Operation device and operation system

Abstract

To provide an operation device and an operation system allowing an operator to operate objects comfortably.SOLUTION: An operation device to operate objects to be operated is provided with: a seat; an operation mechanism 211 receiving operation by an operator; a driving device 224 allowing an attitude of the seat to be adjusted; and a control device 200 controlling the driving device so as to carry out a first driving process to adjust the attitude of the seat such that the attitude of the seat changes in a time sequence and a second driving process adjusting the attitude of the seat to a specified attitude in a non-operated state where there is no operation instruction through the operation mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an operation device and an operation system for operating an operation object. [Background technology]

[0002] A technology has been proposed that provides an operator who remotely operates a work machine as an object of operation with information about the work machine through a physical sensation (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This technology discloses a remote control system for a work machine in which the operator operates the work machine from a remote control facility installed in a remote location. The remote control facility has a seat on which the operator sits and a tilt drive means for tilting the seat, and the work machine is equipped with a tilt detection means for detecting the tilt direction and amount of tilt of the machine body. The tilt drive means tilts the seat so that the seat is synchronized with the tilt direction and amount of tilt of the machine body detected by the tilt detection means while the work machine is traveling, and controls the tilt of the seat so that the amount of tilt is maintained at the moment the work machine stops traveling when the work machine is not traveling. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6220961 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When the operator has no intention of operating the work machine, such as when not in operation, if the seat is tilted in sync with the inclination of the body as in the above-mentioned technology, there is a risk that the operator sitting in the seat will feel uncomfortable or unnatural.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an operating device and an operating system that allow an operator to perform operations comfortably. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A first aspect of the present invention provides an operating device for operating an object to be operated, comprising: a seat; an operating mechanism for accepting operation by an operator; a drive device capable of adjusting the attitude of the seat; and a control device capable of controlling the drive device to execute a first drive process for adjusting the attitude of the seat so that the attitude of the seat changes in time series in accordance with the time series of the attitude of the object to be operated; and a control device capable of controlling the drive device to execute a second drive process for interrupting execution of the first drive process and adjusting the attitude of the seat to a specified attitude in a non-operation state in which no operation instruction is given to the object to be operated through the operating mechanism.

[0007] According to the operating device having this configuration, the control device executes the first drive process to adjust the posture of the seat, and the operator seated in the seat can be informed (or made aware) of the time series (time-varying pattern) changes in the posture of the operation object. Meanwhile, in a non-operation state in which the operator does not issue an operation instruction to the operation object, the first drive process is interrupted and the second drive process is executed. As a result, the posture of the seat is adjusted to or maintained at a specified posture, and the transmission of the time series changes in the posture of the operation object to the operator seated in the seat is blocked.

[0008] A second aspect of the present invention is the operating device according to the first aspect, wherein the control device executes the second drive process when the non-operation state continues for a designated time or longer.

[0009] With this configuration of the operating device, if the operator does not give an operation instruction for the operation object for a specified period of time or longer and there is a high probability that the operator has no intention of operating the operation object, the transmission of time-series changes in the posture of the operation object to the operator seated in the seat can be cut off.

[0010] A third invention of the present invention is an operating device according to the first or second invention, wherein the specified posture may be the posture of the seat at the start of the non-operation state, an initial posture of the seat, or a posture in which the bottom of the seat is horizontal.

[0011] According to the operating device having this configuration, the second drive process is executed to adjust the seat position to the position at the start of the non-operation state, the initial position, or the position where the seat is horizontal, so that the operator can recognize that the non-operation state has continued. The initial position of the seat may be a position where the seat is tilted forward, taking into consideration the convenience of the operator sitting on the seat.

[0012] A fourth aspect of the present invention may be an operating device according to any one of the first to third aspects, further comprising an input unit that receives an input of a command for executing the second drive process from an operator.

[0013] According to the operating device having this configuration, the second drive process is executed in accordance with the operator's intention and the seat is adjusted to a specified position, so that the time-series changes in the position of the operation object can be prevented from being transmitted to the operator via the seat.

[0014] A fifth invention of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to fourth inventions, wherein the control device controls the drive device in the first drive process so that the greater the deviation between the attitude of the operation object and the attitude of the seat, the smaller the attitude change speed of the seat for aligning the attitude of the operation object with the attitude of the seat becomes.

[0015] According to the operating device having this configuration, the greater the deviation between the attitude of the operation target and the attitude of the seat, the lower the attitude change speed of the seat for aligning the attitude of the operation target with the attitude of the seat. This can avoid a situation in which the attitude change speed of the seat becomes too high in order to align the attitude of the seat with the attitude of the operation target, causing the operator to feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, the lower the deviation, the more quickly the attitude of the operation target can be reflected or transmitted to the attitude of the seat, allowing the operator to recognize the time-series change in the attitude of the operation target in real time.

[0016] A 6th aspect of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the control device, in the first drive process, identifies frequency components contained in a time series of posture of the object to be operated based on the time series of the posture, performs a low-pass filter process to remove high-frequency components equal to or greater than a threshold from the identified frequency components from the time series of the posture, and controls the drive device according to the time series of the posture after the low-pass filter process to adjust the posture of the seat.

[0017] According to the operating device having the above configuration, the time-series change in the seat posture is transmitted to the operator seated in the seat, the time-series change in the posture of the operation target is subjected to low-pass filtering to remove high-frequency components equal to or higher than a threshold among frequency components contained in the time-series change in the posture of the operation target, thereby enabling the time series of the posture of the actual machine to be transmitted to the operator with high accuracy.

[0018] A seventh aspect of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the control device, in the second drive process, vibrates the seat in the specified posture in response to operation of a prime mover of the operation target.

[0019] According to the operating device having this configuration, the operator seated in the seat in the specified posture can recognize whether the prime mover to be operated is operating or not based on the presence or absence of vibration of the seat in the specified posture. For example, the vibration of the seat is adjusted to a weak vibration to avoid causing discomfort to the operator. The seat may be vibrated by reducing the gain according to the speed of change in posture of the object to be operated, or the seat may be vibrated according to a predetermined vibration mode of the prime mover.

[0020] An eighth aspect of the present invention may be an operating device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects of the present invention, configured to operate a work machine as the operation target.

[0021] According to the operating device having this configuration, in a non-operating state where the operator is not issuing any operation instructions to the work machine to be operated, the first drive process is suspended and the second drive process is executed, whereby the seat position is adjusted or maintained at a specified position and the transmission of time-series changes in the work machine position to the operator seated in the seat is interrupted.

[0022] A ninth aspect of the present invention provides an operation system, comprising: an operation device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects of the present invention; and the operation target. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an operation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a work machine according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an operation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a first drive control process of the operation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6]FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the second drive control process of the operation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a work environment image in the operation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] (Operation system configuration) 1 is a configuration diagram of an operation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. This operation system has a remote operation device 20 (operation device), and is configured to remotely operate a work machine 40 using the remote operation device 20. Note that in other embodiments, the operation system may also include the work machine 40. The remote operation device 20 and the work machine 40 are configured to be able to communicate with each other via a network.

[0025] (Configuration of remote control device) As shown in FIG. 1, the remote operation device 20 has a remote control device 200 (control device, control unit), a remote input interface 210 (input unit), a remote output interface 220 (output unit), and a remote wireless communication device 250 (communication device) capable of communicating with a work machine 40 via a network. The remote control device 200 is configured with a calculation processing device (a single-core processor or a multi-core processor or a processor core constituting the same), reads necessary data and software from a storage device such as a memory, and executes calculation processing according to the software on the data. The remote control device 200 can also operate a predetermined work machine 40 selected from a plurality of work machines 40 by communicating with the predetermined work machine 40 via the remote wireless communication device 250 through the remote wireless communication device 250. The remote control device 200 also controls the seat drive device 224 to execute a first drive process and a second drive process described below.

[0026] The remote input interface 210 has a remote operation mechanism 211 that accepts operations by an operator. The remote output interface 220 has a remote image output device 221, a remote sound output device 222, and a seat drive device 224.

[0027] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the remote control mechanism 211 according to this embodiment. The remote control mechanism 211 has the devices and members shown in FIG. 2, and includes a traveling operation device, a swivel operation device, a boom operation device, an arm operation device, and an end attachment operation device. Each operation device has an operation lever that receives a rotation operation. The operation lever (travel lever) of the traveling operation device is operated to drive a hydraulic traveling motor (actuator) that constitutes the traveling drive mechanism in the lower travel body 41 of the work machine 40. The travel lever may also serve as a traveling pedal. For example, a traveling pedal fixed to the base or lower end of the travel lever may be provided. The operation lever (swivel lever) of the swing operation device is operated to move a hydraulic swing motor (actuator) that constitutes the swing drive mechanism of the work machine 40. The operation lever (boom lever) of the boom operation device is operated to move the boom cylinder 442 of the work machine 40. The operating lever (arm lever) of the arm operating device is operated to move the arm cylinder 444 of the work machine 40. The operating lever (tip attachment lever) of the tip attachment operating device is operated to move the tip attachment cylinder 446 of the work machine 40. The option pedal disposed on the side of the travel pedal is operated to move the tip attachment of the work machine 40, etc.

[0028] The operation levers constituting the remote control mechanism 211 are arranged around the seat 24 on which the operator sits, as shown in Fig. 2. The seat 24 has a seat part 241 installed on the upper side of a seat base 240, and a backrest part 242, and is in the form of a high-back chair with armrests, but may be in any form of seating part on which the operator can sit, such as a low-back chair without a headrest, or a chair without the backrest part 242.

[0029] Left and right travel levers 2110 corresponding to the left and right crawlers are arranged side by side in front of the seat 24. One operation lever may serve as multiple operation levers. For example, the left operation lever 2111 provided in front of the left frame of the seat 24 shown in FIG. 2 may function as an arm lever when operated in the front-rear direction, and as a rotation lever when operated in the left-right direction. Similarly, the right operation lever 2112 provided in front of the right frame of the seat St shown in FIG. 2 may function as a boom lever when operated in the front-rear direction, and as a tip attachment lever when operated in the left-right direction. Such a lever pattern may be arbitrarily changed by an operation instruction from the operator.

[0030] The remote image output device 221 is composed of a single image output device or a plurality of image output devices. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the remote image output device 221 is composed of a central remote image output device 2210, a left remote image output device 2211, and a right remote image output device 2212, each having a substantially rectangular screen, which are arranged in front of the seat 24, diagonally forward to the left, and diagonally forward to the right. The shapes and sizes of the screens (image display areas) of the central remote image output device 2210, the left remote image output device 2211, and the right remote image output device 2212 may be the same or different. The remote image output device 221 may be composed of a single curved or bendable image output device, or two or four or more image output devices arranged to surround the front of the seat 24.

[0031] 2, the right edge of the left remote image output device 2211 is adjacent to the left edge of the central remote image output device 2210, such that the screen of the central remote image output device 2210 and the screen of the left remote image output device 2211 form an angle of 120°-150°. As shown in FIG. 2, the left edge of the right remote image output device 2212 is adjacent to the right edge of the central remote image output device 2210, such that the screen of the central remote image output device 2210 and the screen of the right remote image output device 2212 form an angle of 120°-150°.

[0032] The screens of the central remote image output device 2210, the left remote image output device 2211, and the right remote image output device 2212 may be parallel to the vertical direction or may be inclined to the vertical direction. At least one of the central remote image output device 2210, the left remote image output device 2211, and the right remote image output device 2212 may be composed of a plurality of divided image output devices. For example, the central remote image output device 2210 may be composed of vertically adjacent image output devices each having a substantially rectangular screen.

[0033] The remote audio output device 222 is composed of one or more speakers, and is composed of, for example, audio output devices arranged at the rear of the seat 24, at the rear of the left armrest, and at the rear of the right armrest. The specifications of the audio output devices may be the same or different.

[0034] The seat drive device 224 constitutes a "seat device" together with the seat 24. The seat drive device 224 is capable of adjusting the attitude of the seat 24. The seat drive device 224 is configured to tilt or swing the seat 24 relative to the seat base 240 (or integrally with the seat base 240) about the pitch axis and / or the roll axis (about the roll axis as necessary). The seat drive device 224 may be configured to vibrate the seat 24 relative to the seat base 240 (or integrally with the seat base 240) in at least one direction of the pitch axis, the roll axis, and the yaw axis.

[0035] (Work machine configuration) 1, the work machine 40 has an actual machine control device 400, an actual machine input interface 410, an actual machine output interface 420, and an actual machine wireless communication device 450. Each of the components of the actual machine control device 400 is configured by an arithmetic processing device (a single-core processor or a multi-core processor or a processor core constituting the same), reads necessary data and software from a storage device such as a memory, and executes arithmetic processing on the data in accordance with the software.

[0036] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a work machine 40 according to this embodiment. The work machine 40 is, for example, a hydraulic excavator, and as shown in Fig. 3, includes a crawler-type lower traveling body 41 constituting a traveling drive mechanism, and an upper rotating body 42 rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body 41 via a swing drive mechanism. A cab 43 (operator's cab) is provided on the front left side of the upper rotating body 42. A work mechanism 44 is provided on the front right side of the upper rotating body 42. The cab 43 may be configured to be driven to move up and down relative to the upper rotating body 42 by a lifting drive mechanism (not shown) having a link mechanism and an actuator, and may be configured to change the tilt angle relative to the upper rotating body 42 by a tilt drive mechanism (not shown) having an actuator.

[0037] The real machine input interface 410 has a real machine operation mechanism 411, a real machine imaging device 412, and a real machine sensor group 416. The real machine operation mechanism 411 has a plurality of operation levers arranged around a seat arranged inside the cab 43 in the same manner as the remote operation mechanism 211. An actuation mechanism or robot that receives a signal according to the operation mode of the remote operation lever and moves the real machine operation lever based on the received signal is provided in the cab 43. The real machine imaging device 412 is installed, for example, inside the cab 43, and captures an image of the environment including at least a part of the working mechanism 44 through the front window and the left and right side windows. Some or all of the front window and the side windows may be omitted.

[0038] The actual machine sensor group 416 includes various sensors configured to output signals to the actual machine control device 400 according to parameter values ​​related to the state of the work machine 40. The state of the work machine 40 includes the actual machine attitude, that is, the tilt angle (pitch angle) about the pitch axis and / or the tilt angle (roll angle) about the roll axis with respect to the vertical direction of the upper rotating body 42. The actual machine attitude sensor is configured, for example, with a three-dimensional acceleration sensor. The state of the work machine 40 may include whether or not the prime mover (equipment that generates vibration, such as an engine or a work oil pump) is operating, as well as the hoisting angle of the boom 441 relative to the upper rotating body 42, the rotation angle of the arm 443 relative to the boom 441, the rotation angle of the tip attachment 445 (lift mag) relative to the arm 443, the hydraulic oil pressure, the remaining fuel amount, etc.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 3, the working mechanism 44 (operating mechanism) has a boom 441 whose base end is attached to the upper rotating body 42 so as to be able to be raised and lowered, an arm 443 whose base end is rotatably connected to the tip of the boom 441, and a tip attachment 445 whose base end is rotatably connected to the tip of the arm 443. The working mechanism 44 is equipped with a boom cylinder 442 as an actuator composed of an extendable hydraulic cylinder, an arm cylinder 444, and a tip attachment cylinder 446. As the tip attachment 445, in addition to a bucket having a container for storing objects such as soil and sand, a lifting magnet, a grapple that grasps an object by opening and closing a plurality of opposing gripping claws, a bucket with a hook that can hook an object to a hook attached to the back and lift it up, and a breaker having a chisel that is supported reciprocally on the breaker body and strikes the work object may be used. The chisel of the breaker may be configured to be operable by a switch. In addition, a swing mechanism for swinging the tip end left and right relative to each base end and a slide arm configured to extend and retract the arm 443 by providing a slidable extension mechanism on the arm 443 may be provided at the base end of the boom 441 and the arm 443, and may be configured to be operable by a switch or an optional pedal. A dozer having a blade lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the blade by a dozer cylinder is provided at the front side of the lower traveling body 41, and may be configured to be operable by a switch or an optional pedal.

[0040] The boom cylinder 442 is interposed between the boom 441 and the upper rotating body 42 so as to extend and retract when supplied with hydraulic oil to rotate the boom 441 in the hoisting direction. The arm cylinder 444 is interposed between the arm 443 and the boom 441 so as to extend and retract when supplied with hydraulic oil to rotate the arm 443 about a horizontal axis relative to the boom 441. The tip attachment cylinder 446 is interposed between the tip attachment 445 and the arm 443 so as to extend and retract when supplied with hydraulic oil to rotate the tip attachment 445 about a horizontal axis relative to the arm 443.

[0041] (function) Fig. 4 is a flowchart of the operation system according to this embodiment. Fig. 5 is a flowchart of the first drive control process of the operation system according to this embodiment. Fig. 6 is a flowchart of the second drive control process of the operation system according to this embodiment. The functions of the remote operation device 20 and the remote operation system configured as described above will be described with reference to Figs. 4 to 6. In the flowchart, a block "C (number)" is used for the sake of simplicity, and means transmission and / or reception of data, and means a conditional branch in which a process in a branching direction is executed on the condition that the data is transmitted and / or received.

[0042] On the condition that communication between the remote operation device 20 and the work machine 40 has been established, the actual machine control device 400 in the work machine 40 transmits a captured image acquired through the actual machine imaging device 412 to the remote operation device 20 (FIG. 4 / STEP 402). The captured image (or captured image data) may be not only the captured image itself, but also image data representing a simulated environmental image generated based on the captured image.

[0043] For example, in the remote operation device 20, the remote control device 200 may transmit a designation signal to the work machine 40 through the remote wireless communication device 250, thereby establishing communication between the remote operation device 20 and the work machine 40. When a plurality of work machines 40 are candidates for operation targets, the remote control device 200 may transmit a designation signal to each of the plurality of work machines 40. The remote control device 200 may determine whether or not an operator has performed a designation operation through the remote input interface 210, and transmit the designation signal when the determination result is positive. The "designation operation" is, for example, an operation such as tapping on the remote input interface 210 for the operator to designate the work machine 40 that the operator intends to remotely operate. An operation acceptance unit that accepts the operation such as tapping may be provided on the seat 24 or beside the seat 24.

[0044] When the remote operation device 20 receives a captured image through the remote wireless communication device 250 (FIG. 4 / C21), the remote control device 200 outputs the captured image to the remote image output device 221 (display device) (FIG. 4 / STEP 202). FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a work environment image in the operation system according to this embodiment. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, a captured image showing the ground spreading in front of the cab 43, a bucket corresponding to the tip attachment 445 that is a part of the work mechanism 44, the ground, and the like is output to the remote image output device 221.

[0045] In the remote operation device 20, the remote control device 200 recognizes the operation mode of the remote operation mechanism 211, and transmits a remote operation command corresponding to the operation mode to the work machine 40 via the remote wireless communication device 250 (FIG. 4 / STEP 204).

[0046] In the work machine 40, when the actual machine control device 400 receives a remote operation command through the actual machine wireless communication device 450 (FIG. 4 / C41), it controls the operation of the work mechanism 44, etc. in accordance with the remote operation command (FIG. 4 / STEP 404). For example, while a bucket as the tip attachment 445 holds an object such as soil or sand, a predetermined task is performed involving the operation of the work mechanism 44, etc. to displace the real space position of the bucket (see FIG. 7).

[0047] In the work machine 40, the actual machine control device 400 transmits the actual machine operation status (information) acquired through the actual machine sensor group 416 to the remote control device 20 (FIG. 4 / STEP 406). The actual machine operation status includes the actual machine attitude (the tilt angle around the pitch axis and / or roll axis with respect to the vertical direction of the upper rotating body 42), whether the prime mover is operating, the attitude of the work mechanism 44, and the like.

[0048] When the remote operation device 20 receives the actual machine operation status through the remote wireless communication device 250 (FIG. 4 / C22), the remote control device 200 judges whether the remote operation device 20 is in an operating state where there is an operation instruction to the work machine 40, which is the operation target, through the remote operation mechanism 211 (whether the remote operation device 20 is in a non-operating state where there is no operation instruction to the work machine 40) (FIG. 4 / STEP 206). For example, the judgment process is executed depending on whether at least one of the following conditions is satisfied: the cutoff lever constituting the remote operation mechanism 211 is not operated to the hydraulic lock side, the operation lever constituting the remote operation mechanism 211 is receiving an external force (acting from the operator's body), an operation is performed to start a prime mover such as an engine of the work machine 40, for example, the line of sight of the operator detected by a line of sight detection device is continuously directed toward the remote image output device 221 for a certain period of time or more, and the emergency stop switch constituting the remote input interface 210 is OFF, that is, whether a condition indicating a high probability that the operator intends to remotely operate the work machine 40 is satisfied. When the cutoff lever is operated to the hydraulic lock side, it disables operational control of the work mechanism 44 of the work machine 40, etc., which corresponds to the operation mode of the remote operation mechanism 211. When the cutoff lever is operated to the opposite side from the hydraulic lock side, it enables the operational control. In addition, an operation to start a prime mover, such as an engine, of the work machine 40 is detected based on the state of the prime mover and the presence or absence of an operation on the remote input interface 210.

[0049] Then, when it is determined that the remote operation device 20 is in an operating state (FIG. 4 / STEP 206: YES), the remote control device 200 executes a "first drive process" (FIG. 4 / STEP 210).

[0050] Specifically, the remote control device 200 determines whether a first attitude deviation, which is a deviation between the seat attitude and the actual attitude, is equal to or greater than a first threshold value (FIG. 5 / STEP 211). Note that the seat attitude is detected based on the inclination angle around the pitch axis and / or roll axis with respect to the initial attitude of the seat 24.

[0051] If the determination result is positive (FIG. 5 / STEP 211: YES), i.e., if the deviation between the seat posture and the actual posture is relatively large, the first flag f1 is set to (or maintained at) "1" (FIG. 5 / STEP 212). On the other hand, if the determination result is negative (FIG. 5 / STEP 211: NO), i.e., if the deviation between the seat posture and the actual posture is relatively small, the first flag f1 is set to (or maintained at) "0" (FIG. 5 / STEP 213). The "first flag f1" is a flag that indicates the presence or absence of or the necessity of limiting the posture change speed (tilt angular velocity about the pitch axis and / or roll axis) of the seat 24 when a first seat posture adjustment process (described later) is executed.

[0052] Then, the remote control device 200 controls the operation of the seat drive device 224 to execute a "first seat attitude adjustment process" in which the attitude of the seat 24 is adjusted so that the seat attitude is aligned or coincident with the actual attitude (FIG. 5 / STEP 214). Here, when the first flag f1 is set to "1", the attitude change speed of the seat 24 is limited to be equal to or lower than the first attitude change speed (kept small). When the first flag f1 is set to "0", the restriction on the attitude change speed of the seat 24 is released. Note that, regardless of whether the first attitude deviation is equal to or higher than the first threshold value, the first attitude change speed may be adjusted to be smaller continuously or stepwise as the first attitude deviation increases.

[0053] When the first seat attitude adjustment process is performed, the remote control device 200 may perform a low-pass filter process based on the time series of the attitude of the actual vehicle to remove high-frequency components equal to or higher than a threshold from among frequency components included in the waveform of the time series of the attitude, and control the operation of the seat drive device 224 according to the time series of the attitude that has been subjected to the low-pass filter process, thereby adjusting the time change of the seat attitude. The time series of the attitude of the actual vehicle is superimposed with relatively high-frequency vibration components as noise caused by vibrations that the lower traveling body 41 receives from the road surface on which the vehicle is traveling and vibrations of the prime mover of the work machine 40. However, the remote control device 200 can remove the vibration components as noise by performing a low-pass filter process on the time series of the attitude of the actual vehicle, and therefore can accurately obtain (calculate) the time series of the attitude of the actual vehicle. When the first drive process is performed, the remote control device 200 may omit the process of determining whether the first attitude deviation is large or small and the process of setting the first flag f1 according to the result of the determination (see FIG. 5 / STEP 211, STEP 212, and STEP 213).

[0054] On the other hand, when the remote control device 200 determines that the remote operation device 20 is in a non-operated state (NO in FIG. 4 / STEP 206), that is, when the remote operation device 20 changes from an operating state to a non-operated state (switches from an operating state to a non-operated state), the remote control device 200 determines whether the non-operated state has continued for a specified period or more, or whether a posture designation operation has been performed through the remote input interface 210 (FIG. 4 / STEP 208). When the determination result is negative (NO in FIG. 4 / STEP 208), the remote control device 200 executes the above-mentioned "first drive process" (FIG. 4 / STEP 210).

[0055] On the other hand, if the determination result is positive (YES in FIG. 4 / STEP 208), the remote control device 200 suspends or ends the execution of the "first drive process" and executes the "second drive process" (FIG. 4 / STEP 220). At this time, the execution of the "second drive process" is conditional on the presence of an attitude designation operation via the remote input interface 210. That is, the remote input interface 210 (or the operation input unit for the attitude designation operation constituting the remote input interface 210) constitutes the "input unit for detecting the operator's operation for executing the second drive process in accordance with the operator's intention" (the input unit for receiving input of a command for executing the second drive process from the operator) of the present invention.

[0056] Specifically, the remote control device 200 judges whether a second attitude deviation, which is a deviation between the seat attitude and the designated attitude, is equal to or greater than a second threshold (FIG. 6 / STEP 221). The second threshold may be equal to the first threshold, or may be greater or smaller than the first threshold. The "designated attitude" is a predetermined attitude of the seat 24, such as the initial attitude of the seat 24 or the attitude of the seat 24 at the beginning of a non-operation state. The initial attitude of the seat 24 may be an attitude in which the seat part 241 is slightly tilted forward (for example, 5° to 20° with respect to a horizontal plane) in consideration of the convenience of the operator to sit on the seat 24 (or stand up from the seat 24). The designated attitude may be an attitude in which the seat part 241 (or the main seat surface) is horizontal, or an attitude in which the seat part 241 is slightly tilted backward (for example, 5° to 15° with respect to a horizontal plane) in consideration of the stability of sitting.

[0057] If the determination result is positive (FIG. 6 / STEP 221: YES), that is, if the deviation between the seat posture and the designated posture is relatively large, the second flag f2 is set (or maintained) to "1" (FIG. 6 / STEP 223). The "second flag f2" is a flag for indicating the presence or absence of a restriction on the posture change speed (tilt angular velocity around the pitch axis and / or roll axis) of the seat 24 when a second seat posture adjustment process (described later) is executed.

[0058] Then, the remote control device 200 executes a "second seat position adjustment process" that adjusts the position of the seat 24 so that the seat position is aligned or coincides with the designated position by controlling the operation of the seat drive device 224 (FIG. 6 / STEP 226). When the second flag f2 is set to "1", the position change speed of the seat 24 is limited to be equal to or lower than the second position change speed. Regardless of whether the second position deviation is equal to or higher than the second threshold value, the second position change speed may be adjusted to be smaller continuously or stepwise as the second position deviation increases.

[0059] On the other hand, if the determination result is positive (FIG. 6 / STEP 221: NO), that is, if the deviation between the seat posture and the designated posture is relatively small, it is determined whether the seat posture and the designated posture match (FIG. 6 / STEP 222). If it is determined that the seat posture and the designated posture are different (FIG. 6 / STEP 222: NO), the second flag f2 is set to (or maintained at) "0" (FIG. 6 / STEP 224).

[0060] Then, the remote control device 200 executes a "second seat posture adjustment process" that adjusts the posture of the seat 24 so that the seat posture is aligned or coincides with the designated posture by controlling the operation of the seat drive device 224 (FIG. 6 / STEP 226). When the second flag f2 is set to "0", the restriction on the posture change speed of the seat 24 is released.

[0061] Then, if it is determined that the seat posture matches the designated posture (FIG. 6 / STEP 222: YES), the remote control device 200 determines whether or not the prime mover of the work machine 40 is operating based on the actual machine operation status (see FIG. 4 / STEP 406) (FIG. 6 / STEP 227). If the determination result is negative (FIG. 6 / STEP 227: NO), the second drive process ends. If the determination result is positive (FIG. 6 / STEP 227: YES), the seat drive device 224 vibrates the seat 24 (FIG. 6 / STEP 228). At this time, the seat 24 vibrates around the pitch axis and / or roll axis with a predetermined minute amplitude and at a frequency corresponding to the frequency of the prime mover, so that the posture of the seat 24 changes slightly based on the designated posture. Alternatively, the seat 24 vibrates along a direction parallel to at least one of the pitch axis, roll axis, and yaw axis at a predetermined minute amplitude and at a frequency corresponding to the frequency of the prime mover, thereby causing the posture of the seat 24 to change slightly in at least one of the directions of front-back, left-right, and up-down while being maintained in a specified posture.

[0062] When the second drive process is performed, the process of determining whether the second attitude deviation is large or small and the process of setting the second flag f2 in accordance with the result of the determination may be omitted (see FIG. 6 / STEP 221, STEP 223, and STEP 224). Also, the process of determining whether the prime mover is operating and the application of vibration to the seat 24 in accordance with the result of the determination may be omitted (see FIG. 6 / STEP 227 and STEP 228).

[0063] In the remote operation device 20, the remote control device 200 determines whether or not the remote input interface 210 or the remote operation mechanism 211 has received an end operation for ending the operation of the work machine 40 (FIG. 4 / STEP 240).

[0064] The presence or absence of the "termination operation" is detected depending on whether the operation lever, travel pedal, and option pedal constituting the remote input interface 210 are returned to the neutral position or the initial position in order to cause the work machine 40 to terminate a predetermined operation of the operating mechanism such as the working mechanism 44. At this time, the presence or absence of the termination operation may be determined based on whether each lever and pedal is returned to the neutral position or the initial position, as well as whether that state is maintained for a certain period of time. In addition, the presence or absence of the "termination operation" may be detected depending on various conditions such as whether the cut-off lever is operated to the hydraulic lock state, whether an operation to stop the operation of the prime mover of the work machine 40 is performed in the remote input interface 210, and whether a switch constituting the remote input interface 210 is switched from the ON state to the OFF state in order to cause the work machine 40 to terminate a predetermined operation of the operating mechanism such as the working mechanism 44, or whether a plurality of conditions are satisfied in combination.

[0065] If it is determined that no termination operation has been performed (NO in FIG. 4 / STEP 240), the reception of the captured image and its output to the remote image output device 221 (see FIG. 4 / C21 → STEP 202) as well as the subsequent processing are repeated, and the work machine 40 continues to operate in accordance with the remote operation command.

[0066] On the other hand, if it is determined that a termination operation has been performed (YES in FIG. 4 / STEP 240), in the remote operation device 20, the remote control device 200 transmits a remote operation stop signal to the work machine 40 via the remote wireless communication device 250 (FIG. 5 / STEP 242).

[0067] In the work machine 40, when the actual machine control device 400 receives a remote operation stop signal via the actual machine wireless communication device 450 (Figure 4 / C42), it controls the operation of the actuator of the operating mechanism so that the operation of the work mechanism 44, etc. is terminated. (Action and effect) According to the remote operation device 20 that performs the above-mentioned functions and the operation system configured by the remote control device 200, the seat drive device 224 is controlled to execute the first drive process, and the time series or time change of the attitude of the work machine 40, which is the object of operation, can be transmitted to the operator seated on the seat 24 through the time series or time change of the attitude of the seat 24 (see FIG. 4 / STEP 210 and FIG. 5 / STEP 211 to STEP 214). On the other hand, in a non-operation state in which there is no operation instruction for the operation object by the operator through the remote operation mechanism 211, the first drive process is interrupted and the second drive process is executed (see FIG. 4 / STEP 206: NO → . . . →STEP 220 and FIG. 6 / STEP 221 to STEP 218). As a result, the attitude of the seat 24 is adjusted or maintained at the specified attitude, and the transmission of the time change of the attitude of the work machine 40, which is the object of operation, to the operator seated on the seat 24 is interrupted.

[0068] (Another embodiment of the present invention) In the embodiment, the second drive process is executed on the condition (requirement) that the non-operated state of the remote control device 20 continues for a specified time or more (see FIG. 4 / STEP 208 → YES → STEP 220), but the second drive process may be executed immediately after the remote control device 20 becomes non-operated or when a posture designation operation is performed. Also, the remote control device 20 may be provided with an input unit (for example, composed of a remote input interface 210 that detects operations such as tapping). The input unit detects an operator's operation for executing the second drive process according to the operator's intention.

[0069] In the above embodiment, the attitude of the seat 24 is adjusted so that the seat attitude is aligned or coincident with the actual aircraft attitude (FIG. 5 / STEP 214, FIG. 6 / STEP 226), but the attitude of the seat 24 may be adjusted so that the seat attitude is aligned or coincident with a relative attitude that is correlated with the actual aircraft attitude. For example, a relative attitude that is correlated with the actual aircraft attitude is calculated by multiplying the inclination angle about the pitch axis and / or roll axis of the upper rotating body 42 with respect to the vertical direction in the actual aircraft attitude by a predetermined coefficient c (e.g., c=0.90, 1.1, etc.), and the attitude of the seat 24 is adjusted so that the seat attitude is aligned or coincident with the calculated relative attitude. When the predetermined coefficient is set to be smaller than 1, the inclination angle in the relative attitude is smaller than the inclination angle in the actual aircraft attitude, and when the predetermined coefficient is set to be larger than 1, the inclination angle in the relative attitude is larger than the inclination angle in the actual aircraft attitude.

[0070] A first aspect of the present invention provides an operating device for operating an object to be operated, comprising: a seat; an operating mechanism for accepting operation by an operator; a drive device capable of adjusting the attitude of the seat; and a control device capable of controlling the drive device to execute a first drive process for adjusting the attitude of the seat so that the attitude of the seat changes in time series in accordance with the time series of the attitude of the object to be operated; and a control device capable of controlling the drive device to execute a second drive process for interrupting execution of the first drive process and adjusting the attitude of the seat to a specified attitude in a non-operation state in which no operation instruction is given to the object to be operated through the operating mechanism.

[0071] According to the operating device having this configuration, the control device executes the first drive process to adjust the posture of the seat, and the operator seated in the seat can be informed (or made aware) of the time series (time-varying pattern) changes in the posture of the operation object. Meanwhile, in a non-operation state in which the operator does not issue an operation instruction to the operation object, the first drive process is interrupted and the second drive process is executed. As a result, the posture of the seat is adjusted to or maintained at a specified posture, and the transmission of the time series changes in the posture of the operation object to the operator seated in the seat is blocked.

[0072] A second aspect of the present invention is the operating device according to the first aspect, wherein the control device executes the second drive process when the non-operation state continues for a designated time or longer.

[0073] With this configuration of the operating device, if the operator does not give an operation instruction for the operation object for a specified period of time or longer and there is a high probability that the operator has no intention of operating the operation object, the transmission of time-series changes in the posture of the operation object to the operator seated in the seat can be cut off.

[0074] A third invention of the present invention is an operating device according to the first or second invention, wherein the specified posture may be the posture of the seat at the start of the non-operation state, an initial posture of the seat, or a posture in which the bottom of the seat is horizontal.

[0075] According to the operating device having this configuration, the second drive process is executed to adjust the seat position to the position at the start of the non-operation state, the initial position, or the position where the seat is horizontal, so that the operator can recognize that the non-operation state has continued. The initial position of the seat may be a position where the seat is tilted forward, taking into consideration the convenience of the operator sitting on the seat.

[0076] A fourth aspect of the present invention may be an operating device according to any one of the first to third aspects, further comprising an input unit that receives an input of a command for executing the second drive process from an operator.

[0077] According to the operating device having this configuration, the second drive process is executed in accordance with the operator's intention and the seat is adjusted to a specified position, so that the time-series changes in the position of the operation object can be prevented from being transmitted to the operator via the seat.

[0078] A fifth invention of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to fourth inventions, wherein the control device controls the drive device in the first drive process so that the greater the deviation between the attitude of the operation object and the attitude of the seat, the smaller the attitude change speed of the seat for aligning the attitude of the operation object with the attitude of the seat becomes.

[0079] According to the operating device having this configuration, the greater the deviation between the attitude of the operation target and the attitude of the seat, the lower the attitude change speed of the seat for aligning the attitude of the operation target with the attitude of the seat. This can avoid a situation in which the attitude change speed of the seat becomes too high in order to align the attitude of the seat with the attitude of the operation target, causing the operator to feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, the lower the deviation, the more quickly the attitude of the operation target can be reflected or transmitted to the attitude of the seat, allowing the operator to recognize the time-series change in the attitude of the operation target in real time.

[0080] A 6th aspect of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the control device, in the first drive process, identifies frequency components contained in a time series of posture of the object to be operated based on the time series of the posture, performs a low-pass filter process to remove high-frequency components equal to or greater than a threshold from the identified frequency components from the time series of the posture, and controls the drive device according to the time series of the posture after the low-pass filter process to adjust the posture of the seat.

[0081] According to the operating device having the above configuration, the time-series change in the seat posture is transmitted to the operator seated in the seat, the time-series change in the posture of the operation target is subjected to low-pass filtering to remove high-frequency components equal to or higher than a threshold among frequency components contained in the time-series change in the posture of the operation target, thereby enabling the time series of the posture of the actual machine to be transmitted to the operator with high accuracy.

[0082] A seventh aspect of the present invention is an operating device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the control device, in the second drive process, vibrates the seat in the specified posture in response to operation of a prime mover of the operation target.

[0083] According to the operating device having this configuration, the operator seated in the seat in the specified posture can recognize whether the prime mover to be operated is operating or not based on the presence or absence of vibration of the seat in the specified posture. For example, the vibration of the seat is adjusted to a weak vibration to avoid causing discomfort to the operator. The seat may be vibrated by reducing the gain according to the speed of change in posture of the object to be operated, or the seat may be vibrated according to a predetermined vibration mode of the prime mover.

[0084] An eighth aspect of the present invention may be an operating device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects of the present invention, configured to operate a work machine as the operation target.

[0085] According to the operating device having this configuration, in a non-operating state where the operator is not issuing any operation instructions to the work machine to be operated, the first drive process is suspended and the second drive process is executed, whereby the seat position is adjusted or maintained at a specified position and the transmission of time-series changes in the work machine position to the operator seated in the seat is interrupted.

[0086] A ninth aspect of the present invention provides an operation system, comprising: an operation device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects of the present invention; and the operation target. [Explanation of symbols]

[0087] 20. Remote control device (operation device) 24 seats 200. Remote control device 210 Remote input interface 211. Remote control mechanism 220 Remote output interface 221 Remote image output device 222. Remote audio output device 224. Seat drive mechanism (drive mechanism) 250 Remote wireless communication equipment 40. Work machinery 44‥Working mechanism 400... Actual machine control device 410... Actual machine input interface 420... Actual machine output interface

Claims

1. An operation device for operating an operation object, A seat, an operation mechanism for receiving an operation by an operator; A drive device capable of adjusting the position of the seat; a control device capable of controlling the drive device to execute a first drive process that adjusts the attitude of the seat so that the attitude of the seat changes in time series in accordance with the time series of the attitude of the operation object, and a second drive process that suspends execution of the first drive process and adjusts the attitude of the seat to a specified attitude in a non-operation state in which no operation instruction is given to the operation object through the operation mechanism; An operating device comprising:

2. 2. The operating device according to claim 1, The control device executes the second drive process when the non-operation state continues for a designated time or longer.

3. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, The specified posture is a posture of the seat at the start of the non-operation state, an initial posture of the seat, or a posture in which a bottom surface of the seat is horizontal.

4. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, The operation device further includes an input unit that receives an input of a command for executing the second drive process from an operator.

5. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, An operation device, wherein the control device controls the drive device in the first drive process so that the greater the deviation between the attitude of the operation object and the attitude of the seat, the smaller the attitude change speed of the seat for aligning the attitude of the operation object with the attitude of the seat.

6. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, The control device, in the first drive processing, identifies frequency components contained in the time series of the posture of the object to be operated based on the time series of the posture, performs low-pass filter processing to remove high-frequency components equal to or greater than a threshold from the identified frequency components from the time series of the posture, and controls the drive device to adjust the posture of the seat in accordance with the time series of the posture after the low-pass filter processing.

7. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, The control device, in the second drive process, vibrates the seat that has been set to the specified posture in response to operation of a prime mover that is the operation target.

8. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, An operating device configured to operate a work machine as the object to be operated.

9. 1. An operating system, comprising: An operating device according to claim 1 or 2; The operation target; An operating system comprising:

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