Operation management device

Abstract

To realize management of a construction machine taking into consideration effectiveness of work in relation to actual work progress.SOLUTION: An operation management device 300 is a device that manages operation of a construction machine, and includes a vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 that acquires vehicle body information 340 regarding an operating status of the construction machine, a work determination unit 313 that determines whether the construction machine is performing prescribed work based on the vehicle body information 340 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, and a notification unit 314 that performs notification to a manager or an operator of the construction machine based on a determination result by the work determination unit 313.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for managing the operation of a construction machine. [Background technology]

[0002] Some construction machines, such as hydraulic excavators, are equipped with a hydraulic actuator for driving a predetermined movable part and a controller for controlling the hydraulic pressure supplied to the hydraulic actuator by controlling the opening and closing of a solenoid valve. The operation performed by the operator on the construction machine and the state of the engine of the construction machine are input and output to the controller as electrical signals, and the controller controls the opening and closing of the solenoid valve based on these electrical signals. Therefore, it has been proposed to objectively determine what operation the operator is performing on the construction machine and how efficient the operation of the construction machine is in response to that operation, based on the electrical signals input and output to the controller.

[0003] Regarding the determination of the efficiency of the operation of construction machinery, the technology described in Patent Document 1 is known. Patent Document 1 describes a fuel-efficient operation support system for construction machinery that determines the work content of the construction machinery by comparing images acquired by a camera attached to the front of the construction machinery with template images and pattern matching, and also determines whether the fuel efficiency is good or bad. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-240361 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] At construction sites where various construction machines are in operation to perform specific tasks, certain construction machines may be placed on standby depending on the tasks each machine is responsible for. For example, at a construction site where soil excavated by a shovel is loaded into a dump truck for transport, the shovel may wait until the next dump truck arrives after loading the soil into the dump truck. In this case, the standby shovel has no work to perform to progress the actual work, and the operator of the shovel may use the shovel to perform auxiliary tasks that are not necessarily required for the progress of the work, such as leveling the surrounding area or backfilling the soil. However, such work that does not contribute to the actual progress of the work results in unnecessary fuel consumption, which ultimately leads to increased construction costs.

[0006] Therefore, there is a need to manage construction machinery by understanding the work content while the machinery is in operation and taking into consideration whether the work is effective for the actual progress of the work. However, while the system described in Patent Document 1 can determine the work content being performed by the construction machinery, it cannot determine whether the work is effective for the actual progress of the work.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to realize the operation management of construction machines that takes into consideration the effectiveness of work in relation to actual work progress. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The operation management device according to the present invention is a device for managing the operation of construction machinery, and comprises a vehicle body information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle body information regarding the operating status of the construction machinery, a work determination unit that determines whether the construction machinery is performing a specified work content based on the vehicle body information acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit, and a notification unit that notifies the manager or operator of the construction machinery based on the determination result by the work determination unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize management of construction machines taking into consideration the effectiveness of work in relation to actual work progress.

[0010] Further features related to the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings. In addition, problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of a hydraulic excavator, an example of construction machinery [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an operation management system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] Overview of construction machinery operation management [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an operation management device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a management screen displayed on the operation management device; [Figure 6] Diagram showing details of work information [Figure 7] Table showing examples of work determination conditions [Figure 8] 1 is a flowchart showing a processing flow of an operation management apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an operation management device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of an operation management apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 11] 1 is a configuration diagram of an operation management system according to a third embodiment of the present invention; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] (First embodiment) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a hydraulic excavator, which is an example of construction machinery.

[0014] The hydraulic excavator 100 shown in Fig. 1 is equipped with an engine 1 as a power source and a main pump 2 driven by the engine 1. The hydraulic oil discharged from the main pump 2 causes a lower traveling body 3, an upper rotating body 4, and a front device 5 to operate independently.

[0015] The lower traveling body 3 has a pair of left and right crawlers 6 and a traveling hydraulic motor 7. The traveling hydraulic motor 7 is rotationally driven by hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, driving the crawlers 6 and causing the lower traveling body 3 to travel. Note that Fig. 1 shows only one of the pair of left and right crawlers 6 and traveling hydraulic motor 7.

[0016] The upper rotating body 4 is connected to the lower traveling body 3 in the vertical direction via a rotating device (not shown) that has a hydraulic swing motor 8. The hydraulic swing motor 8 is rotationally driven by hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, and rotates the upper rotating body 4 relative to the lower traveling body 3.

[0017] The front device 5 is mounted on the upper rotating structure 4 and has a boom 9, a boom cylinder 10 for driving the boom 9, an arm 11, an arm cylinder 12 for driving the arm 11, a bucket 13, and a bucket cylinder 14 for driving the bucket 13. The boom cylinder 10, the arm cylinder 12, and the bucket cylinder 14 extend and retract with hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, thereby driving the boom 9, the arm 11, and the bucket 13, respectively. The boom 9 drives relative to the upper rotating structure 4 about a rotation axis 15, the arm 11 drives relative to the boom 9 about a rotation axis 16, and the bucket 13 drives relative to the arm 11 about a rotation axis 17.

[0018] The upper rotating body 4 is provided with a cabin for an operator to ride in. The operator of the hydraulic excavator 100 sits in a driver's seat installed inside the cabin and controls the operations of the lower traveling body 3, the upper rotating body 4, and the front device 5 by operating an operation lever 19 (see FIG. 2) installed near the driver's seat. This allows the hydraulic excavator 100 to perform work such as excavation and ground leveling.

[0019] Furthermore, the upper rotating body 4 is equipped with a work recording device 200 for recording the state of work being performed by the hydraulic excavator 100. The following describes in detail a system including this work recording device 200.

[0020] 2 is a configuration diagram of an operation management system 500 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The operation management system 500 includes a work recording device 200 mounted on each construction machine, and an operation management device 300.

[0021] The work recording device 200 includes a camera 201, a monitor control controller 202, a monitor 203, a recording device 204, a communication terminal 205, and a position detection device 206. The monitor control controller 202, the monitor 203, and the recording device 204 are each connected to the vehicle body network 20, and can communicate with each other via the vehicle body network 20.

[0022] The camera 201 is installed on the hydraulic excavator 100, for example, facing forward from the driver's seat, and captures a predetermined range around the hydraulic excavator 100 to obtain work video recording the state of work being performed by the hydraulic excavator 100. The work video obtained by the camera 201 is output to the monitor control controller 202.

[0023] The monitor control controller 202 outputs the work video input from the camera 201 to the monitor 203 for display. The monitor 203 is installed near the driver's seat of the hydraulic excavator 100, and displays the work video input from the monitor control controller 202 for presentation to the operator, and also outputs the work video to the recording device 204. The recording device 204 links the work video on the monitor 203 with the information about the hydraulic excavator 100 flowing through the vehicle network 20, and stores it as vehicle information relating to the operating status of the hydraulic excavator 100.

[0024] A communication terminal 205 and a position detection device 206 are connected to the recording device 204. The communication terminal 205 has a function for connecting to the Internet via wireless communication, and uploads the vehicle information of the hydraulic excavator 100 stored in the recording device 204 to the operation management device 300 connected via the Internet.

[0025] The operation management device 300 is configured using an information processing device such as a server, and is installed at a predetermined location away from the hydraulic excavator 100. The operation management device 300 is a device that manages the operation of various construction machines including the hydraulic excavator 100, and manages the operation of each construction machine using vehicle information uploaded from the work recording device 200 mounted on each construction machine. Details of the operation management device 300 will be described later.

[0026] The position detection device 206 receives positioning signals transmitted from GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) satellites and, based on these, detects the position of the hydraulic excavator 100. The position information of the hydraulic excavator 100 detected by the position detection device 206 is stored in the recording device 204 as part of the vehicle body information of the hydraulic excavator 100, together with the above-mentioned work video.

[0027] A vehicle body controller 18 is connected to the vehicle body network 20, which performs hydraulic control of each hydraulic actuator (travel hydraulic motor 7, swing hydraulic motor 8, boom cylinder 10, arm cylinder 12, and bucket cylinder 14) of the hydraulic excavator 100. Operation levers 19 consisting of a travel lever 19-1, a swing lever 19-2, a boom lever 19-3, an arm lever 19-4, and a bucket lever 19-5 are connected to the vehicle body controller 18, and the vehicle body controller 18 performs hydraulic control of each hydraulic actuator according to the amount of operation of these operation levers 19.

[0028] Furthermore, the vehicle body controller 18 outputs information on the operation amount of each operation lever 19 and information on the load factor of the engine 1 to the vehicle body network 20. The information output from the vehicle body controller 18 to the vehicle body network 20 is stored in the recording device 204 as part of the vehicle body information of the hydraulic excavator 100.

[0029] Next, the operation management of construction machines by the operation management device 300 of this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0030] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the operation management of construction machinery using an operation management device 300. Fig. 3 shows an example in which construction machines 100a, 100b, and 100c, such as hydraulic excavators, are operating at a construction site 21, and the operation management of these construction machines 100a to 100c is performed by the operation management device 300. Note that Fig. 3 shows the construction machines 100a to 100c to be operated and managed by the operation management device 300 as hydraulic excavators 100a and 100c and a dump truck 100b, but the number and types of construction machines to be operated and managed by the operation management device 300 are not limited to this.

[0031] The construction machines 100a to 100c are each equipped with the work recording device 200 shown in Fig. 2, and periodically transmit their own vehicle information stored in the recording device 204 to the operation management device 300 via the communication terminal 205. The operation management device 300 separately stores the vehicle information transmitted from the construction machines 100a to 100c, and performs operation management of the construction machines 100a to 100c by determining the work content being performed by each of the construction machines 100a to 100c based on this vehicle information.

[0032] The operation management device 300 is connected to the terminal 22 via the Internet. An administrator who uses the operation management device 300 to manage the operation of the construction machines 100a to 100c can connect to the operation management device 300 using a web browser or the like on the terminal 22, thereby displaying the operating status of the construction machines 100a to 100c on the screen of the terminal 22 and obtaining necessary information.

[0033] 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an operation management device 300 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The operation management device 300 of this embodiment is a computer including a control unit 310, a storage unit 320, a memory 361, an operation input device 362, a display device 363, and a network device 364, and is configured by connecting these devices to each other via a bus 365.

[0034] The control unit 310 is configured using, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and performs various processes and calculations to operate the operation management device 300. The control unit 310 executes programs stored in the storage unit 320 to realize the functional blocks of a vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, a work registration unit 312, a work determination unit 313, and a notification unit 314. Details of these functional blocks will be described later.

[0035] The storage unit 320 is configured using, for example, a magnetic storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a large-capacity non-volatile storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores programs executed by the control unit 310 and various information used in the processing of the control unit 310. The information stored in the storage unit 320 includes operation management information 330 that combines vehicle body information 340 acquired from each construction machine and work determination information 350 that shows the determination results of the work content of each construction machine. This operation management information 330 is stored for each construction machine that is subject to operation management.

[0036] Figure 4 shows an example in which operation management information 330a, 330b, 330c for each of the construction machines 100a to 100c shown in Figure 3 is stored in the storage unit 320. The operation management information 330a for the construction machine 100a includes vehicle body information 340a and work determination information 350a for the construction machine 100a. The vehicle body information 340a includes operation information 341a that represents the details of the operator's operation of the construction machine 100a, i.e., information on the amount of operation of each control lever 19, operation information 342a that represents the operating state (load factor) of the engine 1 mounted on the construction machine 100a, and position information 343a for the construction machine 100a. Similarly, the operation management information 330b of the construction machine 100b includes vehicle body information 340b and work determination information 350b of the construction machine 100b, and the operation management information 330c of the construction machine 100c includes vehicle body information 340c and work determination information 350c of the construction machine 100c. Note that the operation information 341b, 341c, driving information 342b, 342c, and position information 343b, 343c of the construction machines 100b, 100c, which are respectively included in the vehicle body information 340b, 340c, are not shown in Fig. 4. Hereinafter, the operation information 341a to 341c, driving information 342a to 342c, and position information 343a to 343c included in the operation management information 330a to 330c of the construction machines 100a to 100c, respectively, will be collectively referred to as operation information 341, driving information 342, and position information 343, respectively.

[0037] Furthermore, if another construction machine is included in the operation management target in addition to the construction machines 100a to 100c, the operation management information 330 of that construction machine will also be stored in the storage unit 320 with information similar to the operation management information 330a to 330c in Fig. 4. In other words, regardless of the type or number of construction machines under operation management, the vehicle body information 340 and work judgment information 350 sent from each construction machine will be stored in the storage unit 320 as the operation management information 330 for each construction machine.

[0038] The memory 361 is configured using a high-speed, volatile storage device such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), and is used as a work area when the control unit 310 executes a program.

[0039] The operation input device 362 is a device for detecting operation inputs made by the administrator to the operation management device 300, and is configured using, for example, a keyboard and a mouse. The display device 363 is a device for displaying the processing results of the operation management device 300 on a screen and presenting them to the administrator, and is configured using, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. The network device 364 is a device for communicating with other computers via a network (not shown). By using the network device 364, the operation management device 300 can transmit various data stored in the storage unit 320 to other computers and receive various data transmitted from other computers and store it in the storage unit 320. Note that another computer that can communicate with the operation management device 300, such as the terminal 22 in FIG. 3, may be used as the operation input device 362 or the display device 363.

[0040] 1 may be physically constructed on one computer, or may be distributed across multiple computers. Furthermore, the operation management device 300 may be realized by a cloud computer installed on a cloud, a virtual machine running on a virtual environment, or the like.

[0041] Next, the functional blocks of the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, the work registration unit 312, the work determination unit 313, and the notification unit 314 in the control unit 310 will be described.

[0042] The vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 acquires vehicle body information 340 transmitted from each construction machine under operational management, and stores it in the storage unit 320 .

[0043] The work registration unit 312 registers the work content to be performed by each construction machine under operational management in accordance with instructions from the manager. The work content of each construction machine registered by the work registration unit 312 is stored in the memory unit 320.

[0044] The work determination unit 313 determines whether each construction machine is performing a predetermined work content based on the vehicle body information 340 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 and stored in the memory unit 320. Specifically, it compares the work content being performed by each construction machine with the work content registered for each construction machine by the work registration unit 312, and determines for each construction machine whether these work contents match. Details of work determination by the work determination unit 313 will be described later.

[0045] The notification unit 314 notifies the manager or operator based on the determination result by the work determination unit 313. At this time, the notification unit 314 can notify the manager by using, for example, a screen display on the terminal 22 or the display device 363. In addition, for example, the notification unit 314 can notify the manager by sending an instruction to display a predetermined notification screen to the work recording device 200 mounted on the construction machine to be notified, and in response to this instruction, the monitor control controller 202 in the work recording device 200 of the construction machine displays a notification screen on the monitor 203, thereby notifying the operator.

[0046] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a management screen 30 displayed on the operation management device 300. In the operation management device 300, the management screen 30 shown in Fig. 5 is displayed on the terminal 22 or display device 363 connected via a web browser. Using this management screen 30, the administrator can check the details of work being performed by each construction machine that is subject to operational management, and perform operational management of each construction machine.

[0047] The management screen 30 has an operating machine list window 31, a map window 33, an image display window 36, and a vehicle information window 37. Note that Fig. 5 shows an example of the management screen 30 that is displayed when the construction machines 100a to 100c shown in Fig. 3 are set as the objects of management.

[0048] The operating machine list window 31 displays the names of all the construction machines 100a to 100c operating at the construction site 21, as well as the switches 32 assigned to each of the construction machines 100a to 100c. Each switch 32 can be switched to either enabled (on) or disabled (off) in response to an administrator's operation. In the operation management device 300, construction machines whose switches 32 are switched to enabled are treated as objects of operation management, and the operations management device 300 performs processing by the vehicle information acquisition unit 311, work registration unit 312, work determination unit 313, and notification unit 314 described above, and displays the results in the map window 33. In the example of FIG. 5, the switches 32 are switched to enabled for all of the construction machines 100a to 100c.

[0049] The map window 33 displays a map of the construction site 21, and also displays on the map a vehicle icon 34 indicating the latest position of each construction machine whose switch 32 has been enabled in the operating machine list window 31. In the example of FIG. 5, since the switch 32 has been enabled for all of the construction machines 100a to 100c as described above, vehicle icons 34a, 34b, and 34c corresponding to the construction machines 100a, 100b, and 100c, respectively, are displayed at their respective positions on the map in the map window 33. In addition, an invalid work continuation icon 42 indicating that the construction machine 100c is continuing invalid work is displayed above the vehicle icon 34c.

[0050] The video display window 36 and the vehicle information window 37 respectively display work video and operating status of construction machines selected by the administrator as the display target from among the construction machines designated as the objects of operational management. The administrator can select the construction machine to be displayed in the video display window 36 and the vehicle information window 37 by selecting any vehicle icon 34 on the map window 33. Figure 5 shows an example in which a vehicle icon 34a has been selected on the map window 33. In this case, a work information window 35 in the shape of a balloon, which shows work information related to the work content of the construction machine 100a corresponding to the vehicle icon 34a, is displayed near the vehicle icon 34a on the map window 33. In addition, in the video display window 36, images captured by the camera 201 of the work recording device 200 mounted on the construction machine 100a are displayed as work images of the construction machine 100a, and in the vehicle body information window 37, the time-series changes in the amount of operation of each operating lever 19 and the load factor of the engine 1 based on the vehicle body information 340a transmitted from the construction machine 100a and stored in the memory unit 320 are displayed as graphs representing the operating status of the construction machine 100a.

[0051] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing details of the work information displayed in the work information window 35 of Fig. 5. As described above, when the manager selects any vehicle icon 34 on the map window 33, the work information of the construction machine corresponding to that vehicle icon 34 is displayed in a balloon-shaped work information window 35. This work information window 35 includes, for example, a work content selection button 38, a registration task 40, and a determination result 41.

[0052] The work content selection button 38 is a button for selecting the work content to be registered for the construction machine. When the administrator selects the work content selection button 38, a list 39 of work contents that can be registered, which is preset according to the type of construction machine, is displayed. By selecting any work content from this work content list 39, the administrator can select the work content to be registered as the work content to be performed by the construction machine. The work content selected from the work content list 39 is registered by the work registration unit 312 and stored in the memory unit 320, and is displayed in the work information window 35 as a registered work 40.

[0053] The judgment result 41 displays the judgment result by the work judgment unit 323. If the work content being performed by the construction machine matches the registered work 40, the judgment result 41 indicating that the work is valid is displayed (symbol 41a). On the other hand, if the work content being performed by the construction machine does not match the registered work 40, the judgment result 41 indicating that the work is invalid is displayed (symbol 41b).

[0054] If the work content being performed by a certain construction machine does not match the registered work 40 for a certain period of time, an invalid work continuation icon 42, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, automatically pops up above the body icon 34 of the construction machine to notify the administrator, regardless of whether the work information window 35 for that construction machine is displayed in the map window 33. This enables the administrator to detect the existence of a construction machine performing inefficient work and, if necessary, to take prompt action or provide guidance to the operator. Note that Figure 6 shows an example in which the work information window 35 displays a determination result 41 indicating that the work is valid, and simultaneously displays the invalid work continuation icon 42. However, as described above, if the work content being performed does not match the registered work 40 for a certain period of time, the invalid work continuation icon 42 is displayed to notify the administrator.

[0055] Fig. 7 is a table showing examples of work determination conditions used by the work determination unit 313. The work determination unit 313 determines whether the work content being performed by each construction machine matches the registered work content using, for example, the work determination conditions shown in the table of Fig. 7. The table of Fig. 7 contains the following items: work content 51, engine load range 52, swing operation frequency 53, traveling operation frequency 54, excavation position range 55, and vehicle position condition 56. The work determination unit 313 determines the work content of each construction machine based on a combination of these items.

[0056] The items of the work determination conditions used in the work determination unit 313 are set for each type of construction machine. Figure 7 shows an example of work determination conditions corresponding to the hydraulic excavator 100, and for other construction machines such as dump trucks, work determination conditions with items different from those in Figure 7 are used.

[0057] The work content 51 represents the work content that the hydraulic excavator 100 can perform. The engine load range 52 represents the range of the load factor of the engine 1. The swing operation frequency 53 represents the range of the proportion of swing operations among the operations of the hydraulic excavator 100 performed during work. The traveling operation frequency 54 represents the range of the proportion of traveling operations among the operations of the hydraulic excavator 100 performed during work. The digging position range 55 represents the digging position of the hydraulic excavator 100 during work (height of the bucket 13 from the ground). The vehicle position conditions 56 represent the position conditions of the hydraulic excavator 100 at the construction site 21.

[0058] In determining the work content, the work determination unit 313 selects, for example, a row in the work determination conditions of FIG. 7 in which work content 51 matches the registered work content for the hydraulic excavator 100, which is a construction machine under operational management, and compares the conditions described in each of the items of engine load range 52, swing operation frequency 53, traveling operation frequency 54, digging position range 55, and vehicle position condition 56 of that row with vehicle body information 340 of the hydraulic excavator 100. At this time, the work determination unit 313 compares the load rate of the engine 1 represented by operation information 342 included in the vehicle body information 340 with the engine load range 52, calculates the frequency of swing operation and traveling operation based on the operation information 341, and compares it with the swing operation frequency 53 and the traveling operation frequency 54, respectively. Furthermore, the work determination unit 313 calculates the angle changes of the boom 9, arm 11, and bucket 13 from the operation information 341, calculates the excavation position of the hydraulic excavator 100 from these calculation results, and compares it with the excavation position range 55. Furthermore, the positions of the hydraulic excavator 100 and other construction machines are identified from the position information 343 included in the vehicle body information 340 of the hydraulic excavator 100 and other construction machines, and the positional relationship between these is compared with the vehicle body position condition 56 .

[0059] If all the conditions are met as a result of the above comparison, the work determination unit 313 determines that the work content of the hydraulic excavator 100 matches the registered work content. On the other hand, if at least one of the conditions is not met, the work determination unit 313 determines that the work content of the hydraulic excavator 100 does not match the registered work content. This makes it possible to determine whether the work content currently being performed by the hydraulic excavator 100 is valid. For other construction machines, it is also possible to determine whether the work content currently being performed is valid using the same procedure as for the hydraulic excavator 100.

[0060] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the operation management device 300 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In the operation management device 300 of this embodiment, the processing shown in the flowchart in Fig. 8 is performed at predetermined calculation intervals for each construction machine designated as an operation management target.

[0061] In step S10, it is determined whether or not the vehicle body information 340 has been received from the target construction machine. If the vehicle body information 340 has not been received, the process remains in step S10, and if it has been received, the process proceeds to step S20.

[0062] In step S20, the received vehicle body information 340 is used to update the vehicle body information file stored in the memory unit 320. A vehicle body information file is a file in which the vehicle body information 340 received from each construction machine within a certain period of time is recorded, and is generated at regular time intervals for each construction machine and stored in the memory unit 320. For example, for each construction machine that is subject to operational management, vehicle body information 340 for 10 minutes is recorded per vehicle body information file.

[0063] In step S30, the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 reads and acquires the latest vehicle body information 340 from the vehicle body information file updated in step S20.

[0064] In step S40, the work determination unit 313 calculates each parameter used to determine the work content based on the vehicle body information 340 acquired in step S30. Here, based on the operation information 341, driving information 342, and position information 343 included in the vehicle body information 340, operation parameters related to the operating state of the target construction machine, driving parameters related to the operating state of the power source of the target construction machine, and position parameters related to the position of the target construction machine are calculated. Specifically, for example, if the target construction machine is a hydraulic excavator 100, the frequency of swing operations and traveling operations of the hydraulic excavator 100, the excavation position, and the like are calculated as operation parameters based on the operation amounts of the various control levers 19 represented by the operation information 341. In addition, the load factor of the engine 1 is calculated as an operation parameter based on the driving information 342, and the positional relationship between the hydraulic excavator 100 and other construction machines and work locations within the construction site 21 is calculated as a position parameter based on the position information 343. In addition to these, various parameters according to the type of construction machine and the work content can be calculated as operation parameters, driving parameters and position parameters based on the operation information 341, driving information 342 and position information 343.

[0065] In step S50, the work determination unit 313 selects work determination conditions according to the work content to be performed by the target construction machine. As described above, from the work determination conditions set for each type of construction machine and each work content, a combination of work determination conditions corresponding to the work content previously registered by the work registration unit 312 is selected.

[0066] In step S60, the work determination unit 313 determines whether each of the parameters calculated in step S40 satisfies the work determination condition selected in step S50. Here, it is determined whether each of the operation parameters, driving parameters, and position parameters calculated in step S40 satisfies the work determination condition selected in step S50. Specifically, in the case of the hydraulic excavator 100, for example, a row in the table of FIG. 7 in which the work content 51 matches the registered work content is selected in step S50 as the work determination condition for the hydraulic excavator 100. In step S60, the load range 52, swing operation frequency 53, traveling operation frequency 54, digging position range 55, and vehicle body position condition 56 of this row are targeted, and the operation parameters are compared with the swing operation frequency 53, traveling operation frequency 54, and digging position range 55, the operation parameters with the engine load range 52, and the position parameters with the vehicle body position condition 56, respectively, to determine whether the ranges and conditions indicated for each of these items are satisfied. As a result, if each parameter satisfies all of the corresponding work determination conditions, it is determined that the hydraulic excavator 100 is performing the registered work content, and the process proceeds to step S70; if any of the work determination conditions are not satisfied, it is determined that the registered work content is not being performed, and the process proceeds to step S80.

[0067] In step S70, the fact that the work judgment result by the work judgment unit 313 is "valid" is recorded in the work judgment information 350, and the value of the invalid work judgment counter is reset to 0. The invalid work judgment counter is a counter that measures the duration of the state in which the work judgment result by the work judgment unit 313 is "invalid," i.e., the state in which the work being performed by the construction machine is judged to differ from the registered work content, and is set internally in the control unit 310. In step S70, the value of this invalid work judgment counter is reset to 0, thereby initializing the duration of the work judgment result by the work judgment unit 313 being "invalid." After performing the processing of step S70, proceed to step S110.

[0068] In step S80, the value of the invalid work determination counter is counted up by one.

[0069] In step S90, it is determined whether the value of the invalid work determination counter after counting up is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value N. This threshold value N is used to determine the timing of notification to the manager or operator, and is set in advance according to the time (notification time) from when the work determination unit 313 determines that the work has been performed as "invalid" until the notification unit 314 starts notifying. The manager can set the threshold value N as desired depending on the extent to which invalid work can be tolerated for each construction machine. If the value of the invalid work determination counter is equal to or greater than threshold value N, the process proceeds to step S100; if it is less than threshold value N, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0070] In step S100, the work determination unit 313 determines that the work is being performed by the construction machine and is determined to be different from the registered work, and records the result as "continued invalid work" in the work determination information 350. This indicates that the work being performed by the construction machine has been determined to be different from the registered work for a period of time determined based on the threshold N and continues for a period of time determined based on the threshold N. Furthermore, the notification unit 314 notifies the manager and operator. For example, the manager is notified by displaying an invalid work continuation icon 42 on the vehicle icon 34 corresponding to the construction machine in the map window 33 of the management screen 30 shown in FIG. 5 . The operator is also notified by sending an instruction to the work recording device 200 mounted on the construction machine to display a predetermined notification screen on the monitor 203. It is also possible to notify only one of the manager and the operator, and not the other. After the processing of step S100 is completed, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0071] In step S110, it is determined whether the registered work content has been changed. If a different work content has been registered for the construction machine or the registered work content has been canceled by the administrator's operation, it is determined that the registered work content has been changed and the process proceeds to step S120; if not, the process returns to step S10 and the above-mentioned process is repeated.

[0072] In step S120, the value of the invalid work determination counter is reset to 0. After the process of step S120 is performed, the process returns to step S10, and the above-described process is repeated.

[0073] The operations management device 300 of this embodiment performs the processing described above. As a result, if any construction machine at a construction site is performing an operation other than that designated in advance, the manager can immediately detect this even from a remote location and take appropriate measures or provide guidance. As a result, it is possible to reduce wasted fuel and time, leading to a reduction in the overall cost of the construction work.

[0074] According to the first embodiment of the present invention described above, the following advantageous effects are achieved.

[0075] (1) The operation management device 300 is a device that manages the operation of construction machinery, and includes a vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 that acquires vehicle body information 340 related to the operating status of the construction machinery, a work determination unit 313 that determines whether the construction machinery is performing predetermined work content based on the vehicle body information 340 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, and a notification unit 314 that notifies the manager or operator of the construction machinery based on the determination result by the work determination unit 313. This makes it possible to realize management of construction machinery that takes into account the effectiveness of work in relation to actual work progress.

[0076] (2) The vehicle information 340 includes operation information 341 of the operator with respect to the construction machine, operation information 342 of the engine that is the power source mounted on the construction machine, and position information 343 of the construction machine. The work determination unit 313 calculates operation parameters related to the operation state of the construction machine, operation parameters related to the operation state of the power source, and position parameters related to the position of the construction machine based on the operation information 341, operation information 342, and position information 343 (step S40), and determines whether the construction machine is performing a predetermined work content using the calculated operation parameters, operation parameters, and position parameters (step S60). Specifically, in step S60, the work determination unit 313 determines whether the operation parameters, operation parameters, and position parameters satisfy work determination conditions that are respectively set according to the work content to be determined. As a result, if all of the operation parameters, operation parameters, and position parameters satisfy the work determination conditions (step S60: Yes), it is determined that the construction machine is performing the work content. By doing so, it is possible to accurately determine whether or not the construction machine is performing the specified work content based on the operating state of the construction machine.

[0077] (3) The operation management device 300 is equipped with a work registration unit 312 that registers one of multiple types of work content that can be performed by a construction machine as work content to be performed by the construction machine. The work determination unit 313 makes the determination in step S60 using the work determination conditions of the work content registered by the work registration unit 312, from among the work determination conditions previously set for each work content. In this way, it is possible to pre-register the work content to be performed by the construction machine, taking into account the effectiveness of the work with respect to actual work progress, and to reliably determine whether the construction machine is performing that work content.

[0078] (4) If the state in which the work determination unit 313 has determined that the construction machine is not performing the specified work content continues for a specified notification time or longer (step S90: Yes), the notification unit 314 notifies the manager or operator of the construction machine (step S100). As a result, if there is construction machine performing work that does not contribute to the actual progress of work, the manager or operator can be notified so that appropriate measures or instructions can be taken, thereby making it possible to improve the effectiveness of work.

[0079] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, an example will be described in which the operation of a construction machine that is subject to operational management is restricted when the work content being performed by the construction machine does not match the registered work content for a certain period of time or more. Note that the construction machine that is subject to operational management in this embodiment is, for example, the hydraulic excavator 100 shown in FIG. 1, as in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the configuration of the work recording device 200 mounted on each construction machine and the operational management form of each construction machine are the same as those described in FIGS. 2 and 3 in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will omit these and focus on the differences from the first embodiment.

[0080] 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an operation management device 300A according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Similar to the operation management device 300 described in the first embodiment, the operation management device 300A of this embodiment is a computer including a control unit 310, a storage unit 320, a memory 361, an operation input device 362, a display device 363, and a network device 364, and these devices are interconnected via a bus 365. The difference from the first embodiment is that the control unit 310 further includes functional blocks of an operation restriction unit 315 and an operation restriction release unit 316 in addition to the aforementioned vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, work registration unit 312, work determination unit 313, and notification unit 314. The control unit 310 can realize these functional blocks by executing a program stored in the storage unit 320.

[0081] The operation restriction unit 315 restricts the operation of the construction machine based on the judgment result by the work judgment unit 313. Specifically, if the work judgment unit 313 judges that any of the construction machines is not performing the specified work content and this state continues for a specified operation time or longer, the operation restriction unit 315 issues an instruction to stop or restrict the operation of the construction machine. The construction machine that receives this instruction from the operation management device 300A restricts the operation of each hydraulic actuator according to the instruction content. For example, when restricting the operation of the hydraulic excavator 100, swinging and excavation operations outside of specified positions are prohibited, and the range of these operations is restricted. In addition to this, any operation restriction can be imposed depending on the type of construction machine and the work to be performed.

[0082] When the operation of a construction machine is restricted by the operation restriction unit 315, the operation restriction release unit 316 releases the operation restriction, provided that permission is received from an administrator. For example, an operator of a construction machine that has been restricted in operation performs a specified operation on the construction machine, causing the construction machine to send a request to release the operation restriction to the operation management device 300A. When an administrator in the operation management device 300A that received this release request performs a specified operation and permits the release of the operation restriction, the operation restriction release unit 316 issues an instruction to the construction machine to release the operation restriction. The construction machine that received this instruction from the operation management device 300A releases the operation restriction and resumes normal operation.

[0083] Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of an operation management device 300A according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the operation management device 300A of this embodiment, the processing shown in the flowchart of Fig. 10 is performed at predetermined calculation intervals for each construction machine designated as an operation management target. In the flowchart of Fig. 10, steps that perform the same processing as those in the flowchart of Fig. 8 described in the first embodiment are assigned common step numbers. Below, the processing shown in the flowchart of Fig. 10 will be explained, omitting the parts that are assigned common step numbers with Fig. 8.

[0084] In the flowchart of FIG. 10, when it is determined in step S90 that the value of the invalid operation determination counter is equal to or greater than the threshold value N, the process of step S100A is performed. In step S100A, similar to step S100 in FIG. 8, it is recorded in the operation determination information 350 that the operation determination result is "continue invalid operation", and a notification is sent to the administrator or operator by the notification unit 314. Further, an operation restriction instruction for the construction machine is transmitted by the operation restriction unit 315. In the construction machine that has received this operation restriction instruction, as described above, the operation of each hydraulic actuator is restricted according to the instruction content.

[0085] In the flowchart of FIG. 10, when the value of the invalid operation determination counter is equal to or greater than the threshold value N, both the notification to the administrator or operator by the notification unit 314 and the operation restriction of the construction machine by the operation restriction unit 315 are performed. However, these timings may be separated. For example, when the value of the invalid operation determination counter becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value N1, the notification by the notification unit 314 is performed, while when the value of the invalid operation determination counter becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value N2 (N1≠N2), the operation restriction of the construction machine by the operation restriction unit 315 can be performed. However, since the operator may be confused if the operation of the construction machine is suddenly restricted, it is preferable to set N1 < N2 so that a notification is sent to the operator before the start of the operation restriction.

[0086] After performing the process of step S70 or S100A, or when it is determined in step S90 that the value of the invalid operation determination counter is less than the threshold value N, the process of step S101 is performed. In step S101, it is determined whether a request for解除 of the operation restriction has been received from the construction machine for which the operation restriction instruction has been transmitted in step S100A in the current or previous process before this. If a request for解除 of the operation restriction is received, the process proceeds to step S102, and if not, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0087] In step S102, it is determined whether or not the administrator has input permission for the request to release the operational restrictions received in step S101. For example, if the administrator is notified of the request to release the operational restrictions and the administrator performs a predetermined operation in response to this notification, it is determined that the administrator has input permission, and the process proceeds to step S103. On the other hand, if the administrator has not performed a predetermined operation despite being notified of the request to release the operational restrictions, it is determined that the administrator has not input permission, and the process proceeds to step S110.

[0088] In step S103, the operation restriction release unit 316 sends an instruction to release the operation restrictions to the construction machine that sent the operation restriction release request received in step S101. The construction machine that receives this release instruction releases the operation restrictions as described above and resumes normal operation. After performing the processing of step S103, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0089] In steps S110 and S120, the same processes as those in the first embodiment are performed.

[0090] According to the second embodiment of the present invention described above, the operation management device 300A includes the operation restriction unit 315. If the state in which the work determination unit 313 has determined that the construction machine is not performing the work content continues for a predetermined operation time limit or longer (step S90: Yes), the operation restriction unit 315 restricts the operation of the construction machine (step S100A). As a result, if there is a construction machine performing work that does not contribute to the actual progress of the work, the work can be forcibly interrupted, thereby improving the effectiveness of the work.

[0091] The operation management device 300A also includes an operation restriction release unit 316. When the operation of a construction machine is restricted by the operation restriction unit 315, the operation restriction release unit 316 releases the operation restriction on the construction machine (step S103). As a result, even if a construction machine performing important work is forcibly suspended because the work is erroneously determined to be work that does not contribute to actual work progress, the work can be quickly resumed.

[0092] (Third embodiment) Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, an example will be described in which operation management is performed individually for each construction machine using an operation management system installed in each construction machine.

[0093] Fig. 11 is a configuration diagram of an operation management system 500B according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the work recording device 200 has the same configuration as that shown in Fig. 2 described in the first embodiment. As in the first embodiment, this work recording device 200 is mounted on a construction machine such as the hydraulic excavator 100 shown in Fig. 1.

[0094] In this embodiment, an operation management device 300B is connected to the vehicle body network 20. The operation management device 300B has a configuration similar to the operation management device 300 described in the first embodiment or the operation management device 300A described in the second embodiment, and is mounted on the same construction machine as the work recording device 200. The operation management device 300B performs the same processing as the operation management devices 300, 300A on the construction machine on which it is mounted, and has the function of transmitting the obtained operation management information 330 to a server (not shown). The server can display, for example, the management screen 30 in FIG. 5 based on the vehicle body information 340 and work judgment information 350 included in the operation management information 330 received from the operation management device 300B of each construction machine, and present the operation status of each construction machine to the manager.

[0095] In this embodiment, when the work determination unit 313 determines the work content, if information on the operating status of other construction machines is required, the work determination unit 313 may collect the vehicle information 340 of those construction machines directly from the other construction machines or via a server. In this way, even when each construction machine is operated and managed individually, the work determination unit 313 can accurately determine the work content. Furthermore, the work registration unit 312 may register the work content in response to instructions from the operator of the construction machine, or may receive instructions from the manager from the server and perform the registration based on these.

[0096] According to the third embodiment of the present invention described above, the same effects as those of the first and second embodiments are achieved.

[0097] Although each embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various design modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention as defined in the claims. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is possible to replace part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, or to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of each embodiment with other configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0098] 1...engine, 2...main pump, 3...lower traveling body, 4...upper rotating body, 5...front device, 6...crawler, 7...travel hydraulic motor, 8...swing hydraulic motor, 9...boom, 10...boom cylinder, 11...arm, 12...arm cylinder, 13...bucket, 14...bucket cylinder, 15...boom rotation axis, 16...arm rotation axis, 17...bucket rotation axis, 18...machine control controller, 19...operation lever, 20...machine network, 100...hydraulic excavator (construction machinery), 200...work recording device, 201...camera, 202...monitor control controller, 203...monitor , 204...recording device, 205...communication terminal, 206...position detection unit, 300, 300A, 300B...operation management device, 310...control unit, 311...vehicle body information acquisition unit, 312...work registration unit, 313...work determination unit, 314...notification unit, 315...operation restriction unit, 316...operation restriction release unit, 320...storage unit, 330...operation management information, 340...vehicle body information, 341...operation information, 342...driving information, 343...position information, 350...work determination information, 361...memory, 362...operation input device, 363...display device, 364...network device, 365...bus, 500, 500B...operation management system

Claims

1. A device for managing the operation of construction machinery, a vehicle body information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle body information relating to the operating status of the construction machine; a work determination unit that determines whether the construction machine is performing a predetermined work content based on the vehicle body information acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit; a notification unit that notifies a manager or operator of the construction machine based on the determination result by the work determination unit. An operation management device characterized by:

2. 2. The operation management device according to claim 1, the vehicle body information includes operation information of the operator with respect to the construction machine, operation information of a power source mounted on the construction machine, and position information of the construction machine; The work determination unit calculates operation parameters relating to the operation state of the construction machine, operation parameters relating to the operation state of the power source, and position parameters relating to the position of the construction machine based on the operation information, the driving information, and the position information, and makes the determination using the calculated operation parameters, driving parameters, and position parameters. An operation management device characterized by:

3. 3. The operation management device according to claim 2, The work determination unit determines whether the operation parameters, the driving parameters, and the position parameters satisfy work determination conditions respectively set according to the work content, and determines that the construction machine is performing the work content when all of the operation parameters, the driving parameters, and the position parameters satisfy the work determination conditions. An operation management device characterized by:

4. 4. The operation management device according to claim 3, a work registration unit that registers one of a plurality of types of work content that can be performed by the construction machine as work content to be performed by the construction machine; The work determination unit performs the determination using work determination conditions of the work content registered by the work registration unit, among work determination conditions previously set for each of the work contents. An operation management device characterized by:

5. 5. The operation management device according to claim 3, The notification unit issues the notification when the state in which the work determination unit determines that the construction machine is not performing the work content continues for a predetermined notification time or more. An operation management device characterized by:

6. 6. The operation management device according to claim 5, and an operation limiting unit that limits the operation of the construction machine when the state in which the work determining unit determines that the construction machine is not performing the work content continues for a predetermined operation limit time or longer. An operation management device characterized by:

7. 7. The operation management device according to claim 6, and an operation restriction release unit that releases the operation restriction on the construction machine when the operation of the construction machine is restricted by the operation restriction unit. An operation management device characterized by:

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