Shovel and remote control system for shovel

Abstract

To achieve improved safety.SOLUTION: A shovel according to one embodiment includes an upper rotating body, a lower running body supporting the upper rotating body so that it can rotate, an inclination sensor, and a control unit configured to control the lower running body to travel at a slower speed when the detection result of the inclination sensor determines that the contact surface of the lower running body is inclined at a first angle compared to when it is determined that the contact surface is not inclined at the first angle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a shovel and a remote control system for the shovel. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, excavators are used in various environments. For example, when moving around a work site, an excavator may move on a slope. On a slope, the excavator may become unstable depending on the posture and operation of the attachment. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2019 / 049490 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For this reason, for example, the technology described in Patent Document 1 makes it possible to encourage safe operation by outputting a warning when the ground is sloping. However, Patent Document 1 only outputs a warning, and there are cases where the operator is not aware of what specific control should be performed on the excavator.

[0005] In view of the above, when the excavator travels on a slope, the traveling speed is controlled to be reduced, thereby improving safety. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A shovel according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises an upper rotating body, a lower running body supporting the upper rotating body so that it can rotate, an inclination sensor, and a control unit configured to control the lower running body to travel at a slower speed when the detection result of the inclination sensor determines that the contact surface of the lower running body is inclined at more than a first angle, compared to when it is determined that the contact surface is not inclined at more than the first angle. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, safety is improved by controlling the traveling speed to be lower. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a shovel according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a hydraulic system mounted on the excavator according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an extracted hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the left traveling hydraulic motor according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a traveling state of the shovel according to the first embodiment on the ground contact surface. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between the operation amount and the command current for the operation device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between the operation amount and the command current for the operating device according to the modified example. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a procedure for adjusting the traveling speed by the shovel controller according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an autonomous control system for a shovel according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an autonomous control system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10]FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing a movement procedure by autonomous control of a shovel in the autonomous control system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a remote control system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a remote control system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram showing remote operation by the shovel and the remote operation room according to the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiment described below is an example, not a limitation of the invention, and all features and combinations described in the embodiment are not necessarily essential to the invention. In addition, the same or corresponding components in each drawing are denoted by the same or corresponding reference numerals, and the description may be omitted.

[0010] (First embodiment) First, an overview of a shovel 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a side view of a shovel 100 as a work machine according to a first embodiment. An upper rotating body 3 is rotatably mounted on a lower traveling body 1 of the shovel 100 via a rotating mechanism 2. A boom 4 is attached to the upper rotating body 3. An arm 5 is attached to the tip of the boom 4, and a bucket 6 is attached to the tip of the arm 5 as an end attachment. The end attachment may be a slope bucket, a dredging bucket, or the like.

[0011] The boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6 constitute an excavation attachment AT, which is an example of an attachment, and are hydraulically driven by a boom cylinder 7, an arm cylinder 8, and a bucket cylinder 9, respectively.

[0012] A boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4, an arm angle sensor S2 is attached to the arm 5, and a bucket angle sensor S3 is attached to the bucket 6. The excavation attachment may be provided with a bucket tilt mechanism.

[0013] The boom angle sensor S1 detects the rotation angle of the boom 4. In this embodiment, the boom angle sensor S1 is an acceleration sensor, and can detect the boom angle, which is the rotation angle of the boom 4 relative to the upper rotating body 3. For example, the boom angle is at its minimum when the boom 4 is lowered to the lowest, and increases as the boom 4 is raised.

[0014] The arm angle sensor S2 detects the rotation angle of the arm 5. In this embodiment, the arm angle sensor S2 is an acceleration sensor, and can detect the arm angle, which is the rotation angle of the arm 5 with respect to the boom 4. For example, the arm angle is at its minimum when the arm 5 is fully closed, and increases as the arm 5 is opened.

[0015] The bucket angle sensor S3 detects the rotation angle of the bucket 6. In this embodiment, the bucket angle sensor S3 is an acceleration sensor, and can detect the bucket angle, which is the rotation angle of the bucket 6 with respect to the arm 5. For example, the bucket angle is at its minimum when the bucket 6 is fully closed, and increases as the bucket 6 is opened.

[0016] The boom angle sensor S1, the arm angle sensor S2, and the bucket angle sensor S3 may be a potentiometer using a variable resistor, a stroke sensor that detects the stroke amount of the corresponding hydraulic cylinder, or a rotary encoder that detects the rotation angle around the connecting pin, etc. The boom angle sensor S1, the arm angle sensor S2, and the bucket angle sensor S3 constitute a posture sensor that detects the posture of the excavation attachment.

[0017] The upper rotating body 3 is provided with a cabin 10 as a driver's cab, and is equipped with a driving source such as an engine 11. In addition, a hydraulic motor for rotation, a shovel controller 30, an imaging device S6, etc. are attached to the upper rotating body 3. The hydraulic motor for rotation may be a motor-generator for rotation.

[0018] The engine 11 is a driving source of the excavator 100. In this embodiment, the engine 11 is a diesel engine. An output shaft of the engine 11 is coupled to input shafts of a main pump 14 (see FIG. 2) and a pilot pump 15 (see FIG. 2).

[0019] The drive source is not limited to the engine 11, and may be a motor. The shovel 100 may be equipped with an engine and a motor as the drive source. The shovel 100 may be driven only by the engine, may be a hybrid type driven by the engine and the motor, or may be an electric shovel (electrical work machine) driven only by the motor.

[0020] The upper rotating body 3 is equipped with a cabin 10 serving as a driver's cab, a vehicle tilt sensor S4, a rotation angular velocity sensor S5, an imaging device S6, a positioning device S10, a communication device T1, and the like.

[0021] The machine body inclination sensor S4 is configured to detect the inclination of the upper rotating body 3 with respect to a predetermined plane. In this embodiment, the machine body inclination sensor S4 is an acceleration sensor that detects the inclination angle about the front-rear axis and the left-right axis of the upper rotating body 3 with respect to the horizontal plane. The front-rear axis and the left-right axis of the upper rotating body 3 are, for example, perpendicular to each other and pass through the shovel center point, which is a point on the rotation axis of the shovel 100.

[0022] The rotation angular velocity sensor S5 is configured to detect the rotation angular velocity of the upper rotating body 3. In this embodiment, the rotation angular velocity sensor S5 is a gyro sensor. The rotation angular velocity sensor S5 may be a resolver or a rotary encoder, etc. The rotation angular velocity sensor S5 may detect a rotation speed. The rotation speed may be calculated from the rotation angular velocity.

[0023] The imaging device S6 is configured to capture images of the surroundings of the excavator 100. The imaging device S6 is, for example, a monocular camera, a stereo camera, a distance imaging camera, an infrared camera, a LiDAR, etc. The imaging device S6 includes a rear camera S6B attached to the rear end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3, a left camera S6L attached to the left end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3, and a right camera S6R attached to the right end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3.

[0024] The rear camera S6B, the left camera S6L, and the right camera S6R are attached to the upper rotating body 3 so that their optical axes face diagonally downward and so that a part of the upper rotating body 3 is included in the imaging range. The imaging range of each of the rear camera S6B, the left camera S6L, and the right camera S6R has a viewing angle of about 180 degrees in a plan view, for example.

[0025] The positioning device S10 is configured to acquire information related to the position of the shovel 100. In this embodiment, the positioning device S10 is configured to measure the position and orientation of the shovel 100 in a reference coordinate system. Specifically, the positioning device S10 is a GNSS receiver incorporating an electronic compass, and measures the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the current position of the shovel 100, and measures the orientation of the shovel 100. The reference coordinate system according to this embodiment is, for example, the World Geodetic System. The World Geodetic System is a three-dimensional orthogonal XYZ coordinate system with the origin at the center of gravity of the earth, the X axis in the direction of the intersection of the Greenwich meridian and the equator, the Y axis in the direction of 90 degrees east longitude, and the Z axis in the direction of the North Pole.

[0026] A shovel controller 30 is installed in the cabin 10. Also installed in the cabin 10 are a driver's seat, a display device DI, an operating device 26, and the like.

[0027] The shovel controller 30 is a calculation device that executes various calculations. The shovel controller 30 is provided, for example, in the cabin 10 and controls the drive of the shovel 100. The functions of the shovel controller 30 may be realized by any hardware, software, or a combination thereof. For example, the shovel controller 30 is mainly configured with a microcomputer including a central processing unit (CPU), a memory device such as a random access memory (RAM), a non-volatile auxiliary storage device such as a read only memory (ROM), and an interface device for various inputs and outputs. The shovel controller 30 executes various programs installed in the non-volatile auxiliary storage device on the CPU, for example, to realize various functions.

[0028] The communication device T1 is configured to control communication with devices external to the shovel 100. In this embodiment, the communication device T1 is configured to control communication between the communication device T1 and devices external to the shovel 100 via a communication line (including a wireless communication network). The communication device T1 includes, for example, a mobile communication module compatible with mobile communication standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G (4th Generation), and 5G (5th Generation), a satellite communication module for connecting to a satellite communication network, and the like.

[0029] Furthermore, the communication device T1 controls wireless communication between the excavator 100 and an external GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) surveying system, for example.

[0030] [Excavator hydraulic system] Next, a configuration example of a hydraulic system mounted on the shovel 100 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a hydraulic system mounted on the shovel 100 according to this embodiment. In Fig. 2, a mechanical power transmission system, a hydraulic oil line, a pilot line, and an electric control system are indicated by double lines, solid lines, dashed lines, and dotted lines, respectively.

[0031] The hydraulic system of the shovel 100 mainly includes an engine 11, a regulator 13, a main pump 14, a pilot pump 15, a control valve unit 17, an operating device 26, a discharge pressure sensor 28, an operation sensor 29, and a shovel controller 30.

[0032] In FIG. 2, the hydraulic system is configured to circulate hydraulic oil from a main pump 14 driven by an engine 11 through a center bypass line 40 or a parallel line 42 to a hydraulic oil tank.

[0033] The engine 11 is a drive source of the excavator 100. In this embodiment, the engine 11 is, for example, a diesel engine that operates to maintain a predetermined rotation speed. An output shaft of the engine 11 is connected to input shafts of the main pump 14 and the pilot pump 15.

[0034] The main pump 14 is configured to supply hydraulic oil via a hydraulic oil line to the control valve unit 17. In this embodiment, the main pump 14 is a swash plate type variable displacement hydraulic pump.

[0035] The regulator 13 is configured to be able to control the discharge amount of the main pump 14. In this embodiment, the regulator 13 controls the discharge amount of the main pump 14 by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the main pump 14 in response to a control command from the shovel controller 30.

[0036] The pilot pump 15 is an example of a pilot pressure generating device, and is configured to be able to supply hydraulic oil to hydraulic control devices via a pilot line. In this embodiment, the pilot pump 15 is a fixed displacement hydraulic pump. However, the pilot pressure generating device may be realized by the main pump 14. That is, the main pump 14 may have a function of supplying hydraulic oil to various hydraulic control devices via a pilot line, in addition to a function of supplying hydraulic oil to the control valve unit 17 via a hydraulic oil line. In this case, the pilot pump 15 may be omitted.

[0037] The control valve unit 17 is a hydraulic control device that controls the hydraulic system in the excavator 100. In this embodiment, the control valve unit 17 includes control valves 171 to 176. The control valve 175 includes a control valve 175L and a control valve 175R, and the control valve 176 includes a control valve 176L and a control valve 176R. The control valve unit 17 is configured to selectively supply hydraulic oil discharged by the main pump 14 to one or more hydraulic actuators through the control valves 171 to 176. The control valves 171 to 176 control, for example, the flow rate of hydraulic oil flowing from the main pump 14 to the hydraulic actuators and the flow rate of hydraulic oil flowing from the hydraulic actuators to a hydraulic oil tank. The hydraulic actuators include a boom cylinder 7, an arm cylinder 8, a bucket cylinder 9, a left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML, a right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR, and a swing hydraulic motor 2A.

[0038] The operating device 26 is configured so that an operator can operate the actuator. In this embodiment, the operating device 26 includes a hydraulic actuator operating device configured so that an operator can operate the hydraulic actuator. Specifically, the hydraulic actuator operating device is configured so that the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 can be supplied to the pilot ports of the corresponding control valves 171 to 176 in the control valve unit 17 via a pilot line through a proportional valve 31 controlled by the excavator controller 30. The pressure of the hydraulic oil supplied to each of the pilot ports (pilot pressure) is a pressure according to the operation direction and operation amount of the operating device 26 corresponding to each of the hydraulic actuators.

[0039] The discharge pressure sensor 28 is configured to detect the discharge pressure of the main pump 14. In this embodiment, the discharge pressure sensor 28 outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30.

[0040] The operation sensor 29 is configured to detect the content of an operation of the operation device 26 by an operator. In this embodiment, the operation sensor 29 detects the operation direction and operation amount of the operation device 26 corresponding to each actuator, and outputs the detected values ​​to the shovel controller 30.

[0041] The main pump 14 includes a left main pump 14L and a right main pump 14R. The left main pump 14L circulates hydraulic oil to a hydraulic oil tank via a left center bypass line 40L or a left parallel line 42L, and the right main pump 14R circulates hydraulic oil to a hydraulic oil tank via a right center bypass line 40R or a right parallel line 42R.

[0042] The left center bypass line 40L is a hydraulic oil line that passes through control valves 171, 173, 175L, and 176L arranged in the control valve unit 17. The right center bypass line 40R is a hydraulic oil line that passes through control valves 172, 174, 175R, and 176R arranged in the control valve unit 17.

[0043] The control valve 171 is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L to the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML and to discharge the hydraulic oil discharged by the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0044] The control valve 172 is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the right main pump 14R to the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR and to discharge the hydraulic oil discharged by the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0045] The left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML is used to drive a left crawler provided on the lower traveling body 1. The right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR is used to drive a right crawler provided on the lower traveling body 1.

[0046] The control valve 173 is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L to the swing hydraulic motor 2A and to discharge the hydraulic oil discharged by the swing hydraulic motor 2A to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0047] The control valve 174 is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the right main pump 14R to the bucket cylinder 9 and to discharge the hydraulic oil in the bucket cylinder 9 to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0048] The control valve 175L is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L to the boom cylinder 7. The control valve 175R is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the right main pump 14R to the boom cylinder 7 and to discharge the hydraulic oil in the boom cylinder 7 to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0049] The control valve 176L is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L to the arm cylinder 8 and to discharge the hydraulic oil in the arm cylinder 8 to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0050] The control valve 176R is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil to supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the right main pump 14R to the arm cylinder 8 and to discharge the hydraulic oil in the arm cylinder 8 to the hydraulic oil tank.

[0051] The left parallel conduit 42L is a hydraulic oil line that runs parallel to the left center bypass conduit 40L. The left parallel conduit 42L can supply hydraulic oil to a more downstream control valve when the flow of hydraulic oil through the left center bypass conduit 40L is restricted or blocked by any of the control valves 171, 173, and 175L. The right parallel conduit 42R is a hydraulic oil line that runs parallel to the right center bypass conduit 40R. The right parallel conduit 42R can supply hydraulic oil to a more downstream control valve when the flow of hydraulic oil through the right center bypass conduit 40R is restricted or blocked by any of the control valves 172, 174, and 175R.

[0052] The regulator 13 includes a left regulator 13L and a right regulator 13R. The left regulator 13L controls the discharge amount of the left main pump 14L by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L according to the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L. Specifically, the left regulator 13L adjusts the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L in response to an increase in the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L, for example, to reduce the discharge amount. The same is true for the right regulator 13R. This is to prevent the absorption power (absorption horsepower) of the main pump 14, which is expressed by the product of the discharge pressure and the discharge amount, from exceeding the output power (output horsepower) of the engine 11.

[0053] The operating device 26 includes a left operating lever 26L, a right operating lever 26R, and a travel lever 26D. The travel lever 26D includes a left traveling lever 26DL and a right traveling lever 26DR.

[0054] The left operating lever 26L is used for the rotation operation and the operation of the arm 5. When the left operating lever 26L is operated in the forward / backward direction, the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 is used to introduce a control pressure according to the amount of lever operation into the pilot port of the control valve 176. When the left operating lever 26L is operated in the left / right direction, the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 is used to introduce a control pressure according to the amount of lever operation into the pilot port of the control valve 173.

[0055] Specifically, when the left operating lever 26L is operated in the arm closing direction, it introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 176R. When the left operating lever 26L is operated in the arm opening direction, it introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 176R. When the left operating lever 26L is operated in the left turning direction, it introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 173, and when operated in the right turning direction, it introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 173.

[0056] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the left operating lever 26L functions as an arm operating lever when operated in the forward / rearward direction, and functions as a turning operating lever when operated in the left / right direction.

[0057] The right operating lever 26R is used to operate the boom 4 and the bucket 6. When the right operating lever 26R is operated in the forward / backward direction, it uses the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to introduce a control pressure corresponding to the amount of lever operation into the pilot port of the control valve 175. When the right operating lever 26R is operated in the left / right direction, it uses the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to introduce a control pressure corresponding to the amount of lever operation into the pilot port of the control valve 174.

[0058] Specifically, the right operating lever 26R introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 175R when operated in the boom lowering direction. Furthermore, the right operating lever 26R introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 175L and also introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 175R when operated in the boom raising direction. Furthermore, the right operating lever 26R introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 174 when operated in the bucket closing direction, and introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 174 when operated in the bucket opening direction.

[0059] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the right operating lever 26R functions as a boom operating lever when operated in the forward / rearward direction, and functions as a bucket operating lever when operated in the left / right direction.

[0060] The travel lever 26D is used to operate the crawlers. Specifically, the left travel lever 26DL is used to operate the left crawler. It may be configured to be interlocked with the left travel pedal. When the left travel lever 26DL is operated in the forward / backward direction, it uses the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to introduce a control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount into the pilot port of the control valve 171. The right travel lever 26DR is used to operate the right crawler. It may be configured to be interlocked with the right travel pedal. When the right travel lever 26DR is operated in the forward / backward direction, it uses the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to introduce a control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount into the pilot port of the control valve 172.

[0061] The discharge pressure sensor 28 includes a discharge pressure sensor 28L and a discharge pressure sensor 28R. The discharge pressure sensor 28L detects the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The same applies to the discharge pressure sensor 28R.

[0062] The operation sensor 29 includes operation sensors 29LA, 29LB, 29RA, 29RB, 29DL, and 29DR. The operation sensor 29LA detects the content of the operation of the left operation lever 26L by the operator in the forward / rearward direction, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The content of the operation is, for example, the lever operation direction, the lever operation amount (lever operation angle), etc.

[0063] Similarly, the operation sensor 29LB detects the operation of the left operating lever 26L in the left-right direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The operation sensor 29RA detects the operation of the right operating lever 26R in the forward-backward direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The operation sensor 29RB detects the operation of the right operating lever 26R in the left-right direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The operation sensor 29DL detects the operation of the left traveling lever 26DL in the forward-backward direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The operation sensor 29DR detects the operation of the right traveling lever 26DR in the forward-backward direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30.

[0064] The shovel controller 30 receives the output of the operation sensor 29, and outputs a control command to the regulator 13 as necessary, thereby changing the discharge rate of the main pump 14. The shovel controller 30 also receives the output of the control pressure sensor 19 provided upstream of the orifice 18, and outputs a control command to the regulator 13 as necessary, thereby changing the discharge rate of the main pump 14. The orifice 18 includes a left orifice 18L and a right orifice 18R, and the control pressure sensor 19 includes a left control pressure sensor 19L and a right control pressure sensor 19R.

[0065] The left throttle 18L is disposed in the left center bypass pipe 40L between the control valve 176L located at the most downstream side and the hydraulic oil tank. Therefore, the flow of hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L is restricted by the left throttle 18L. The left throttle 18L generates a control pressure for controlling the left regulator 13L. The left control pressure sensor 19L is a sensor for detecting this control pressure, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30. The shovel controller 30 controls the discharge amount of the left main pump 14L by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L according to this control pressure. The shovel controller 30 reduces the discharge amount of the left main pump 14L as this control pressure increases, and increases the discharge amount of the left main pump 14L as this control pressure decreases. The discharge amount of the right main pump 14R is also controlled in a similar manner.

[0066] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, in the case of a standby state in which none of the hydraulic actuators in the excavator 100 are operated, the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L passes through the left center bypass pipe 40L and reaches the left throttle 18L. Then, the flow of the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L increases the control pressure generated upstream of the left throttle 18L. As a result, the excavator controller 30 reduces the discharge amount of the left main pump 14L to the allowable minimum discharge amount, suppressing the pressure loss (pumping loss) when the discharged hydraulic oil passes through the left center bypass pipe 40L. On the other hand, when any of the hydraulic actuators is operated, the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L flows into the hydraulic actuator to be operated through the control valve corresponding to the hydraulic actuator to be operated. Then, the flow of the hydraulic oil discharged by the left main pump 14L reduces or eliminates the amount of hydraulic oil reaching the left throttle 18L, lowering the control pressure generated upstream of the left throttle 18L. As a result, the shovel controller 30 increases the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L to circulate sufficient hydraulic oil to the hydraulic actuator to be operated, ensuring the drive of the hydraulic actuator to be operated. The shovel controller 30 also controls the discharge rate of the right main pump 14R in a similar manner.

[0067] With the above-described configuration, the hydraulic system of Fig. 2 can suppress unnecessary energy consumption in the main pump 14 in a standby state. The unnecessary energy consumption includes pumping loss caused in the center bypass pipe 40 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the main pump 14. Furthermore, when operating a hydraulic actuator, the hydraulic system of Fig. 2 can reliably supply necessary and sufficient hydraulic oil from the main pump 14 to the hydraulic actuator to be operated.

[0068] That is, the shovel controller 30 controls the regulator 13 so that the discharge volume is the smaller of a first discharge volume calculated so that the absorption power (absorption horsepower) of the main pump 14, which is expressed as the product of the discharge pressure and the discharge volume, does not exceed the output power (output horsepower) of the engine 11, and a second discharge volume calculated based on the control pressure detected by the control pressure sensor 19.

[0069] In addition, a boom rod pressure sensor S7R and a boom bottom pressure sensor S7B are attached to the boom cylinder 7. An arm rod pressure sensor S8R and an arm bottom pressure sensor S8B are attached to the arm cylinder 8. A bucket rod pressure sensor S9R and a bucket bottom pressure sensor S9B are attached to the bucket cylinder 9. The boom rod pressure sensor S7R, the boom bottom pressure sensor S7B, the arm rod pressure sensor S8R, the arm bottom pressure sensor S8B, the bucket rod pressure sensor S9R and the bucket bottom pressure sensor S9B are collectively referred to as "cylinder pressure sensors." In addition, a left swing pressure sensor S10L and a right swing pressure sensor S10R are attached to the swing hydraulic motor 2A.

[0070] The boom rod pressure sensor S7R detects the pressure in the rod side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7 (hereinafter referred to as the "boom rod pressure"), and the boom bottom pressure sensor S7B detects the pressure in the bottom side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7 (hereinafter referred to as the "boom bottom pressure"). The arm rod pressure sensor S8R detects the pressure in the rod side oil chamber of the arm cylinder 8 (hereinafter referred to as the "arm rod pressure"), and the arm bottom pressure sensor S8B detects the pressure in the bottom side oil chamber of the arm cylinder 8 (hereinafter referred to as the "arm bottom pressure"). The bucket rod pressure sensor S9R detects the pressure in the rod side oil chamber of the bucket cylinder 9 (hereinafter referred to as the "bucket rod pressure"), and the bucket bottom pressure sensor S9B detects the pressure in the bottom side oil chamber of the bucket cylinder 9 (hereinafter referred to as the "bucket bottom pressure"). The left swing pressure sensor S10L detects the pressure of the hydraulic oil in the left port of the swing hydraulic motor 2A. The right swing pressure sensor S10R detects the pressure of the hydraulic oil in the right port of the swing hydraulic motor 2A. The values ​​detected by each sensor are transmitted to the shovel controller 30.

[0071] Next, a configuration for the shovel controller 30 to operate the actuator will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram of a part of the hydraulic system. Specifically, Fig. 3 is a diagram of the hydraulic system part related to the operation of the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML.

[0072] 3, the hydraulic system includes a proportional valve 31. The proportional valve 31 includes a proportional valve 31DL and a proportional valve 31DR to control the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML.

[0073] The proportional valve 31 functions as a control valve for machine control. The proportional valve 31 is disposed in a pipe connecting the pilot pump 15 and a pilot port of a corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17, and is configured to be able to change the flow passage area of ​​the pipe. In this embodiment, the proportional valve 31 operates in response to a control command (command current) output by the shovel controller 30. Therefore, the shovel controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to the pilot port of the corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17 via the proportional valve 31, regardless of the operation of the operating device 26 by the operator. Then, the shovel controller 30 can apply the pilot pressure generated by the proportional valve 31 to the pilot port of the corresponding control valve.

[0074] With this configuration, the shovel controller 30 can operate the hydraulic actuator corresponding to a specific operating device 26 even when no operation is being performed on that specific operating device 26. Furthermore, the shovel controller 30 can forcibly stop the operation of the hydraulic actuator corresponding to that specific operating device 26 even when an operation is being performed on that specific operating device 26.

[0075] For example, as shown in Fig. 3, the left travel lever 26DL is an electric control lever that is also used to operate the left crawler. Specifically, the left travel lever 26DL uses hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to apply pilot pressure corresponding to the operation in the forward / rearward direction to the pilot port of the control valve 171. More specifically, when the left travel lever 26DL is operated in the rearward direction, it applies pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to the left pilot port of the control valve 171. Also, when the left travel lever 26DL is operated in the forward direction, it applies pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to the right pilot port of the control valve 171.

[0076] The operation sensor 29DL detects the content of the operation of the left traveling lever 26DL in the forward / rearward direction by the operator, and outputs the detected value to the shovel controller 30.

[0077] The proportional valve 31DL operates in response to a control command (command current) output by the shovel controller 30. The proportional valve 31DL adjusts the pilot pressure by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DL. The proportional valve 31DR operates in response to a control command (command current) output by the shovel controller 30. The proportional valve 31DR adjusts the pilot pressure by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DR. The proportional valve 31DL can adjust the pilot pressure so that the control valve 171 can be stopped at any valve position. Similarly, the proportional valve 31DR can adjust the pilot pressure so that the control valve 171 can be stopped at any valve position.

[0078] A pilot pressure sensor 32DL for detecting pilot pressure is provided in a pilot line connecting the proportional valve 31DL and one port of the control valve 171 (the left port of the control valve 171). A pilot pressure sensor 32DR for detecting pilot pressure is provided in a pilot line connecting the proportional valve 31DR and the other port of the control valve 171 (the right port of the control valve 171). Values ​​detected by each of the pilot pressure sensors 32DL, 32DR are transmitted to the excavator controller 30.

[0079] With this configuration, the shovel controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DL in response to a reverse movement operation by the operator. Moreover, the shovel controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DL, regardless of a reverse movement operation by the operator. In other words, the shovel controller 30 can move the shovel 100 backward by the left crawler in response to a reverse movement operation by the operator or regardless of a reverse movement operation by the operator.

[0080] Moreover, the shovel controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DR in response to a forward movement operation by the operator. Moreover, the shovel controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged by the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 171 via the proportional valve 31DR, regardless of a forward movement operation by the operator. In other words, the shovel controller 30 can move the shovel 100 forward with the left crawler in response to a forward movement operation by the operator or regardless of a forward movement operation by the operator.

[0081] The configuration for operating the right crawler with the right travel lever 26DR is substantially similar to the configuration for operating the left crawler with the left travel lever 26DL shown in FIG. 3, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0082] Although the description has been given of an electric operation lever as a form of the operation device 26, a hydraulic operation lever may be adopted instead of the electric operation lever. In this case, the lever operation amount of the hydraulic operation lever may be detected in the form of pressure by a pressure sensor and input to the shovel controller 30. Also, a solenoid valve may be disposed between the operation device 26 as a hydraulic operation lever and the pilot port of each control valve. The solenoid valve is configured to operate in response to an electric signal from the shovel controller 30. With this configuration, when manual operation is performed using the operation device 26 as a hydraulic operation lever, the operation device 26 can move each control valve by increasing or decreasing the pilot pressure in response to the lever operation amount. Also, each control valve may be configured as an electromagnetic spool valve. In this case, the electromagnetic spool valve operates in response to an electric signal from the shovel controller 30 corresponding to the lever operation amount of the electric operation lever.

[0083] [Excavator traveling on a slope] Next, a case where the shovel 100 travels on an inclined ground surface will be described. Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating a traveling state of the shovel 100 on the ground surface according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 4, when the shovel 100 is at a point 1401 where the ground surface is flat, the shovel controller 30 performs normal control.

[0084] Then, when the shovel 100 advances and reaches the point 1402, the shovel 100 starts to tilt. As a result, the machine body inclination sensor S4 provided on the upper rotating body 3 detects that the ground contact surface of the shovel 100 has tilted. The inclination angle θ of the ground contact surface shown in Fig. 4 may be, for example, an angle of 10 degrees or more.

[0085] Thereafter, the shovel 100 travels along the inclined ground surface. When the shovel 100 travels along the inclined ground surface, there is a possibility that the shovel 100 may slip or its travelling speed may increase due to gravity or the like applied to the shovel 100.

[0086] In particular, the ground surface may not be properly prepared at the work site where the shovel 100 travels. In this case, for example, when the shovel 100 reaches point 1403, the right crawler or the left crawler of the shovel 100 may slip. Furthermore, even if the inclination of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR is the same, the speed of the right crawler and the left crawler may differ because the hydraulic oil does not flow evenly. In this way, the body of the shovel 100 may tilt due to several factors. In this case, the operator on board the shovel 100 needs to operate one or more of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR to control the shovel 100 to eliminate the inclination of the body.

[0087] Such slippage of the shovel 100 is likely to occur when the shovel 100 is traveling at a high speed.

[0088] Therefore, when the shovel controller 30 of this embodiment determines that the contact surface of the lower running body 1 is inclined at more than 10 degrees based on the detection results of the machine body inclination sensor S4 (an example of an inclination sensor), it controls the speed at which the lower running body 1 travels to be slower than when it determines that the contact surface is not inclined at more than 10 degrees, for example, is flat.

[0089] In the example shown in FIG. 4, the case where the shovel 100 descends on a ground surface with an inclination angle θ has been described. That is, when the shovel 100 descends, the shovel 100 is pulled by gravity, so that the speed may be faster than the operator expects. In particular, when transitioning from flat ground to a downhill slope, the shovel 100 may suddenly accelerate due to gravity. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to control the speed to be lowered when the shovel 100 starts descending. This can improve safety. However, the control of the shovel controller 30 according to this embodiment is not limited to the case where the shovel 100 descends on a ground surface with an inclination angle of θ or more, and may be applied to the case where the shovel 100 ascends on a ground surface with an inclination angle of θ or more.

[0090] <<Excavator functional blocks>> Returning to FIG. 2, each functional block in the shovel controller 30 of the shovel 100 will be described. Note that each functional block in the shovel controller is conceptual, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. It is possible to configure all or a part of each functional block by distributing and integrating it functionally or physically in any unit. All or any part of each processing function performed in each functional block is realized by a program executed by a CPU. Alternatively, each functional block may be realized as hardware using wired logic.

[0091] The shovel controller 30 is provided with an acquisition unit 301, a travel control unit 302, a determination unit 303, and an adjustment unit 304 by implementing a program.

[0092] The acquisition unit 301 acquires signals from various detection devices provided in the shovel 100. For example, the acquisition unit 301 acquires detection results from a boom angle sensor S1, an arm angle sensor S2, and a bucket angle sensor S3. The acquisition unit 301 also acquires image information, tilt angle information, and position information.

[0093] The image information is information captured by the imaging device S6. The tilt angle information is information indicating the tilt of the shovel 100 detected by the machine body tilt sensor S4. The position information is information indicating the position and orientation of the shovel 100 in the reference coordinate system measured by the positioning device S10.

[0094] Furthermore, the acquisition unit 301 acquires the operation details of the operation device 26 performed by the operator from the operation sensor 29. This enables the shovel controller 30 to recognize the operation direction and amount performed on the operation device 26.

[0095] The traveling control unit 302 outputs a control command (command current) to the proportional valve 31 according to the direction and amount of operation performed on the operating device 26. For example, the traveling control unit 302 outputs a control command to change the flow path area to the proportional valve 31 based on the direction and amount of operation received by the left traveling lever 26DL or the right traveling lever 26DR. This makes it possible to adjust the hydraulic oil supplied to the pilot port of the control valve 171 or the control valve 172.

[0096] As a result, the control valve 171 controls the supply of hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L to the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML, and the control valve 172 controls the supply of hydraulic oil discharged from the right main pump 14R to the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR.

[0097] By controlling the flow rate of hydraulic oil flowing through each of the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML and the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR, one or more of the left crawler and the right crawler can be operated to control the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1.

[0098] In other words, the traveling control unit 302 can control the traveling speed of the lower traveling structure 1 in accordance with the operation direction and the operation amount performed on the operation device 26.

[0099] The determination unit 303 determines whether or not the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees (an example of a first angle) based on the inclination angle information. Note that, in this embodiment, a case where the reference angle for the determination is 10 degrees will be described, but the reference angle for the determination is not limited to 10 degrees. An appropriate angle may be set depending on the embodiment of the shovel 100.

[0100] When the determination unit 303 determines that the contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the adjustment unit 304 performs control to adjust the control command output to the proportional valve 31 so as to reduce the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1 compared to when the determination unit 303 determines that the contact surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees. The adjustment unit 304 in this embodiment adjusts the relationship between the command current and the amount of operation of the left traveling lever 26DL or the right traveling lever 26DR.

[0101] FIG. 5 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between the amount of operation of the operating device 26 according to this embodiment and the command current. The horizontal axis is the amount of operation of the left traveling lever 26DL detected by the operation sensor 29DL. The vertical axis is the command current output to the proportional valve 31. If the determination unit 303 determines that the ground surface of the lower traveling body 1 is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the traveling control unit 302 outputs a command current 1501 corresponding to the amount of operation of the left traveling lever 26DL to the proportional valve 31. The area near the neutral position of the left traveling lever 26DL is a dead zone, and no command current is output for the amount of operation (the command current is zero). Then, when the left traveling lever 26DL is operated beyond the dead zone, a command current 1501 corresponding to the amount of operation is output.

[0102] When the left travel lever 26DL is operated in one direction (for example, to the right in FIG. 5), the travel control unit 302 outputs a command current 1501A to one proportional valve 31DL. When the left travel lever 26DL is operated in the other direction opposite to the one direction (for example, to the left in FIG. 5), the travel control unit 302 outputs a command current 1501B to the other proportional valve 31DR.

[0103] When the judgment unit 303 judges that the contact surface of the lower running body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the adjustment unit 304 adjusts the command current to be smaller in accordance with the amount of operation, compared to when the judgment unit 303 judges that the contact surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0104] Specifically, when the judgment unit 303 judges that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined more than 10 degrees, if the left traveling lever 26DL is operated in one direction (for example, to the right in Figure 5), the traveling control unit 302 outputs a command current 1502A to one proportional valve 31DL, and when the left traveling lever 26DL is operated in another direction opposite to the one direction (for example, to the left in Figure 5), the traveling control unit 302 outputs a command current 1502B to the other proportional valve 31DR.

[0105] In this way, when the determining unit 303 determines that the inclination angle of the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is greater than 10 degrees, a command current 1502 is output in response to the manipulated variable. When the manipulated variable becomes greater than m1 as shown in Fig. 5, the command current output in response to the manipulated variable changes gradually as shown by command current 1502A, and when the manipulated variable becomes smaller than -m1, the command current output in response to the manipulated variable changes gradually as shown by command current 1501B.

[0106] That is, since the command current corresponding to the operation amount is lowered, the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1 can be reduced. This suppresses the maximum speed of the shovel 100. For example, when the shovel 100 normally travels at 5.6 km / h, if it is determined that the inclination angle is greater than 10 degrees, the speed of the shovel 100 is suppressed so as not to exceed 3.4 km / h. In this embodiment, when the inclination angle of the ground contact surface is greater than 10 degrees, the command current corresponding to the operation amount is lowered compared to when the ground contact surface is flat, so that the operator can reduce the traveling speed without performing any special operation, thereby improving operability.

[0107] In this embodiment, since the operating device 26 is an electric operating lever, it is possible to reduce the speed of the shovel 100 by reducing the command current corresponding to the amount of operation. Therefore, compared to when a hydraulic operating lever is used, the workload required to achieve this function can be reduced.

[0108] In other words, when an operation amount (an example of a first operation amount) having an absolute value of m1 or more is received from the left traveling lever 26DL (an example of a left operating lever), the shovel controller 30 controls the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML to be lower in rotation speed when the ground surface is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees compared to when the ground surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, and when an operation amount (an example of a first operation amount) having an absolute value of m1 or more is received from the right traveling lever 26DR, the shovel controller 30 controls the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR to be lower in rotation speed when the ground surface is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees compared to when the ground surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees. In this embodiment, the traveling hydraulic motor 2M can be adjusted by each of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR, which facilitates adjustment when the shovel 100 is tilted.

[0109] Furthermore, the shovel controller 30 reduces the rate of change in the command current (an example of a command value) corresponding to the operation amount, thereby controlling the ratio of the number of rotations (an example of an output value) for driving the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML or the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR corresponding to the operation amount of the left traveling lever 26DL or the right traveling lever 26DR to be lower. In other words, in this embodiment, the rate of change in the crawler speed corresponding to the operation amount of the travel lever is reduced, so that if the shovel 100 tilts while traveling on a slope, it becomes easy to fine-tune the speed to correct the tilt.

[0110] In this embodiment, the method of adjusting the command current is not limited to the method shown in FIG. 5, and a method of controlling the upper limit of the command current may be used.

[0111] 6 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between the amount of operation of the operating device 26 according to the modified example and the command current. The horizontal axis represents the amount of operation of the left traveling lever 26DL detected by the operation sensor 29DL. The vertical axis represents the command current output to the proportional valve 31. When the determination unit 303 determines that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling structure 1 is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the shovel controller 30 according to the modified example controls and outputs the command current 1501 of the proportional valve 31 according to the amount of operation of the left traveling lever 26DL.

[0112] When the determination unit 303 determines that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the adjustment unit 304 adjusts the absolute value of the command current (one example of a command value) so that it does not exceed an upper limit value It (one example of a predetermined value) (so as to suppress it to a predetermined value or less). Note that the upper limit value It of the command current according to this embodiment is merely an example and is determined depending on the embodiment.

[0113] Specifically, when the determination unit 303 determines that the ground surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined more than 10 degrees, when the left traveling lever 26DL is operated in one direction (for example, rightward in FIG. 6), the traveling control unit 302 outputs a command current 1501A to the proportional valve 31DL up to the operation amount m2, and outputs a command current 1602A (upper limit value It) when the operation amount is equal to or greater than m2. On the other hand, when the left traveling lever 26DL is operated in the other direction opposite to the one direction (for example, leftward in FIG. 6), the traveling control unit 302 outputs a command current 1501B to the other proportional valve 31DR up to the operation amount -m2, and outputs a command current 1602B (lower limit value -It) when the operation amount is equal to or less than -m2. This prevents the command current from becoming equal to or greater than the absolute value "It". Since the command current is controlled not to become high by this control, the traveling speed of the excavator 100 is limited. Therefore, the shovel 100 is prevented from slipping on a slope, thereby improving safety.

[0114] Furthermore, when it is determined that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at more than 10 degrees based on the detection result of the machine body inclination sensor S4, and then it is determined that the ground contact surface is inclined at less than 5 degrees (an example of a second angle), the adjustment unit 304 stops the control to reduce the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1, in other words, adjusts the command current 1501 to be output in response to the operation amount. As a result, when the excavator 100 travels from a sloping ground to a flat ground, the command current corresponding to the operation amount is restored, so that the operator can operate as usual. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of discomfort or the like when the operator operates the excavator, and to realize improvement in operability. Note that the inclination angle of 5 degrees for restoring the control is an angle determined according to the embodiment, and may be an angle lower than the angle at which the speed reduction starts (10 degrees in this embodiment).

[0115] Depending on the operator, the above-mentioned adjustment of the command current may not be necessary. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to switch whether or not to adjust the command current. For this reason, in this embodiment, an inclination switching button 52 (see FIG. 2) is provided inside the cabin 10. The inclination switching button 52 is pressed by the operator to switch the adjustment of the command current between on and off. When the inclination switching button 52 is on, the above-mentioned control is performed, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0116] Then, after accepting an operation to turn off the inclination switching button 52, the adjustment unit 304 stops the control to reduce the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1 when it is determined that the inclination angle θ is greater than 10 degrees, compared to when it is determined that the inclination angle θ is not greater than 10 degrees. This allows the operator to operate as usual regardless of whether the inclination angle θ is greater than 10 degrees, thereby suppressing the occurrence of discomfort and improving operability.

[0117] Next, a procedure for adjusting the traveling speed by the shovel controller 30 according to this embodiment will be described. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing a procedure for adjusting the traveling speed by the shovel controller 30 according to this embodiment.

[0118] First, the acquisition unit 301 acquires the tilt angle θ from the aircraft tilt sensor S4 (S1701). Then, the determination unit 303 determines whether the acquired tilt angle θ is greater than 10 degrees (S1702). If it is determined that the acquired tilt angle θ is 10 degrees or less (S1701), the process is repeated from S1701.

[0119] On the other hand, when the determination unit 303 determines that the acquired tilt angle θ is greater than 10 degrees (S1702: YES), the determination unit 303 determines whether the tilt switching button is on or not (S1703). When the determination unit 303 determines that the tilt switching button is not on, in other words, off (S1703: NO), the process is repeated from S1701 without performing any particular control.

[0120] On the other hand, when the determination unit 303 determines that the tilt switching button is on (S1703: YES), the adjustment unit 304 performs an adjustment to reduce the command current corresponding to the operation amount (S1704). As a result, the traveling speed of the shovel 100 is reduced.

[0121] After that, the acquisition unit 301 acquires the tilt angle θ from the aircraft tilt sensor S4 (S1705). Then, the determination unit 303 determines whether the acquired tilt angle θ is smaller than 5 degrees (S1706). If the determination unit 303 determines that the acquired tilt angle θ is 5 degrees or more (S1706: YES), the process is repeated from S1705.

[0122] On the other hand, if the determination unit 303 determines that the acquired tilt angle θ is smaller than 5 degrees (S1706: YES), the command current corresponding to the operation amount is adjusted back to the original value (S1707). After that, the process is repeated from S1701.

[0123] In this embodiment, the shovel controller 30 performs the above-mentioned control, thereby making it possible to adjust the command current corresponding to the operation amount in accordance with the inclination angle of the ground contact surface of the shovel 100. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the traveling speed of the shovel 100 from increasing, and therefore it is possible to prevent the shovel 100 from slipping.

[0124] (Modification of the first embodiment) In the above-described embodiment, an example of adjusting the command current as a method for reducing the speed of the shovel 100 when the inclination angle of the installation surface is greater than 10 degrees has been described. However, the above-described embodiment is not limited to the aspect of adjusting the command current. Therefore, in the modified example, an example of adjusting the rotation speed of the engine 11 will be described.

[0125] In this modified example, when the determination unit 303 determines that the inclination angle of the contact surface of the lower running body 1 is greater than 10 degrees based on the detection result of the vehicle body inclination sensor S4, the adjustment unit 304 adjusts the rotation speed of the engine 11 that drives the lower running body 1 to be lower than when it is determined that the inclination angle is less than 10 degrees.

[0126] For example, when it is determined that the inclination angle is greater than 10 degrees, the adjustment unit 304 adjusts the rotation speed of the engine 11 from 1800 rpm to 900 rpm. As a result, if the excavator 100 travels at a speed of 5.6 km / h when the operation amount of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR is 100% before the inclination angle θ becomes greater than 10 degrees, the excavator 100 travels at a speed of 2.8 km / h when the operation amount of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR is 100% after the inclination angle θ becomes greater than 10 degrees.

[0127] Therefore, when the inclination angle θ becomes larger than 10 degrees, the speed of the shovel 100 is reduced, and the same effect as the above-mentioned embodiment can be obtained. Also, the change in speed corresponding to the operation amount of the left traveling lever 26DL and the right traveling lever 26DR becomes gentle, so that fine adjustment of the speed becomes possible. Therefore, this modified example can realize improvement in operability.

[0128] Second embodiment In the above-described embodiment and modified example, a case where an operator operates a shovel has been described. However, the embodiment and modified example are not limited to a case where an operator operates a shovel. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a case where autonomous control is performed by a shovel will be described.

[0129] First, an overview of the autonomous control system SYS will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the autonomous control system SYS of a shovel according to a second embodiment.

[0130] <Equipment that composes the excavator management system> As shown in Fig. 8, the autonomous control system SYS of a shovel according to the second embodiment includes a shovel 100A and a management device 200. The shovel 100A and the management device 200 can communicate with each other via a communication line NW.

[0131] The shovel 100A is an autonomously controllable shovel. The shovel 100A is equipped with a shovel controller 30A that executes different processes from the shovel controller 30, as compared with the shovel 100 of the first embodiment.

[0132] The hardware configuration of the shovel 100A includes the same configuration as the shovel 100 of the first embodiment, and further includes a front camera S6F and a spatial recognition device S11.

[0133] The front camera S6F captures an image of the space in front of the excavator 100A. The front camera S6F is attached to the roof of the cabin 10, for example.

[0134] The shovel 100A is equipped with a front camera S6F in addition to the rear camera S6B, the left camera S6L, and the right camera S6R, and thus the shovel controller 30A can recognize the surroundings of the shovel 100A.

[0135] The space recognition device S11 is configured to recognize the shape of the space around the shovel 100A. The space recognition device S11 includes a rear space recognition device S11B that detects the space behind the shovel 100A, a left space recognition device S11L that detects the space to the left of the shovel 100A, a right space recognition device S11R that detects the space to the right of the shovel 100A, and a front space recognition device S11F that detects the space in front of the shovel 100A.

[0136] The spatial recognition device S11 may use a LIDAR to detect an object present in the vicinity of the shovel 100A. The LIDAR measures the distance between the LIDAR and, for example, one million or more points within a monitoring range. Note that this embodiment is not limited to a method using a LIDAR, and any spatial recognition device capable of measuring the distance to an object may be used. For example, a stereo camera may be used, or a distance measuring device such as a distance image camera or a millimeter wave radar may be used. When a millimeter wave radar or the like is used as the spatial recognition device S11, a number of signals (laser light, etc.) may be emitted from the spatial recognition device S11 toward the object, and the reflected signals may be received, and the distance and direction of the object may be derived from the reflected signals.

[0137] The rear space recognition device S11B is attached to the rear end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3. The left space recognition device S11L is attached to the left end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3. The right space recognition device S11R is attached to the right end of the upper surface of the upper rotating body 3. The front space recognition device S11F is attached to the front end of the upper surface of the cabin 10. In addition, the number of space recognition devices provided on the excavator 100A is not limited to four, and may be three or less, or five or more. The space recognition device S11 may further be attached to the upper side surface of the arm 5.

[0138] The spatial recognition device S11 may be configured to detect a predetermined object within a predetermined area set around the shovel 100A. For example, the spatial recognition device S11 may have a human detection function configured to be able to detect a person while distinguishing between a person and an object other than a person.

[0139] The management device 200 manages the autonomous control of the shovel 100A.

[0140] The autonomous control system SYS may include one or more shovels 100A, which allows the autonomous control system SYS to perform data collection, settings related to the autonomous control of the shovels 100A, and the like, for the multiple shovels 100A.

[0141] Furthermore, the autonomous control system SYS may include one or more management devices 200.

[0142] Furthermore, the autonomous control system SYS may, for example, perform various settings related to the autonomous control of the shovel 100A in the management device 200 in response to an input from a user or automatically, and transmit the settings to the shovel 100A. This allows the management device 200 to control and monitor various operations of the shovel 100A.

[0143] <Block structure of autonomous control system> Fig. 9 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration example of the autonomous control system SYS according to this embodiment. In the example shown in Fig. 9, block configurations of the management device 200 and the shovel 100A included in the autonomous control system SYS are shown. Note that the hardware configuration of the shovel 100A is as described above, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0144] <Configuration of Management Device 200> The management device 200 includes a control device 230, a communication device T2, an input device 210, and a storage device 220.

[0145] The communication device T2 is configured to control communication with the communication device T1 attached to the shovel 100A. The input device 210 accepts input operations by the administrator. The storage device 220 is a readable / writable non-volatile storage medium.

[0146] The control device 230 is a calculation device that executes various calculations. In this embodiment, the control device 230 is configured with a microcomputer including a CPU and a memory. Various functions of the control device 230 are realized by the CPU executing a program stored in the memory.

[0147] Next, the functional blocks of the shovel controller 30A of the shovel 100A and the control device 230 of the management device 200 will be described.

[0148] <<Functional block of management device>> Each functional block in the control device 230 of the management device 200 will be described. Each functional block in the control device 230 is conceptual, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. All or part of each functional block can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit. All or any part of each processing function performed in each functional block is realized by a program executed by a CPU. Alternatively, each functional block may be realized as hardware using wired logic. The control device 230 includes a communication control unit 231 and a construction information generation unit 232 by implementing a program. In addition, the storage device 220 includes a construction information storage unit 221.

[0149] The communication control unit 231 performs control for transmitting and receiving various information to and from the shovel 100A via the communication device T2.

[0150] The construction information generating unit 232 generates construction information used for the autonomous control of the shovel 100A. The construction information generating unit 232 generates information indicating the shape of the soil and sand after construction by the autonomous control of the shovel 100A in accordance with the work plan of the work site. The construction information may be generated automatically by the management device 200, or may be generated by the administrator according to input via the input device 210.

[0151] Further, the construction information generating unit 232 generates construction information including route information indicating a target route for autonomously traveling the shovel 100A in the work site. The construction information generating unit 232 sets a target speed for the shovel 100A to travel along the target route, taking into consideration the map information. Specifically, the construction information generating unit 232 sets a lower target speed for routes with an inclination angle of 10 degrees or more among the target routes of the shovel 100A, compared to routes with an inclination angle of less than 10 degrees. For example, the construction information generating unit 232 sets a target speed of 5.6 km / h for routes with an inclination angle of less than 10 degrees, and sets a target speed of 2.8 km / h for routes with an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0152] The construction information generating unit 232 stores the generated construction information in the construction information storage unit 221 of the storage device 220.

[0153] The communication control unit 231 transmits the construction information stored in the construction information storage unit 221 to the shovel 100A.

[0154] <<Excavator functional blocks>> Each functional block in the shovel controller 30A of the shovel 100A will be described. Each functional block in the shovel controller 30A is conceptual, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. All or a part of each functional block can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit. All or any part of each processing function performed in each functional block is realized by a program executed by a CPU. Alternatively, each functional block may be realized as hardware using wired logic. The shovel controller 30A includes an acquisition unit 311, a communication control unit 312, a shovel state identification unit 313, a target trajectory generation unit 314, an autonomous control unit 315, a determination unit 316, and an adjustment unit 317 by implementing a program. In addition, the storage device 33 includes a construction information storage unit 331.

[0155] The construction information storage unit 331 stores construction information. The construction information is information used by the shovel 100A to perform construction under autonomous control, and includes the shape of the work target (e.g., earth and sand) after construction. Furthermore, the construction information according to this embodiment includes the movement route of the shovel 100A in the work site and the movement speed when traveling along the movement route.

[0156] The shovel controller 30A according to this embodiment realizes autonomous control in the shovel 100A.

[0157] The acquisition unit 311 acquires signals from various detection devices provided in the shovel 100A. For example, the acquisition unit 311 acquires measurement information in addition to the information shown in the above-mentioned embodiment. The measurement information is information measured by the spatial recognition device S11.

[0158] The communication control unit 312 performs control for transmitting and receiving various information to and from the management device 200 via the communication device T1.

[0159] For example, the communication control unit 312 receives (acquires) construction information from the management device 200 and stores the received construction information in the construction information storage unit 331 of the storage device 33.

[0160] The shovel state identifying unit 313 is configured to identify the state of the shovel 100 based on the signal acquired by the acquiring unit 311. In this embodiment, the state of the shovel 100A includes the position and orientation of the shovel 100A and the states of the attachments of the shovel 100A (for example, the positions of the boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6). The position of the shovel 100A is, for example, the position of the shovel 100A in the reference coordinate system (the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the shovel 100A). The shovel state identifying unit 313 identifies the position and orientation of the shovel 100A based on the output of the positioning device S10.

[0161] The state of the attachment (e.g., the positions of the boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6) can be determined from the detection results of the angle sensors (boom angle sensor S1, arm angle sensor S2, and bucket angle sensor S3) and the respective sizes of the boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6.

[0162] The target trajectory generating unit 314 generates a target trajectory of the shovel 100A according to the construction information stored in the construction information storage unit 331. The target trajectory includes a target trajectory for the shovel 100A to move around the work site, in addition to a target trajectory of the bucket 6 of the shovel 100A for forming the soil shape according to the construction information.

[0163] In addition, in accordance with the construction information, the target trajectory generating unit 314 sets a lower target speed for a target route along which the shovel 100A moves and in which the contact surface of the lower running body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, compared to a trajectory in which the contact surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0164] The autonomous control unit 315 determines the operation content of the operating element (hydraulic actuator) in order to move along the target trajectory generated by the target trajectory generating unit 314, and generates an operation signal according to the determined operation content, thereby realizing the autonomous operation function of the shovel 100A.

[0165] When moving along the target trajectory, the autonomous control unit 315 controls the movement according to the target speed set in the construction information stored in the construction information storage unit 331. As a result, the autonomous control unit 315 controls the speed to be reduced for a route with an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0166] However, the terrain of a work site changes depending on the situation. For this reason, even if it is not shown on the map information, there may be a route with an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0167] Therefore, the determination unit 316 determines whether or not the inclination angle of the ground contact surface of the undercarriage 1 is greater than 10 degrees based on the detection result of the vehicle body inclination sensor S4.

[0168] When the inclination angle of the ground contact surface of the lower running structure 1 is determined to be greater than 10 degrees based on the detection result of the machine body inclination sensor S4, the adjustment unit 317 performs adjustment to reduce the target speed of the shovel 100A. For example, the adjustment unit 317 performs adjustment to reduce the current target speed from 5.6 km / h to 2.8 km / h. Thereafter, the autonomous control unit 315 performs autonomous control to follow the adjusted target speed.

[0169] In this embodiment, the shovel 100A performs the above-mentioned control, so that the shovel 100A can move without slipping even on an inclined installation surface.

[0170] Next, a procedure for moving the shovel 100A by autonomous control in the autonomous control system SYS will be described. Fig. 10 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure for moving the shovel 100A by autonomous control in the autonomous control system SYS according to this embodiment.

[0171] The construction information generating unit 232 of the management device 200 starts generating construction information (S2001). The construction information generating unit 232 acquires map information of the work site (S2002). In this embodiment, the construction information generating unit 232 may acquire map information stored in advance, or may acquire map information provided by an external device connected via a communication line NW.

[0172] The construction information generating unit 232 generates a target route for the excavator 100A (S2003).

[0173] The construction information generating unit 232 sets a target speed for the target route based on the inclination angle indicated in the map information (S2004). As a result, when the shovel 100A moves along a target route with an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees, the construction information generating unit 232 sets the target speed lower than when the shovel 100A moves along a target route with an inclination angle of 10 degrees or less.

[0174] Thereafter, the construction information generating unit 232 ends the generation of the construction information for the excavator 100A (S2005). The construction information generating unit 232 stores the generated construction information in the construction information storage unit 221.

[0175] Then, the communication control unit 231 transmits the construction information stored in the construction information storage unit 221 to the excavator 100A (S2006).

[0176] The communication control unit 312 of the shovel 100A stores the received construction information in the construction information storage unit 331 (S2011).

[0177] Then, the target trajectory generating unit 314 generates a target trajectory for performing the construction indicated in the construction information storage unit 331 from the state of the shovel 100A identified by the shovel state identifying unit 313 (S2012). The target trajectory includes a trajectory for moving the attachment as well as a trajectory for moving the shovel 100A.

[0178] Furthermore, the target trajectory generating unit 314 sets a target speed for the target trajectory along which the shovel 100A moves in accordance with the construction information (S2013). As a result, the target speed is set lower for the target route with an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees than for the other target routes.

[0179] Then, the autonomous control unit 315 starts autonomous control according to the generated target trajectory (S2014). Then, while the autonomous control unit 315 is performing autonomous control, the repeated processing (LOOP processing) of S2015 to S2017 is performed. This processing is performed until the control based on the target trajectory based on the construction information is completed.

[0180] The determination unit 316 determines the inclination angle of the ground contact surface of the shovel 100A from the detection result of the machine body inclination sensor S4 (S2015).

[0181] Then, when the determining unit 316 determines that the inclination angle of the ground contact surface is greater than 10 degrees, the adjusting unit 317 performs adjustment to reduce the target speed of the shovel 100A (S2016).

[0182] Then, after it is determined that the inclination angle of the contact surface is greater than 10 degrees, the determining unit 316 determines that the inclination angle of the contact surface is less than 5 degrees, and then the target speed is adjusted back to the original speed (S2017).

[0183] Then, the autonomous control unit 315 ends the autonomous control according to the target trajectory generated according to the construction information (S2018).

[0184] In this embodiment, by performing the above-described control, even when the shovel 100A is autonomously controlled, when the shovel 100A moves along a path with an inclination angle of greater than 10 degrees, the target speed is reduced to prevent the shovel 100A from slipping, thereby improving safety.

[0185] In this embodiment, by setting the target speed in advance in the construction information, the target speed can be reduced before the machine body inclination sensor S4 detects that the inclination angle is greater than 10 degrees, so that the shovel 100A can be moved safely even if the inclination angle suddenly changes.

[0186] (Third embodiment) In the above-mentioned embodiment and modified examples, a case where an operator operates the shovel or a case where the shovel performs autonomous control has been described. However, the above-mentioned embodiment and modified examples are not limited to a case where an operator operates the shovel or a case where the shovel performs autonomous control. Therefore, in the third embodiment, a case where the shovel is remotely controlled will be described.

[0187] Although this embodiment is similar to the first embodiment in that an operator operates the shovel, in the first embodiment, the operator actually rides on the shovel. Therefore, the operator can easily recognize the level of the slope on which the shovel is traveling by using his sense of balance. Furthermore, the operator can grasp the operating status of the shovel by the sound of the shovel sliding on the ground surface and the vibration transmitted from the shovel. Therefore, this is a situation in which it is easy to recognize whether the shovel is likely to slip on the ground surface.

[0188] On the other hand, when an operator is remotely controlling the shovel, the operator needs to understand the operating status of the shovel from the contents displayed on the screen. In this case, it is difficult for the operator to understand the slope of the shovel or whether the shovel is likely to slip on the ground surface.

[0189] Therefore, the remote control system according to this embodiment is provided with the following configuration.

[0190] Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a remote control system SYS1 according to the third embodiment. As shown in Fig. 11, the remote control system SYS1 according to the third embodiment includes a shovel 100B and a remote control room RC.

[0191] The excavator 100B and the remote control room RC are connected to each other via a communication line NW so as to be able to transmit and receive data.

[0192] The shovel 100B is capable of wireless communication. The shovel 100B is then capable of transmitting and receiving data to and from a device (for example, a remote control room RC) connected to the communication line NW.

[0193] The shovel 100B can then transmit information about the work site to the remote control room RC. This allows the remote control room RC to check the work site according to the information from the shovel 100B. Note that in this embodiment, the device that measures the work site is not limited to the shovel 100B, and may be another type of device, such as a drone that flies over the work site, a fixed camera, or an imaging device that can be carried by a user.

[0194] In this embodiment, the excavator 100B is remotely controlled from a remote control room RC.

[0195] The shovel 100B is provided with four imaging devices S6 and four spatial recognition devices S11, similar to the shovel 100A of the second embodiment.

[0196] For this reason, the remote control room RC is configured to be able to refer to the object shape measured by the spatial recognition device S11 of the shovel 100A when remotely controlling the shovel 100B.

[0197] The remote operation system SYS1 may include two or more shovels 100B. This allows the remote operation system SYS1 to provide information about the work site to the remote operation room RC through the multiple shovels 100B.

[0198] <Example of remote control room configuration> The remote control room RC is equipped with a communication device T3, a remote controller R30, an operation device R26, an operation sensor R29, and a display device D1. Also, the remote control room RC is provided with an operation seat DS where an operator OP who remotely operates the excavator 100B sits.

[0199] The communication device T3 is configured to control communication with the communication device T1 attached to the excavator 100B.

[0200] The remote controller R30 is a calculation device that executes various calculations. In this embodiment, the remote controller R30 is configured with a microcomputer including a CPU and a memory. The various functions of the remote controller R30 are realized by the CPU executing a program stored in the memory.

[0201] The operation device R26 (one example of an operation unit) is provided with an operation sensor R29 for detecting the operation content of the operation device R26. The operation sensor R29 is, for example, an inclination sensor that detects the inclination angle of the operation lever, or an angle sensor that detects the swing angle of the operation lever around the swing axis. The operation sensor R29 may be composed of other sensors such as a pressure sensor, a current sensor, a voltage sensor, or a distance sensor. The operation sensor R29 outputs information on the detected operation content of the operation device R26 to the remote controller R30. The remote controller R30 generates an operation signal based on the received information and transmits the generated operation signal to the excavator 100B. The operation sensor R29 may be configured to generate an operation signal. In this case, the operation sensor R29 may output the operation signal to the communication device T3 without passing through the remote controller R30. This makes it possible to remotely operate the excavator 100B from the remote operation room RC.

[0202] The display device D1 displays a screen based on information transmitted from the shovel 100B so that the operator OP in the remote control room RC can visually confirm the surroundings of the shovel 100B. The display device D1 enables the operator to confirm the status of the work site including the surroundings of the shovel 100B even though he is in the remote control room RC.

[0203] The communication device T3 receives various information from the shovel 100B. The received information includes, for example, image information captured by the imaging device S6 and measurement information measured by the spatial recognition device S11.

[0204] Then, the display device D1 displays a screen based on the image information received from the shovel 100B. This allows the situation around the shovel 100B to be confirmed. Furthermore, the display device D1 also displays a screen showing the object shape around the shovel 100B, which is shown in the measurement information received from the shovel 100B. Any method may be used to display the screen showing the object shape and the screen based on the image information. For example, when the display device D1 is composed of multiple display devices, the screen showing the object shape and the screen based on the image information may be displayed on separate display devices.

[0205] <Block configuration of remote control system> Fig. 12 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration example of a remote operation system SYS1 according to this embodiment. In the example shown in Fig. 12, block configurations of a remote operation room RC and a shovel 100B included in the remote operation system SYS1 are shown. Note that the hardware configuration of the shovel 100B is the same as that of 100A in the above-mentioned embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. Also, compared to the shovel 100A, the shovel 100B is provided with a shovel controller 30B that executes different processes instead of the shovel controller 30A.

[0206] <Configuration of the remote control room RC> The remote control room RC includes a remote controller R30, a communication device T3, an operation sensor R29, and a display device D1. The communication device T3 and the operation sensor R29 have been described above, so their description will be omitted.

[0207] <Remote control room function block> Each functional block in the remote controller (one example of a remote control device) R30 in the remote control room RC will be described. Each functional block in the remote controller R30 is conceptual, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. All or part of each functional block can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit. All or any part of each processing function performed in each functional block is realized by a program executed by a CPU. Alternatively, each functional block may be realized as hardware using wired logic. The remote controller R30 includes a reception control unit 401, a display control unit 402, a signal generation unit 403, and a transmission control unit 404 by implementing a program.

[0208] The reception control unit 401 performs control for receiving various information from the excavator 100B via the communication device T3.

[0209] As another example, the reception control unit 401 receives (acquires) image information, position information, status information, and measurement information from the shovel 100B. The image information is information captured by the imaging device S6. The position information is information indicating the position and orientation of the shovel 100B in a reference coordinate system measured by the positioning device S10. The status information is information indicating the status of the attachments (e.g., the positions of the boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6). The measurement information is information indicating the shape of an object measured by the spatial recognition device S11.

[0210] The display control unit 402 displays the object shape indicated by the measurement information and image information showing the periphery of the shovel 100B on the display device D1. At that time, the display control unit 402 displays information indicating the current status of the shovel 100B (for example, the state of the attachment, etc.) on the display device D1. Furthermore, the display control unit 402 may display the inclination angle of the ground surface of the shovel 100, etc. However, even if the inclination angle is displayed, it is difficult for the operator to intuitively recognize the extent of the inclination angle. Therefore, a control to adjust the speed is performed by the shovel controller 30B described later.

[0211] The signal generating unit 403 generates an operation signal for controlling the operation of the shovel 100B in accordance with the operation received by the operation sensor R29.

[0212] The transmission control unit 404 transmits the generated operation signal to the shovel 100B.

[0213] <Excavator functional block> Each functional block in the shovel controller 30B of the shovel 100B will be described. Each functional block in the shovel controller 30B is conceptual, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. All or a part of each functional block can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit. All or any part of each processing function performed in each functional block is realized by a program executed by a CPU. Alternatively, each functional block may be realized as hardware using wired logic. The shovel controller 30B includes an acquisition unit 321, a shovel state identification unit 322, a transmission control unit 323, a reception control unit 324, an actuator drive unit 325, a determination unit 326, and an adjustment unit 327 by implementing a program.

[0214] The acquisition unit 321 acquires signals from various detection devices provided in the shovel 100B. For example, the acquisition unit 321 acquires detection results from a boom angle sensor S1, an arm angle sensor S2, and a bucket angle sensor S3. The acquisition unit 321 also acquires measurement results such as the position and orientation of the shovel 100 from the positioning device S10. The acquisition unit 321 also acquires image information from the imaging device S6. The acquisition unit 321 also acquires measurement information from the spatial recognition device S11.

[0215] The shovel state identifying unit 322 is configured to identify the state of the shovel 100B based on the signal acquired by the acquiring unit 321. In this embodiment, the state of the shovel 100B includes the position and orientation of the shovel 100B and the states of the attachments of the shovel 100B (for example, the positions of the boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6). The position of the shovel 100B is, for example, the position of the shovel 100B in the reference coordinate system (the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the reference point of the shovel 100B). The shovel state identifying unit 322 identifies the position and orientation of the shovel 100B based on the output of the positioning device S10.

[0216] The state of the attachment (e.g., the positions of the boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6) can be determined from the detection results of the angle sensors (boom angle sensor S1, arm angle sensor S2, and bucket angle sensor S3) and the respective sizes of the boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6.

[0217] The transmission control unit 323 performs control for transmitting various information based on the results of acquisition by the acquisition unit 321 to the remote operation room RC via the communication device T1. For example, the transmission control unit 323 performs control for transmitting to the remote operation room RC image information captured by the imaging device S6, position information indicating the position and orientation of the shovel 100B, status information indicating the status of the attachment, and measurement information measured by the spatial recognition device S11. Transmission by the transmission control unit 323 is performed at predetermined time intervals. The predetermined time may be any time, but is set to a time interval that allows recognition of a situation that has changed due to the work of the shovel 100B. For example, the transmission control unit 323 may transmit the above information at one-second intervals.

[0218] The reception control unit 324 performs control for receiving various information from the remote control room RC via the communication device T1. For example, the reception control unit 324 receives an operation signal for controlling the operation of the shovel 100B from the remote control room RC.

[0219] The actuator driving unit 325 is configured to drive an actuator mounted on the excavator 100B. In this embodiment, the actuator driving unit 325 generates and outputs a command current for each of the plurality of solenoid valves included in the proportional valve 31, based on an operation signal transmitted from the remote control room RC.

[0220] Each solenoid valve that receives the command current increases or decreases the pilot pressure acting on the pilot port of the corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17. As a result, the hydraulic actuator corresponding to each control valve operates at a speed according to the stroke amount of the control valve.

[0221] The determination unit 326 determines whether the ground contact surface of the lower running structure 1 is inclined at an angle greater than 10 degrees (an example of a first angle) based on the inclination angle information.

[0222] When the determination unit 326 determines that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees, the adjustment unit 327 adjusts to lower the command current output by the actuator driving unit 325 so that the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1 is lower than when the determination unit 326 determines that the ground contact surface is not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees. The adjustment method is the same as in the above-mentioned embodiment, such as lowering the command current corresponding to the received operation signal.

[0223] Fig. 13 is a sequence diagram showing remote operation by the excavator 100B and the remote operation room RC according to this embodiment. In the sequence diagram shown in Fig. 13, repeated processing (LOOP processing) of S2201 to S2207 is performed while remote operation is being performed by the remote operation room RC.

[0224] The acquisition unit 321 of the shovel 100B acquires information (signals) from various detection devices provided on the shovel 100 (S2201).

[0225] The shovel condition identifying unit 322 identifies the condition of the shovel 100B based on the information (signal) acquired by the acquiring unit 321 (S2202).

[0226] The transmission control unit 323 transmits various information based on the results of acquisition by the acquisition unit 321 to the remote control room RC via the communication device T1 (S2203).

[0227] The display control unit 402 in the remote control room RC displays, on the display device D1, the object shape indicated by the measurement information contained in the received information and image information showing the periphery of the shovel 100B (S2211).

[0228] The signal generating unit 403 generates an operation signal in accordance with the operation received from the operation device R26 via the operation sensor R29 (S2212).

[0229] The transmission control unit 404 transmits the generated operation signal to the shovel 100B (S2213).

[0230] The determination unit 326 of the shovel 100B determines the inclination angle of the machine body inclination sensor S4 (S2204).

[0231] Then, when the determination unit 326 determines that the inclination angle of the contact surface is greater than 10 degrees, the actuator driver 325 is adjusted to reduce the command current corresponding to the operation amount indicated by the operation signal (S2205).

[0232] Then, after it is determined that the inclination angle of the contact surface is greater than 10 degrees, and after the determination unit 326 determines that the inclination angle of the contact surface is less than 5 degrees, the actuator driving unit 325 is adjusted to return the command current to its original value, which corresponds to the amount of operation indicated by the operation signal (S2206).

[0233] The actuator driver 325 generates and outputs a command current for each of the plurality of solenoid valves included in the proportional valve 31 based on the received operation signal (S2207). At this time, the relationship between the operation amount indicated by the operation signal and the command current is the same as in the first embodiment, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0234] In this embodiment, by performing control according to the above-mentioned processing procedure, control is performed so that the speed of the shovel 100B is reduced when the shovel 100B comes into contact with a ground surface having an inclination angle of more than 10 degrees.

[0235] In the present embodiment, an example has been described in which the shovel controller 30B adjusts the command current corresponding to the operation amount in order to reduce the speed of the shovel 100B. However, the adjustment for reducing the speed of the shovel 100B is not limited to a method performed by the shovel controller 30B. For example, the remote controller R30 may adjust the operation amount indicated by the operation signal to be transmitted based on the received inclination angle. Also, the shovel controller 30B may adjust the rotation speed of the engine 11.

[0236] When an operator remotely controls the shovel 100B, there is a problem that it is difficult to recognize the conditions, such as the inclination angle of the ground surface on which the shovel 100B is traveling, compared to when the operator actually boards the cabin 10. In this embodiment, by performing the above-mentioned control in the remote control system SYS1, the speed of the shovel 100B when traveling on a slope can be reduced, thereby preventing the shovel 100B from slipping.

[0237] <effect> In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the traveling speed of the shovel is reduced when the inclination angle of the ground contact surface is greater than 10 degrees. In other words, the shovel controller does not reduce the speed at which the shovel swings and the attachment operates, even when the inclination angle of the ground contact surface is greater than 10 degrees. This makes it possible to suppress a reduction in the efficiency of the work performed by the shovel.

[0238] In the above-described embodiment, when the shovel determines that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body 1 is inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees based on the detection result of the machine body inclination sensor S4, the shovel controls the traveling speed of the lower traveling body 1 to be lower than when the ground contact surface is determined to be not inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees. This makes it possible to prevent slippage and the like from occurring when the shovel travels on a ground contact surface inclined at an angle of more than 10 degrees. This makes it possible to improve safety.

[0239] In the above-described embodiment and modified examples, a case has been described in which a shovel is used as an example of a work machine. However, the configurations shown in the embodiment and modified examples are not limited to being applied to a shovel as a work machine, and may be applied to, for example, a crane, a forklift, etc.

[0240] Although an embodiment showing an example of a shovel and a remote control system for a shovel has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. Various changes, modifications, substitutions, additions, deletions, and combinations are possible within the scope of the claims. Naturally, these also fall within the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0241] 100, 100A, 100B Shovel 1 Undercarriage 2 Swivel mechanism 3. Upper rotating body 4. Boom 5 Arm 6 Bucket S6 imaging device S10 Positioning device S11 Spatial recognition device T1 Communications Equipment 30, 30A, 30B Excavator Controller 301, 311, 321 Acquisition Department 302 Driving control unit 303, 316, 326 Judgment section 304, 317, 327 adjustment section 312 Communication Control Unit 313, 322 Excavator condition identification section 314 Target trajectory generation unit 315 Autonomous Control Unit 323 Transmission control section 324 Reception control section 325 Actuator Drive Unit 33 Storage device 331 Construction information storage section 200 Management device 210 Input Device 220 Storage device 221 Construction information storage section 230 Control device 231 Communication Control Unit 232 Construction information generation department T2 Communication Equipment RC Remote Control Room T3 Communications Equipment D1 display device R30 Remote Controller 401 Reception control section 402 Display control unit 403 Signal Generator 404 Transmission control section R26 operating device R29 Operation Sensor

Claims

1. An upper rotating body; A lower traveling body that rotatably supports the upper rotating body; An inclination sensor; a control unit configured to, when it is determined that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body is inclined at a first angle or more based on a detection result of the inclination sensor, perform control to reduce a traveling speed of the lower traveling body compared to when it is determined that the ground contact surface is not inclined at the first angle or more; An excavator equipped with:

2. the control unit controls a speed at which the lower traveling body travels in response to an operation amount received from an operation device, When a first operation amount is received from the operation device, if it is determined that the lower traveling body is inclined more than the first angle, a control is performed to reduce the traveling speed of the lower traveling body compared to a case where it is determined that the lower traveling body is not inclined more than the first angle. The shovel according to claim 1.

3. The operating device is an electric operating lever, The control unit is configured to control the speed at which the lower traveling body travels in response to a signal indicating an amount of operation received by the electric operating lever. The shovel according to claim 2.

4. a left traveling motor for driving a left crawler provided on the lower traveling body; a right travel motor for driving a right crawler provided on the lower travel body; the operation device includes a left operation lever corresponding to the left traveling motor and a right operation lever corresponding to the right traveling motor, The control unit is configured to perform control to reduce the rotation speed of the left traveling motor when it is determined that the vehicle is inclined beyond the first angle upon receiving a first operation amount from the left operating lever, compared to when it is determined that the vehicle is not inclined beyond the first angle, and to perform control to reduce the rotation speed of the right traveling motor when it is determined that the vehicle is inclined beyond the first angle upon receiving a first operation amount from the right operating lever, compared to when it is determined that the vehicle is not inclined beyond the first angle. The shovel according to claim 2 or 3.

5. The control unit is When it is determined that the angle is inclined from the first angle, compared with when it is determined that the angle is not inclined from the first angle, The control is configured to reduce a ratio of a command value for driving the left traveling motor or the right traveling motor to an operation amount received by the left operating lever or the right operating lever, or to suppress the command value to a predetermined value or less. The shovel according to claim 4.

6. the control unit is configured to, when it is determined that the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body is inclined at more than the first angle based on the detection result of the inclination sensor, perform control to reduce the rotation speed of the drive source that drives the lower traveling body, compared to when it is determined that the ground contact surface is not inclined at more than the first angle. The shovel according to claim 1 or 2.

7. the control unit is configured to stop the control of reducing the traveling speed of the lower traveling body when it is determined that the contact surface is inclined more than the first angle after receiving a predetermined operation, compared to when it is determined that the contact surface is not inclined more than the first angle. The shovel according to claim 1 or 2.

8. the control unit is configured to stop control for reducing the traveling speed of the lower running body when it is determined that the contact surface of the lower running body is inclined at more than the first angle based on a detection result of the inclination sensor, and then when it is determined that the contact surface of the lower running body is not inclined at more than a second angle smaller than the first angle. The shovel according to claim 1 or 2.

9. The control unit is When route information indicating a route for autonomously traveling the shovel is acquired, a setting is configured to set a speed of the lower traveling body to be lower for a route indicated by the route information in which the ground contact surface of the lower traveling body is inclined at an angle greater than the first angle, compared to a route in which the ground contact surface is not inclined at an angle greater than the first angle. The shovel according to claim 1.

10. A shovel including an upper rotating body, a lower traveling body that rotatably supports the upper rotating body, and an inclination sensor; A remote control device for remotely operating the shovel, When a first operation amount is received from the remote control device, if it is determined that the lower traveling body is inclined at a first angle, a control is performed to reduce the traveling speed of the lower traveling body, compared with a case where it is determined that the lower traveling body is not inclined at the first angle. Remote control system for excavators.

Images