, a touchscreen, and the like. The input device can also be connected to the control device for signal transmission via a cable or a radio link, so that it does not necessarily have to be physically present on the rock processing device. A connection between the input device or the at least one sensor and the control device for signal transmission also includes a connection with the interposition of a data memory, in which information input into the input device and / or information output by the at least one sensor for detecting the at least one operating parameter is stored as data and retrieved as stored data by the control device. The control device therefore preferably comprises a data memory which is connected to the control device for signal transmission.In this memory, the control device can store data supplied by the input device and / or the at least one sensor and retrieve it as stored data. Likewise, the input device and / or the at least one sensor can be directly connected to the data storage device for signal transmission, so that the input device can transfer information input into it directly to the data storage device for storage, just as the at least one sensor can transfer the results of its sensing operation.

[0023] Data that will not change over the operating life of the rock processing device or that can only be changed with considerable effort, for example, data concerning the mechanical configuration of the rock processing device and its components, can be permanently stored in the data storage device and stored, for example, by the manufacturer of the rock processing device during its manufacture or prior to delivery. Should the machine configuration nevertheless change, for example, during maintenance or repair, the company performing the maintenance or repair can make the corresponding changes to the data storage device's content.

[0024] The data storage device can be physically connected to the control device via a signal line and / or non-physically connected to the control device via a signal transmission line, for example, via a radio link or by transmitting optical signals. In principle, the data storage device can therefore be provided separately and at a distance from the rest of the rock processing device. The "rest of the rock processing device" is represented by its machine body. The machine body comprises the machine frame and all components of the rock processing device connected to it, even if these are arranged to be movable relative to the machine frame.

[0025] To determine the time information about a future material task, in particular about the next due material task, the at least one sensor can be designed to detect at least one of the following operating parameters and to transmit it to the control device: Fill level of the material buffer, fill level of at least one conveying device, conveying speed of at least one conveying device, fill level of at least one working unit, grain shape and / or grain size and / or grain size distribution of fed in and / or conveyed material, type of fed in and / or conveyed material, moisture content of the fed in material, density of the fed in material, hardness of the fed in material, breakability of the fed in material, abrasiveness of the fed in material, condition of the fed in material, amount of returned oversize grain, feed amount of material to be fed in or fed in, operating load of at least one drive device, operating load of at least one working unit, working speed of at least one working unit, dimension of a crushing gap of the crushing device, mesh size of a screen of the screening device, size of a loading tool of a loading device that loads the material buffer discontinuously.Quantity or proportion of foreign material, particularly non-crushable material.

[0026] In principle, one sensor is sufficient to record an operating parameter. However, the same operating parameter can be recorded by multiple sensors, for example, if the objective is to determine a location-dependent local fill level of the material buffer rather than an average one. If more than one operating parameter is to be recorded, the rock processing device can be equipped with more than one sensor. The same applies if more than one physical operating principle is to be used to record one or more operating parameters.

[0027] The fill level of the material buffer can be detected, for example, by one or more ultrasonic sensors. Additionally or alternatively, optical detection by at least one camera as a sensor and / or tactile detection by a mechanical sensor is possible. The fill level of the material buffer, which is usually funnel-shaped, is a measure of the amount of material still to be processed in the rock processing device.

[0028] The fill level of the material buffer can be represented by a fill level of the material added to the material buffer. A single fill level value can be used as a representative value for the overall average fill level of the material buffer, or several local fill levels can be determined in order to achieve greater local resolution of the fill level of the material buffer. It is also conceivable to use optical methods, such as laser scanning, to determine a profile of the surface of material added to the material buffer and its height above the known bottom of the material buffer. The fill level or the local fill levels up to the surface profile of the added material can already adequately represent the fill level. Alternatively, they can be related to the maximum capacity of the material buffer.

[0029] An overfilled material buffer, especially the feed hopper, must be avoided, as must an underfilled material buffer. With an overfilled material buffer, material is lost during the material feed because it can slide off a pile of material in the material buffer and fall next to the material feed device. In addition, the conveying capacity of the material buffer can be reduced and the screening performance of a pre-screen downstream of the material buffer can be negatively affected if the material buffer is overloaded. Furthermore, overfilling of the material buffer can lead to a work unit downstream in the material flow, in particular a crushing device, being overwhelmed. An underfilled feed hopper can lead to a high load on the conveying device connected to the material buffer, because material impacts the conveying device directly during the material feed, which can cause increased wear and tear and higher noise emissions.

[0030] The fill level of the material buffer and its temporal development is a particularly preferred operating parameter for determining the next execution time of a future material feed. For example, if it is possible to determine when the fill level of the material buffer will reach a predetermined minimum level in the future, this information can be used to determine the latest time the material buffer should be refilled to avoid underfilling. When determining the execution time, a safety margin of time can, of course, be taken into account so that disruptive influences that are always present at construction sites have no or only a minimal impact on the material flow. The term "construction site" generally includes all sites where material to be processed by the rock processing device is produced or provided, such as quarries, gravel pits, building demolition sites, and the like.The term "mineral material" therefore includes both natural and processed mineral material. The latter includes building materials as well as recycled oversize particles.

[0031] Preferably, the fill level of the material buffer is repeatedly recorded in order to determine an emptying rate of the material buffer. The rock processing device preferably comprises a time-measuring device which is connected to the control device for signal transmission, optionally with the aforementioned data memory interposed. The time-measuring device or a time-measuring device can be integrated into the at least one sensor and / or the input device and / or the control device. Using signals from the time-measuring device, the control device can assign an event time to detection events of the at least one sensor and / or input events of the at least one input device. From the time interval between at least two event times for a similar event, for example the detection of one and the same operating parameter, the control device can determine a rate of change associated with the respective events.For example, the control device can determine a rate of change in the fill level from two measurements of the material buffer's fill level and the known time interval between these measurements. From the determined rate of change and a fill level known from the measurement, the control device can, for example, determine a next execution time by extrapolation, possibly taking into account the aforementioned safety margin.

[0032] Alternatively, or preferably in addition to the fill level of the material buffer, the fill level of at least one conveying device can be recorded as the relevant operating parameter or a relevant operating parameter. Preference is given to recording the fill level of a conveying device conveying from the material buffer to a work unit, in particular to a crushing device. The conveying capacity of a conveying device conveying directly from the material buffer influences both the fill level of the material buffer and the fill level of the work unit, in particular the crushing device, to which it conveys material. The same applies to recording a conveying speed of at least one conveying device, which in turn is preferably the conveying device conveying between the material buffer and the work unit, in particular the crushing device.

[0033] The product of the filling level and the conveying speed of a conveying device provides a measure of the volume conveyed by the conveying device or of the conveying capacity of the conveying device.

[0034] The conveying device can be a belt conveyor or a trough conveyor, the latter preferably operating as a vibratory conveyor according to the micro-throw principle. A vibratory conveyor, preferably in the form of a trough conveyor, is particularly preferred as a conveying device for conveying between a material buffer and a crushing device. The rock processing device can also have a plurality of conveying devices and will generally have such a plurality, for example, because the same conveying device cannot serve as a feed conveyor from the material buffer to a work unit and as a discharge conveyor from a work unit out of the rock processing device.In the case of a plurality of conveying devices, these can use different conveying principles, such as the micro-throw principle described above for vibrating conveyors and / or like a belt conveyor, whereby the belt conveyor is generally used as a discharge conveyor due to the smaller grain size occurring in the discharge and a usually more homogeneous grain size distribution.

[0035] The conveying speed of a conveyor device can be determined in a variety of ways. Regardless of the type of conveyor device, the conveying speed can be determined by detecting movement in the conveying direction of a material lying on the conveyor device, for example by means of a light barrier, ultrasound, optical detection and image processing, and the like. The conveying speed of a belt conveyor can be detected by detecting the rotational speed of a roller cooperating with the conveyor belt, be it a support roller or drive roller, or by directly detecting the path speed of the conveyor belt. In the case of vibrating conveyors, the vibration amplitude and vibration frequency can be a measure of the speed of material lying on a vibrating conveyor, so that detecting the vibration amplitude and vibration frequency is a detection of variables that represent the conveying speed.For all conveying devices, it is also true that their conveying capacity can be derived from the drive power of a motor driving them, so that the conveying capacity can be indirectly derived from the recording of a motor torque and a motor speed. For some types of electric motors, the output motor torque can be determined from the drawn motor current. For hydraulic motors, the output torque is proportional to the product of the pressure drop across the hydraulic motor and its displacement. Otherwise, a torque map can be determined and saved for each motor depending on its manipulated variables. The motor torque can then be determined from the recorded manipulated variables by calling up the torque map from the control device.

[0036] As a further possible operating parameter, at least one sensor can detect the fill level of a working unit of the at least one working unit. Sensors can be used to detect the fill level of a working unit that utilize the same physical operating principles as the aforementioned sensors for determining the fill levels of the material buffer and / or the conveying device. The fill level of a crushing device can be detected, for example, by light barriers, ultrasound, and the like.

[0037] The working unit can be at least one crushing device from the at least one crushing device and / or can be a screening device from the at least one screening device. Preferably, if present, this is a crushing device. This is particularly relevant for jaw crushers and cone crushers, but should also be considered for impact crushers and roller crushers. The fill level of a crushing device also influences how quickly a material supply in the material buffer is reduced. The fill level of a working unit of the rock processing device is a significant factor influencing the material flow in the rock processing device and thus the unloading or emptying of the material buffer.

[0038] Just as the fill level of a conveyor device is related to the conveying speed of the conveyor device, the fill level of a working unit is related to the working speed of the working unit. Therefore, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the working speed of a working unit, i.e., at least one crushing device and / or at least one screening device, can be detected.

[0039] Additionally or alternatively, the dimension of a crushing gap, in particular the gap width, of a crushing device can be recorded as at least one operating parameter. This applies in particular to jaw crushers, impact crushers, cone crushers, and roller crushers. In the case of an impact crusher, a dimension of both an upper and a lower crushing gap on an upper or lower impact rocker and / or the crushing gap ratio of said crushing gaps can be recorded as operating parameters. Crushing gap dimensions can be recorded by detecting a position of an actuator element that moves a movable component that delimits the respective crushing gap dimension, such that a position of the actuator element is clearly assigned to a position of the movable component. Such a component can be a movable crusher jaw or an impact rocker.A calibration can be stored in the above-mentioned data memory, which links a detected position of the actuator element with a crushing gap dimension.

[0040] Operating loads can also be recorded by sensors as operating parameters, for example the operating load of a drive device, such as a central drive unit of the rock processing device, which converts the energy delivered to it into one or more different other forms of energy. Such a drive device can be an internal combustion engine, in particular a diesel engine, which converts the internal calorific value of a fuel into mechanical or kinetic energy at an output shaft. An electric motor is also conceivable as such a drive device, which converts the electrical energy supplied to it into mechanical or kinetic energy at an output shaft. The same applies to a hydraulic motor. In all cases, an operating load can be determined, for example, from recording the speed of the output shaft and a torque delivered at this speed.The detection of shaft speed and torque is well known in the art. As explained above, an engine torque can be derived from at least one additional operating parameter based on a torque map stored in the data memory, in which the engine torque is linked to the at least one additional operating parameter.

[0041] Alternatively or additionally, the operating load of a working unit can be recorded as at least one operating parameter. In the case of a crushing device, regardless of the specific crusher type, there is always an input shaft which supplies kinetic energy to a moving part of the crushing device, such as the movable crusher jaw of a jaw crusher, the rotor of an impact crusher, the cone of a cone crusher or the roller of a roller crusher. Here, the rotational speed of the input shaft, optionally with additional recording and consideration of the torque supplied by the input shaft, can be a measure of the working speed and / or the operating load of the crushing device. The torque of the input shaft is the torque of a machine driving the input shaft, optionally converted by at least one gear arranged between the drive machine and the input shaft.

[0042] Since the screening device of a rock processing device functions as a vibrating screening device similar to a vibrating conveyor, the operating speed of the screening device can be represented by an amplitude and / or a frequency of a periodic screening movement. The screening device is also driven by a drive shaft for its periodic movement. Its rotational speed, possibly with additional detection and consideration of the torque supplied by the drive shaft, is also an indicator of the working speed and / or operating load of a screening device. Therefore, a sensor for detecting the working speed or the operating load of the screening device can detect the movement amplitude and / or the movement frequency of the screening device and / or a rotational speed and / or a torque of the drive shaft of the screening device in question.

[0043] Just as the fill level of a conveyor device is related to the conveying speed of the conveyor device, the fill level of a working unit is related to the working speed of the working unit. Therefore, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the working speed of a working unit, i.e., at least one crushing device and / or at least one screening device, can be detected.

[0044] Another potentially measurable operating parameter is the grain shape and / or grain size of the fed and / or extracted material and / or the proportion of foreign material in the fed and / or extracted material, whereby the extracted material was usually previously fed into the material feed device. Additionally or alternatively, the grain size distribution, i.e., the frequency of occurrence of individual, different grain sizes or grain size ranges, in the fed and / or extracted material can be an operating parameter relevant to the material flow in the rock processing device. Grain shapes and / or grain sizes and grain size distributions and / or the proportion of foreign material can be recorded, for example, using image processing.The particle size distribution in particular is a key factor influencing the success of a preliminary screening process, which in turn influences the quality of the downstream crushing device and, consequently, the amount of oversize material generated. Foreign material is particularly non-crushing material such as plastic, wood, steel, and the like. These foreign materials can disrupt the operation of a rock processing device.

[0045] The grain size and / or grain size distribution and / or the proportion of foreign material in or from the material fed in is a measure of the potential for spatially occupying the material buffer. Larger grains are generally distributed less evenly than smaller grains during material feeding due to the momentum they receive when pouring into the material buffer and often develop lower bulk densities. Likewise, foreign material, such as steel reinforcements made of reinforced concrete, can hinder the effective feeding of material into the material buffer and / or the operation of a downstream conveying device. Grain shapes and / or grain sizes and / or grain size distributions and / or the proportion of foreign material can be recorded qualitatively and / or quantitatively.

[0046] The above statements regarding the fill level of the material buffer and its recording apply mutatis mutandis to the fill level of any other material buffer that may be present in the material flow of the rock processing device or the rock processing plant that includes it.

[0047] The oversize material created during the crushing of rock material is usually conveyed back into the material buffer and thus contributes to the fill level of the material buffer and its temporal change behavior. Therefore, recording the amount of returned oversize material, particularly the amount of oversize material returned per unit of time, is a meaningful operating parameter with regard to the emptying rate of the material buffer. The amount of returned oversize material can be recorded optically and / or by image capture and image processing. Additionally or alternatively, recording the weight of oversize material conveyed per unit of time via a returning oversize conveyor belt is conceivable to determine the amount of returned oversize material.

[0048] Taking into account the mesh size of a screen in a screening device provides information about which grain sizes, or grains within which grain size range, are moved in the conveyor lines downstream of the screening device in the material flow. The mesh size can be stored as a fixed value in the aforementioned data storage device. Likewise, the mesh size can be randomly recorded using a laser scanner or other optical sensor in order to account for changes in the mesh size due to operation. Meshes can expand over the course of their operational life due to exposure to heavy rock material. Likewise, meshes can become clogged over time due to sticky material and thus narrow.

[0049] An influential operating parameter is the type of material fed into, extracted from, and processed by the rock processing equipment. The type of material can be determined by one or more qualitative and / or quantitative parameters. A qualitative parameter can, for example, contain "hard rock," "soft rock," "reinforced concrete," "asphalt millings," "asphalt slab," "construction rubble," "gravel," "railway ballast," and / or "other," according to a predefined classification.

[0050] A quantitative parameter can, for example, have specific values ​​for the density and / or hardness and / or breakability and / or abrasiveness and / or moisture content of the fed or extracted material according to recognized and preferably standardized measurement methods. These parameters can also be determined qualitatively, in particular only qualitatively, according to a predetermined classification. For example, parameters can have the qualitative contents "hard," "medium-hard," "soft," "good breakability," "medium breakability," "poor breakability," "low moisture content," "medium moisture content," "high moisture content," etc. The qualitative grading can have more than three levels.

[0051] Density can be determined quantitatively, for example, from an optical volume measurement with simultaneous weighing, such as a scale integrated into a conveyor. The moisture content of the material can be determined using a suitable moisture sensor. Abrasiveness can be determined using an LCPC test. The breakability of a material can be determined in parallel with the abrasiveness during the LCPC test or as the Los Angeles value according to DIN EN 1097-2 in the currently valid version.

[0052] If the composition of the rock being fed is known, the control device can read the corresponding material values, such as hardness, density, breakability, and abrasiveness, from a table stored in the aforementioned data storage device upon input of the respective rock type. However, it is also possible in principle to irradiate the fed material with high-energy electromagnetic radiation, such as X-rays, and record the material's irradiation response. Using stored data tables, the recorded irradiation response can be used to draw conclusions about the material's composition and its properties and material characteristics.

[0053] The condition of the material can, for example, be classified as pre-crushed and non-pre-crushed, where "pre-crushed" refers to prior crushing by a rock processing device. Pre-crushed material can be oversize material recycled in the same rock processing device. Additionally or alternatively, pre-crushed material can be transferred from another rock processing device upstream in the material flow to the relevant rock processing device. In the case of mixtures of pre-crushed and non-pre-crushed material, the condition of the material can be indicated by a mixing ratio, in particular a mass-related mixing ratio, of pre-crushed and non-pre-crushed material. The condition of the material can generally be captured, for example, by image processing, like the grain shape.Additionally or alternatively, the condition can be transmitted to the control device via data transmission by the conveyor conveying pre-crushed and / or non-pre-crushed material for processing by the respective rock processing device. Conveyor scales, such as belt or bucket scales, allow the respective conveyor to additionally transmit quantity information about the material in the respective condition.

[0054] Another influential operating parameter, which, however, lies outside the rock processing device, is the size of a loading tool of a loading device that discontinuously loads the material buffer. This is, for example, the volume of an excavator bucket or a wheel bearing as a possible loading device. In principle, this value can be entered via the aforementioned input device or can be transmitted via a corresponding transmitter device on the loading tool to a receiver device on the rock processing device that is coordinated with the transmitter device. Finally, a sensor on the rock processing device, such as a laser scanner, can directly detect the size of the loading tool or at least a size range attributable to the loading tool. The size of the loading tool is a measure of the quantity of material that can be added to the material buffer with one material feed.The size, such as the volume, of the loading tool can also be determined by recording the change in fill level in the material buffer before and after each material loading process. Additionally or alternatively, the actual feed quantity that has been or is to be loaded into the material buffer can be recorded.

[0055] All of the above-mentioned parameters influence the material flow in the rock processing device and thus the rate at which the material buffer empties through rock processing in the rock processing device.

[0056] During operation of the rock processing device, the control device can record the temporal change in the fill level of the material buffer as a function of the other recorded operating parameters by recording several of the above-mentioned parameters, including the fill level of the material buffer. Using artificial intelligence methods such as deep learning or other analytical methods, it can learn at least a qualitative dependency relationship between the fill level of the material buffer and the other recorded operating parameters and use this to predict when a new material feed will be required. With increasing operating time, the control device's forecast accuracy becomes increasingly more precise using its time information.

[0057] Additionally or alternatively, one or more functional or data relationships between the fill level of the material buffer and one or more of the other operating parameters mentioned above can be determined experimentally in advance during test operations of the rock processing device and stored in the data storage in a suitable form. Suitable forms include formulas, characteristic maps, fuzzy sets or fuzzy sets, and the like.

[0058] The at least one functional or data relationship previously determined in test operations can serve as the basis for predicting future developments in the fill level of the material buffer and thus for determining the time information. It can, and this is preferred, also serve as the basis for continued learning using artificial intelligence methods in the future use of the rock processing device.

[0059] The functional relationships of multiple rock processing devices learned in this way, or further developed through continued learning, can be transferred to a central data collection point, such as the device manufacturer or its contractual partner, where they can be evaluated and, for example, consolidated. After such revision, the improved functional relationships can be transferred to new and / or existing rock processing devices and used by them as a basis for determining the time information as a function of at least one operating parameter.

[0060] As already explained above, at least one operating parameter or several operating parameters can also be supplied to the control device via the input device, optionally with the data memory interposed. The control device is therefore preferably additionally designed to determine the time information during operation with discontinuous material feed, taking into account at least one of the following pieces of information input into the input device: Target fill level of the material buffer, target fill level of at least one conveying device, target conveying speed of at least one conveying device, target fill level of the crushing device, target dimension of a crushing gap of the crushing device, target operating load of at least one drive device, target operating load of the crushing device, target grain size and / or target grain size distribution of fed in and / or conveyed material, target quantity of returned oversize grain, target mesh size of a screen of the screening device, type of fed in and / or conveyed material, size of a loading tool of a loading device that loads the material buffer discontinuously.

[0061] The designation "target" indicates that the parameter in question is not measured by sensors, but is specified as a target value. The control system assumes that the rock processing device and its components are operating with respective actual values ​​that differ from the specified target values ​​only within a predetermined tolerance range and otherwise sufficiently match them. This allows the effort required for sensor-based measurement of operating parameters to be limited to a few highly relevant operating parameters, including, for example, the fill level of the material buffer, without excessively sacrificing forecast accuracy in the time information.

[0062] For the use of the information entered into the input device to determine the time information, the above statements regarding the operating parameters recorded by sensors apply accordingly.

[0063] To make the time information accessible to third parties, in particular to operators of loading devices, the output device can be configured to output information in a type of undirected output, independent of the receiver, into a spatial area that at least partially surrounds the rock processing device and / or is adjacent to the rock processing device. This preferably means that no receiving device is required to reproduce the time information output by the output device in a format understandable to humans or electronic data processing devices.

[0064] The output device can thus output the time information in a visually perceptible manner, for example by displaying a time that indicates the calculated earliest possible loading time for the next material loading. Instead of an absolute time, a remaining waiting time until the next loading time can be displayed. This can be done digitally or analogically, graphically, or numerically. For example, the waiting time until the next loading time can be displayed numerically by a digital clock with a time unit countdown, for example, by seconds or by seconds and minutes. The waiting time can also be displayed graphically and numerically by an analog clock or an analog pointer instrument, for example again with a time unit countdown through corresponding continuous or step-by-step pointer movement.A purely graphical representation of the waiting time is also conceivable, for example, as a waiting time bar proportional in length to the remaining waiting time, as an hourglass proportional to the remaining waiting time, etc. For this purpose, the output device can have a display device that is visually perceptible from outside the rock processing device, such as the aforementioned pointer instrument or a monitor with a freely configurable graphic display, or a light bar with variable luminous dimensions, etc.

[0065] Alternatively or additionally, the rock processing device can have a receiving device that is designed separately from a machine body of the rock processing device, is movable relative to the machine body, and is detachable or separate from the machine body, to ensure that the time information arrives directly where it is actually needed. The output device then outputs the time information by transmitting it to the receiving device. The receiving device is itself designed to perceptibly output the received time information to an operator and / or to process and / or use it to control machine components.

[0066] In principle, the receiving device can be permanently installed in another device. This is preferably the loading device, particularly preferably a driver's cab of the loading device. In a preferred development of the present invention, the receiving device is a portable receiving device, such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, or a laptop computer. It can then be carried by a machine operator of the loading device and can thus provide the machine operator with the time information even if the operator is not at his loading device. This makes it possible to ensure timely material feed to the rock processing device even if the loading device is not immediately ready to feed material at the time the time information is output.

[0067] Due to the interaction of the rock processing device with a loading device to ensure operation of the rock processing device at an advantageous operating point, the present invention also relates to a machine combination comprising a rock processing device with a separate, separate, or separable receiving device and a loading device that intermittently loads the material buffer of the rock processing device. The receiving device is preferably arranged in the loading device in order to keep the time information available where it is immediately needed, thus ensuring timely loading of the material buffer.

[0068] The loading device can be an excavator or a wheel loader, depending on the design of the construction site on which the rock processing device or machine combination is used.

[0069] The receiving device can output the time information graphically and / or acoustically to a machine operator of the loading device, for example via a head-up display, so that the operator, after receiving the time information, can take the necessary actions to ensure timely loading of the material buffer. Additionally or alternatively, the receiving device can be coupled to a transport-relevant operating component of the loading device for signal transmission and control this component in accordance with the time information. A transport-relevant operating component can, for example, be at least one actuator on the loading device, which moves a loading tool of the loading device, such as a bucket of the excavator or wheel loader, to fill the buffer.

[0070] Thus, a partially automated operation of the loading device, which supports the machine operator, or even a fully automated operation of the loading device by the receiving device, optionally supported by at least one further control device on the loading device side, is possible.

[0071] The rock processing device can be part of a rock processing plant comprising multiple rock processing devices. These multiple rock processing devices preferably operate in a linked manner, in the sense that a rock processing device upstream in the material flow feeds its final grain product or one of its final grain products into a material feed device of a downstream rock processing device. Such a rock processing plant is then also to be understood as a rock processing device within the meaning of the present application, which has a plurality of rock processing sub-devices.

[0072] The present invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It shows: Fig. 1 a rough schematic view of a construction site with an embodiment of a rock processing device according to the invention, Fig. 2 the rock processing device of Figure 1 in enlarged schematic side view, Fig. 3 the rock processing device of Figure 2 in an enlarged schematic plan view, Fig. 4 a roughly schematic view of a receiving device for outputting time information, and Fig. 5 a roughly schematic view of a receiving device for outputting location information for a material feed to a material feed device of the rock processing device.

[0073] In Figure 1A construction site is generally designated 10. The central working device of the construction site 10 is a rock processing device 12 with an impact crusher 14 as a crushing device and with a pre-screen 16 and a post-screen 18 as screening devices. In this case, the construction site is preferably a quarry, but could also be a recycling center or a demolition site for one or more structures.

[0074] Material M to be processed by the rock processing device 12, i.e. to be sorted by size and crushed, is fed discontinuously by an excavator 20 as a loading device of the rock processing device 12 into a material feeding device 22 with a funnel-shaped material buffer 24 by loading.

[0075] From the material feed device 22, a vibrating conveyor designed as a trough conveyor 26 conveys the material M to the pre-screen 16, which has two pre-screen decks 16a and 16b, of which the upper pre-screen deck 16a has a larger mesh size and separates those grain sizes and feeds them to the impact crusher 14 which require comminution according to the respective specifications for the final grain product to be achieved.

[0076] Grains falling through the upper pre-screen deck 16a are further sorted by the lower pre-screen deck 16b into a useful grain fraction 28, which corresponds to the specifications of the final grain product to be achieved, and into an undersize fraction 30, which has such a small grain size that it is unusable as a valuable grain.

[0077] The number of stockpiles or fractions shown in the example is merely exemplary. It may be larger or smaller than specified in the example. Furthermore, the undersize fraction 30, described as reject in this example, may also be a valuable fraction, provided the grain size range resulting from fraction 30 can be used for further purposes.

[0078] The useful grain fraction 28 is increased by the crushed material discharged from the impact crusher 14 and conveyed to the secondary screen 18 by a first conveying device 32 in the form of a belt conveyor. In the illustrated embodiment, the secondary screen 18 also has two screen decks or secondary screen decks 18a and 18b, of which the upper secondary screen deck 18a has the larger mesh size. The upper secondary screen deck 18a allows valuable grain to fall through its meshes and sorts out an oversize fraction 34 with a grain size larger than the largest desired grain size of the valuable grain. The oversize fraction 34 is returned to the material input of the impact crusher 14 or to the primary screen 16 by an oversize conveying device 36. The oversize conveying device 36 is designed as a belt conveyor in the illustrated embodiment.

[0079] The usable grain of the usable grain fraction 28 thus includes oversize grain and valuable grain. Deviating from the illustration in the exemplary embodiment, the oversize grain conveyor device 36 can, for example, be pivoted out from a machine frame 50 of the rock processing device 12, so that the oversize grain fraction 34 is stored in a stockpile instead of being recycled.

[0080] The valuable grain that has fallen through the meshes of the upper screening deck 18a is further fractionated by the lower screening deck 18b into a fine grain fraction 38 with a smaller grain size and a medium grain fraction 40 with a larger grain size.

[0081] The fine grain fraction 38 is piled up and stored in a fine grain stockpile 44 by a fine grain discharge conveyor device 42 in the form of a belt conveyor.

[0082] The medium grain fraction 40 is conveyed by a medium grain discharge conveyor device 46, also in the form of a belt conveyor, to a Figure 1not shown and in Figure 2 medium-grain stockpile 48, which is only roughly shown, was heaped up and dumped.

[0083] As its central structure, the rock processing device 12 comprises a machine frame 50, to which the aforementioned device components are directly or indirectly secured or mounted. As its central power source, the rock processing device 12 comprises a diesel engine 52 mounted on the machine frame 50, which generates all the energy consumed by the rock processing device 12, unless it is stored in energy storage devices such as batteries. Additionally, the rock processing device 12 can be connected to the construction site's power supply, if available.

[0084] The rock processing device 12, which can be part of a rock processing plant with a plurality of rock processing devices arranged in a common material flow, is in the example shown a mobile, more precisely self-propelled, rock processing device 12 with a crawler track 54, which enables automatic relocation without an external tractor via hydraulic motors 56 as drive of the rock processing device 12.

[0085] The valuable grain stockpiles 44 and 48, as well as the undersize fraction stockpile 30, are dismantled discontinuously by one or more wheel loaders 58 as an example of a mining device. The undersize fraction stockpile 30 must also be mined regularly to ensure uninterrupted operation of the rock processing device 12.

[0086] For the most advantageous operation control, the rock processing device 12 has the following based on the larger illustration of Figure 2 described device components:

[0087] The rock processing device 12 comprises a control device 60, for example in the form of an electronic data processing system with integrated circuits, which controls the operation of device components. For this purpose, the control device 60 can, for example, either directly control drives of device components or control actuators, which in turn can move components.

[0088] The control device 60 is connected to a data storage device 62 for signal transmission for data exchange and is connected to an input device 64 for inputting information. Information can be input to the input device 64 via the input device 64, for example, a touchscreen, a tablet computer, a keyboard, and the like, and stored by the input device in the data storage device 62.

[0089] In addition, the control device 60 is connected to an output device 66 for signal transmission in order to output information.

[0090] The rock processing device 12 also has various sensors for obtaining information about its operating state, which are connected to the control device 60 and thus, in the example shown, indirectly to the data storage device 62. For the sake of clarity, the sensors are only shown in Figure 2 shown.

[0091] A camera 70 is arranged on a support frame 68. This camera captures images of the material feeder 22 with the material buffer 24 and transmits them to the control device 60 for image processing. With the aid of the camera 70 and by image processing the images of the material buffer 24 and the material feeder 22 captured by the camera, the control device determines a local fill level of the material buffer 24 using data relationships stored in the data memory 22.

[0092] Furthermore, the drive (not shown) of the trough conveyor 26 detects its vibration amplitude and vibration frequency and transmits them to the control device 60, which uses this information to determine a conveying speed of the trough conveyor 26 and, taking into account the local fill level of the material buffer 24, a conveying capacity of the trough conveyor 26 to the impact crusher 14.

[0093] By means of predetermined data relationships generated and / or further developed, in particular by methods of artificial intelligence, the control device 60 can recognize a grain size distribution in the material M in the material buffer 24 and even the material type from the image information of the camera 70.

[0094] An upper impact rocker 72 and a lower impact rocker 74 are arranged in the impact crusher 14 in a manner known per se, wherein the rotational position of the upper impact rocker 72 is detected by a rotational position sensor 76 and the rotational position of the lower impact rocker 74 is detected by a rotational position sensor 78 and transmitted to the control device 60. Using the rotational position sensors 76 and 78, the control device 60 can also determine a crushing gap width of an upper crushing gap on the upper impact rocker 72 and a crushing gap width of a lower crushing gap on the lower impact rocker 74.

[0095] A speed sensor 80 determines the speed of the crushing rotor of the impact crusher 14 and transmits it to the control device 60.

[0096] Wear sensors can be provided on components subject to particularly high wear, such as impact bars, impact rockers, impact plates, and impact beams. These sensors register the progression of wear, usually in wear stages, and transmit this to the control device 60. In the example shown, a wear sensor arrangement 82 is shown only on the lower impact rocker 74 for the sake of clarity.

[0097] A first belt scale 84 is arranged in the first conveyor device 32, which detects the weight or mass of the material of the useful grain fraction 28 transported above it on the first conveyor device 32. Using a speed sensor 86 in a deflection roller of the conveyor belt of the first conveyor device 32, the control device 60 can determine a conveying speed of the first conveyor device 32 and, in conjunction with the detection signals of the first belt scale 84, can determine a conveying capacity of the first conveyor device 32.

[0098] A second belt scale 88 is arranged in the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42 and detects the mass or weight of the fine grain of the fine grain fraction 38 moved above it on the belt of the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42. Likewise, a conveying speed of the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42 and, in conjunction with the detection signals of the second belt scale 88, a conveying capacity of the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42 can be determined by the control device 60 via the speed sensor 90 in a deflection roller of the conveyor belt of the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42.

[0099] A third belt scale 92 is arranged in the oversize grain conveyor 36 and determines the weight or mass of the oversize grain of the oversize grain fraction 34 conveyed above it on the oversize grain conveyor 36. A speed sensor 94 of a deflection roller of the conveyor belt of the oversize grain conveyor 36 determines the conveying speed of the oversize grain conveyor 36 and transmits this to the control device 60, which, in conjunction with the detection signals of the third belt scale 92, can determine a conveying capacity of the oversize grain conveyor.

[0100] At the discharge-side longitudinal end of the fine grain discharge conveyor device 42, a first stockpile sensor 96 is arranged, which, as a camera, records images of the fine grain stockpile 44 and transmits them as image information to a control device 60, which recognizes contours of the fine grain stockpile 48 through image processing and, based on the known image data from the camera of the first stockpile sensor 96, determines a shape and, from this, a volume of the fine grain stockpile 48 based on the recognized contours. To simplify its information determination, the control device 60 can, without excessive error, assume an ideal conical shape of the fine grain stockpile 48 and determine the volume of an ideal cone that approximates the actual fine grain stockpile 48. Thus, it may be sufficient for a stockpile sensor to determine the diameter D of the base area of ​​a stockpile and the height h of the stockpile, as shown in the Figures 2 and 3 shown using the example of Halde 48.

[0101] In Figure 1An alternatively or additionally usable second stockpile sensor 98 is shown. The second stockpile sensor 98 comprises a flyable drone as a carrier, whose movement can be remotely controlled by the control device 60. The second stockpile sensor 98 also serves to determine at least one height of the fine grain stockpile 48, but preferably to determine its shape and thus its volume. An advantage of using a drone or a sensor installed at an elevated location, such as on a high mast or stand, is that one sensor can detect more than one stockpile in terms of its height and / or shape and / or volume. Then, a number of sensors that is fewer than the total number of stockpiles to be detected at the rock processing device 12, at a rock processing plant, or at the construction site 10 can be sufficient to detect each of the stockpiles to be detected.Preferably, just one sensor is sufficient to actually record all the stockpiles to be recorded.

[0102] Each discharge conveyor device creating a stockpile preferably has at least one stockpile sensor or cooperates with a stockpile sensor.

[0103] The remaining discharge conveyor devices, such as the medium grain discharge conveyor device 46 and a undersize grain discharge conveyor device 29, preferably also have a belt scale and a speed sensor for detecting the amount of material transported on the respective conveyor device, the conveying speed and thus the conveying capacity.

[0104] The output device 66 is explained in more detail below: The output device 66 can have, for example on the support frame 68, a projection device 100 in order to project a marking within the Figure 2shown and identical to the feed opening of the material buffer 24. The total feed area 102 is selected such that a grain falling along the direction of gravity reaches the material feed device 22 without falling directly onto the pre-screen 16.

[0105] The output device 66 further comprises a transmitting / receiving unit 104, which transmits data by radio in a suitable data protocol to a receiving device set up for communication with it, such as the receiving device 106 in the Figures 4 and 5 , transmit and receive from it.

[0106] Furthermore, the output device 66 has a first display device 108, for example in the form of a monitor, for the externally perceptible display of time information for the next material feed into the material feed device 22. Likewise, in the illustrated embodiment, the output device 66 has a second display device 110, for example again a monitor, for the externally perceptible display of time information and location information for the next stockpile removal. For this purpose, the display device 110 not only displays time information indicating when the next stockpile removal should begin, but also location information indicating which of the stockpiles should be removed at the specified time, as well as, if applicable, the amount by which the specified stockpile should be removed.

[0107] Furthermore, the excavator 20 includes a transceiver 112 with a data storage device, which is configured to communicate with the transceiver unit 104 of the rock processing device 12. The transceiver 112 can thus transmit relevant data about the excavator 20 to the transceiver unit 104, such as the capacity of its bucket 21 as its loading tool and / or its current GPS data.

[0108] Accordingly, the wheel loader 58 includes a transceiver 114 with a data storage device, which is configured to communicate with the transceiver unit 104 of the rock processing device 12. The transceiver 112 can thus transmit relevant data about the wheel loader 58 to the transceiver unit 104, such as the capacity of its bucket 59 as its excavation tool and / or its current GPS data.

[0109] In the example shown, the data storage 62 contains several data relationships linking operating and / or material parameters. These data relationships can be determined in advance through trial operations with targeted parameter variations and stored in the data storage 62. The use of artificial intelligence methods to determine causal relationships between operating and / or material parameters is particularly helpful for more complex, multidimensional data relationships. The data relationships thus determined can be continuously verified, refined, and / or corrected during further operation of the rock processing device 12, again preferably using artificial intelligence methods.

[0110] The discontinuous material feed naturally leads to a surge of material feed, with the size of the discharged material being limited by the size of the bucket 21 of the excavator 20. The time intervals between two discontinuous material feeds are unpredictable and fluctuate.

[0111] In order to avoid disruptions in the operating sequence of the rock processing device 12, the control device 60 determines, on the basis of detection signals from one or more of the aforementioned sensors, time information which represents an execution time of a future, in particular next, material feed into the material feed device 22.

[0112] For this purpose, the control device 60 preferably uses the determined locally differentiated fill level of the material buffer 24 and takes into account the conveying capacities of the trough conveyor 26 and, for example, the undersize conveying device 29 and the first conveying device 32. A balanced analysis of the material flows of the trough conveyor 26 into the impact crusher 14 and of the undersize conveying device 29 and the first conveying device 32 away from the impact crusher 14 indicates whether the fill level of the impact crusher 14 changes over time, for example, increases or decreases, and thus provides a measure of whether the conveying capacity of the trough conveyor 26 can be maintained or must be changed. However, the conveying capacity of the trough conveyor 26 is decisive for how quickly the material buffer 24 should be emptied and refilled with material.Alternatively or additionally, a sensor may also be provided directly on the rock processing device 12 to detect the filling level of the impact crusher 14.

[0113] Likewise, the control device 60 takes into account the amount of returned oversize grain, since it also contributes the oversize grain fraction 34 to the filling level of the material buffer 24.

[0114] A predefined data context stored in the data memory 62 can link the detection signals of the camera 70, the first belt scale 84, the speed sensor 86, a belt scale and a speed sensor on the undersize grain discharge conveyor, the belt scale 92 and the speed sensor 94 of the oversize grain conveyor 36, as well as the size of the bucket 21 of the excavator 20, possibly taking into account the distance of the excavator 20 from the material feed device 22, as input variables with time information as an output variable, which indicates when the next material feed into the material feed device 22 is to take place. This time information can be displayed on the first output device 108 in a suitable form, such as an hourglass, waiting time bar, time countdown, or analog clock display, perceptibly for anyone within sight of the rock processing device 20.

[0115] The time information can also be sent by the transmitting / receiving unit 104 to a mobile receiving device 106, which is available to the operator of the excavator 20. The mobile receiving device 106 can be a portable mobile device, such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, and the like, or can be permanently installed in the excavator 20 as part of its control device and remain in the excavator 20.

[0116] In Figure 4 An example of a time information display on the receiving device 106 is shown, both graphically in the upper half by pointer display 107a and alphanumerically in the lower half by time countdown 107b. In the illustrated case, the next material delivery is desired in 00 minutes and 45 seconds.

[0117] Thus, the control device 60 can successively control the discontinuous material feed and ensure the best possible material flow in the rock processing device 12 despite the discontinuity of the material feed.

[0118] Due to the local or area-wise resolution of the fill level in the material feed device 22 or in the material buffer 24, the control device 60 is also able, based on a further data context stored in the data memory 62, to control the next material feed not only temporally but also spatially within the overall feed area 102 of the material buffer 24 or the material feed device 22 or to provide location information about a preferred material feed location within the overall feed area 102.

[0119] As a result, the control device 60 can convey a loading of the material buffer 24 that is as advantageous as possible over the entire operating time of the rock processing device 12 for the respective design of the material feeding device 22 and the rock processing device 12 as a whole, which can be identified parametrically in the data memory 62 for use by the control device 60.

[0120] Thus, local overfilling of the material buffer 24 can be avoided, as can direct feeding of material onto the pre-screen 16. Furthermore, material can be fed in places where the filling level within the material buffer 24 has dropped significantly, in order to ensure an advantageous material bed in the material feeding device 22.

[0121] Based on a predetermined data context, the control device 60 can thus output location information to the operator of the excavator 20 as to where the next material feed should take place within the overall feed area 102.

[0122] The output device 66 can output this location information through the projection device 100 for everyone to see, in that the projection device 100 projects a marker within the overall feed area 102 or within the material buffer 24 at the location at which the next material feed should take place.

[0123] Additionally or alternatively, the location information, like the time information for the next material feed, can be output to the machine operator of the excavator 20 via the receiving device 106. Figure 5shows an exemplary embodiment of a location information output. The receiving device 106 shows a schematic representation 197c of the material buffer 24 with the overall feed area 102 and marks the desired feed location within the overall feed area 102 for the next material feed using a suitable marking 116. In addition, a discharge height or a discharge height range to be preferably maintained can be specified quantitatively, for example in meters and / or centimeters, or qualitatively, for example by specifying qualitative discharge height parameters such as "low," "medium," and "high." The additional height information is easy to implement, particularly when transmitting the location information to a possibly semi-automatic excavator control system.

[0124] By means of the first and / or second stockpile sensor 96 or 98 on the respective discharge conveyors 29, 42, and 46, the control device 60 can, taking into account material parameters such as the type of material fed in, grain size, and grain size distribution, and possibly the resulting bulk density, detect an increase in the stockpiles 30, 44, and 48 generated by the rock processing device 12 and, above all, detect a change or growth rate of the respective stockpile. Using a previously generated and stored data context, determine mining time information indicating when a specific stockpile should be mined by the wheel loader 58. This can prevent the stockpile from growing too much and blocking discharge via the discharge conveyor that generates the respective stockpile.

[0125] Furthermore, the control device can determine further degradation information, which indicates the extent to which degradation is to take place, taking into account material parameters such as the grain size and grain size distribution as well as the density, using a data context determined for this purpose.

[0126] If the rock processing device 12 produces several heaps, as in the present application, the output device 66 also outputs further mining information which identifies the heap affected by the mining time information.

[0127] The control device 60 can display the mining time information and the other mining information on the second display device 110 so that it is visible to anyone within the field of view of the rock processing device 12. Additionally or alternatively, the output device 66 can transmit the information regarding the next dump mining operation to the receiving device 106 via the transmitting / receiving unit 104, where it is output graphically and / or alphanumerically to the machine operator of the wheel loader 58.

[0128] Finally, the control device 60 can control operating parameters of the rock processing device 12 based on detection signals from suitable sensors such that, in the illustrated embodiment, a predetermined desired ratio of fine grain quantity to medium grain quantity is achieved. Likewise, the control device 60 can control the rock processing device 12 based on appropriately prepared data relationships such that its energy consumption per unit quantity of processed mineral material reaches or is reduced to at least a local minimum. Additionally or alternatively, the control device 60 can control the rock processing device 12 using appropriately prepared data relationships such that an amount of oversize grain advantageous for the respective crushing process is returned, so that sufficient support grain is present in the crushing gap(s) through pre-crushed oversize grain.In fact, due to the beneficial effects of oversize grain as support grain in the crushing gap, operating with the goal of minimizing or eliminating the amount of oversize grain is not necessarily the most economical way of operating the rock processing device 12. Indeed, a very small amount of oversize grain often results in an excessive amount of overly finely crushed material, which is generally undesirable. If the amount of recycled material decreases, the quality of the final product often also decreases, as it then contains less multiply crushed material.

[0129] In this case, the control device 60 can, based on the data relationships available to it and previously determined by test operations with targeted parameter variation, also aim to operate the rock processing device 12 on the basis of several target variables or one target variable with further predetermined boundary conditions, such as the production of valuable grain with different grain sizes in a predetermined quantity ratio with the lowest possible energy consumption and with the most advantageous amount of recycled oversize grain.

[0130] In order to adjust the operation of the rock processing device 12 according to the output variables of the at least one data context used, the control device 60 can change the conveying speed of one or more conveying devices, can change the crushing gap width, in particular of the upper and / or lower crushing gap, can change the rotor speed, can control the material feed into the material feed device 22 spatially and temporally, etc.

[0131] The input variables used for operational optimization can be the size and / or height and / or growth of valuable grain stockpiles, in this case, for example, valuable grain stockpiles 44 and 48, the size and / or height and / or growth of the stockpile of the undersize fraction 30, the amount of recycled oversize grain, the fed grain size and fed grain size distribution, which can be determined primarily via the material parameters entered via the input device 64. The entered material parameters can include at least one material parameter from the type of material, moisture content, hardness, density, breakability, abrasiveness, proportion of foreign matter in the fed and / or processed material, etc., the grain size and grain size distribution in the individual discharge conveyor devices. This list is not exhaustive.In the discharge conveyors, the grain size and grain size distribution, and if necessary, also the grain shape, can be determined by cameras with downstream image processing. The grain size and grain size distribution in a discharge conveyor can additionally or alternatively be determined by the loading of a screening device upstream of the respective discharge conveyor in the material flow. Additionally or alternatively, the desired target quantity of a respective end product can serve as an input for operational optimization.

[0132] By applying artificial intelligence methods, the control device 60, if desired with the involvement of powerful external data processing devices, can continuously improve the accuracy of the stored data relationships through its daily operation and the data and insights collected thereby.

[0133] The rock processing device 12 can thus not only optimize its own operation, but essentially successively take over the organization of the entire construction site in the vicinity of the rock processing device 12.

Claims

1. A rock processing apparatus (12) for crushing and / or for sorting granular mineral material (M) according to size, the rock processing apparatus (12) comprising as apparatus components: - a material feeding apparatus (22) having a material buffer (24) for loading starting material (M) to be processed, - at least one working unit of: + at least one crushing apparatus (14) and + at least one screening apparatus (16, 18), - at least one conveyor apparatus (26, 32) for conveying material between two apparatus components, - a control unit (60) for controlling apparatus components of the rock processing apparatus (12), - at least one sensor (72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 96, 98) for detecting at least one operating parameter, the sensor (72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 96, 98) being connected to the control unit (60) in signal-transmitting fashion for transmitting a detection signal representing the at least one detected operating parameter, - at least one output device (66) for outputting information, the output device (66) being connected to the control unit (60) in signal-transmitting fashion for transmitting information, characterized in that the control unit (60) is designed to ascertain, in an operation with discontinuous material feed of starting material (M) to be processed, a piece of time information on the basis of the at least one detection signal, which represents an execution time of a future material feed into the material feeding apparatus (22), wherein the output device (66) is designed to output the ascertained time information.

2. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the rock processing apparatus (12) is designed to ascertain, in the operation with discontinuous material feed, an individual execution time as time information for at least two successive future material feeds and to output these respectively via the output device (66).

3. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the rock processing apparatus (12) comprises an input device (64) for inputting information, the input device (64) being connected in signal-transmitting fashion to the control unit (60) for transmitting information, the control unit (60) being designed, in the operation with discontinuous material feed, to ascertain the time information on the basis of the at least one detection signal and a piece of information input into the input device (64).

4. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one sensor is designed to detect and transmit to the control unit (60) at least one of the following operating parameters: - fill ratio of the material buffer (24), - fill ratio of at least one conveyor apparatus (26, 32), - conveying speed of at least one conveyor apparatus (26, 32), - fill ratio of at least one working unit (14, 16, 18), - grain shape and / or grain size and / or grain size distribution of fed and / or conveyed material, - type of fed and / or conveyed material, - hum idity of the fed material, - density of the fed material, - hardness of the fed material, - crushability of the fed material, - abrasiveness of the fed material, - state of the fed material, - quantity of returned oversize grain, - feed quantity of material to be fed or already fed, - operating load of at least one drive apparatus, - operating load of at least one working unit (14, 16, 18), - working speed of at least one working unit (14, 16, 18), - dimension of a crush gap of the crushing apparatus (14), - mesh aperture of a screen of the screening apparatus (16), - size of a loading tool (21) of a loading apparatus (20) discontinuously loading the material buffer (24), - quantity or proportion of, in particular non-crushable, foreign material.

5. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to Claim 3 or according to Claims 3 and 4, characterized in that the control unit (60) is designed to ascertain, in the operation with discontinuous material feed, the time information by taking into consideration at least one of the following pieces of information input into the input device (64): - setpoint fill ratio of the material buffer, - setpoint fill ratio of at least one conveyor apparatus, - setpoint conveying speed of at least one conveyor apparatus, - setpoint fill ratio of the crushing apparatus, - setpoint dimension of a crush gap of the crushing apparatus, - setpoint operating load of at least one drive apparatus, - setpoint operating load of the crushing apparatus, - setpoint grain size and / or setpoint grain size distribution of fed and / or conveyed material, - setpoint quantity of returned oversize grain, - setpoint mesh aperture of a screen of the screening apparatus, - type of fed and / or conveyed material, - size of a loading tool of a loading apparatus discontinuously loading the material buffer.

6. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the output device (66) is designed to output information independently of a receiver in a spatial area surrounding the rock processing apparatus (12) at least partially and / or adjoining the rock processing apparatus (12).

7. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to in one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the rock processing apparatus (12) includes a receiving device (106) developed separately of a machine body of the rock processing apparatus (12) and movable relative to the machine body and separable or separated from the machine body, the output device (66) being designed to transmit the time information to the receiving device (106) and thereby to output it.

8. The rock processing apparatus (12) according to Claim 7, characterized in that the receiving device (106) is a portable receiving device (106).

9. A machine combination made up of a rock processing apparatus (12) according to Claim 7 or 8 and a loading apparatus (20) discontinuously loading the material buffer (24) of the rock processing apparatus (12), characterized in that the receiving device (106) is situated in the loading apparatus (20).

10. The machine combination according to Claim 9, characterized in that the receiving device (106) outputs the time information graphically and / or acoustically to a machine operator of the loading apparatus (20) and / or controls a transport-relevant operating component (21) of the loading apparatus (20).