Construction machine

Abstract

To provide a construction machine capable of suppressing an increase in the proportion of space occupied by sensors in a space on the construction machine and capable of improving maintainability of installed sensors.SOLUTION: In a construction machine comprising a machine body, a position measurement device that measures its position in a predetermined coordinate system in response to positioning signals received by a satellite positioning antenna from a positioning satellite, and an antenna support member arranged on the machine body to support the satellite positioning antenna, the antenna support member is fitted with at least one of a shape measurement device that measures the shape of objects around the machine body, an imaging device that captures images of the machine body's surroundings, and an information notification device that issues notifications to those around the machine body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a construction machine. [Background technology]

[0002] Methods for measuring the position of construction machinery include satellite positioning systems such as RTK-GNSS (Real Time Kinematic - Global Navigation Satellite System). In satellite positioning systems, errors in position measurement can occur due to the positioning signal to be received by the satellite positioning antenna being blocked by structures at the construction site or the front working equipment of the construction machinery, such as an excavator, or due to the occurrence of multipath interference. Furthermore, the satellite positioning antenna can be affected by the surrounding magnetic field caused by components such as the front working equipment, which are made of iron. To eliminate these effects, a known method is to install the satellite positioning antenna at a high position, such as by erecting a pole on the upper rotating body. Another known method is to place a pair of satellite positioning antennas spaced apart on the outer left and right ends of the vehicle body to accurately measure the orientation of the construction machinery.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an antenna attachment / detachment device for a work machine, which includes: a first bracket provided on the machine body; a shaft rotatably supported by the first bracket and extending horizontally; a pole whose lower end is fixed to the shaft, extending upward, and whose tip is formed so that a GPS antenna can be attached; a second bracket provided inside the machine body close to one end of the shaft and at a position inside and below the shaft in the horizontal direction perpendicular to the direction of extension of the shaft; a bar whose lower end is engaged with the second bracket by a pin and extending upward; and a link member whose one end is rotatably supported on the upper end of the bar and whose other end is fixed to one end of the shaft, connecting the upper end of the bar and one end of the shaft.

[0004] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 discloses a hydraulic excavator that includes a lower running body, an upper rotating body that is rotatably mounted on the lower running body, a counterweight that is placed on the upper rotating body, a machine room that is placed on the upper rotating body in front of the counterweight, a first handrail and a second handrail that are placed on the machine room, and a pair of antenna support parts that are connected to the first handrail and the second handrail, respectively, and that support a pair of antennas. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2008-102097 [Patent Document 2] International Publication No. 2014 / 076764 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Meanwhile, in order to balance productivity and safety at construction sites, development is underway on systems that use sensors to detect obstacles around construction machinery and notify operators and nearby workers of the location of obstacles and any dangers, as well as topographical measurement systems that measure surrounding objects and terrain.

[0007] On the other hand, as the number and types of sensors installed on construction machinery increase, there are problems such as a decrease in the ease of maintenance of the installed sensors, and an increase in the proportion of space on the construction machinery taken up by sensors, which affects the installation and handling of other equipment.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a construction machine that can prevent an increase in the proportion of space on the construction machine that is occupied by sensors, and that can improve the maintainability of the installed sensors. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present application includes multiple means for solving the above-mentioned problems, and one example is a construction machine having a machine body, a position measurement device that measures a position in a predetermined coordinate system according to a positioning signal from a positioning satellite received by a satellite positioning antenna, and an antenna support member arranged on the machine body to support the satellite positioning antenna, wherein the antenna support member is attached with at least one of a shape measurement device that measures the shape of objects around the machine body, an imaging device that acquires images of the area around the machine body, and an information notification device that issues notifications to the area around the machine body. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent an increase in the proportion of the space on a construction machine that is occupied by sensors, and to improve the ease of maintenance of the installed sensors. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view showing the overall configuration of a hydraulic excavator, which is an example of a construction machine. [Figure 2] 1 is a top view showing the overall configuration of a hydraulic excavator, which is an example of a construction machine. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing the satellite positioning antenna together with the surrounding configuration. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a control device together with related configurations. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a hydraulic excavator will be described as an example of a construction machine, but the present invention can also be applied to other construction machines equipped with a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System).

[0013] In addition, in the following description, when there are multiple identical components, an alphabet may be added to the end of the symbol (number), but the alphabet may be omitted and the multiple components may be collectively referred to, for example, satellite positioning antennas 38a and 38b may be referred to as satellite positioning antenna 38.

[0014] 1 and 2 are diagrams showing the overall configuration of a hydraulic excavator, which is an example of a construction machine according to this embodiment, with FIG. 1 being a side view and FIG. 2 being a top view.

[0015] 1 and 2, a hydraulic excavator 1, which is a construction machine, includes a lower traveling body 20, a traveling sprocket 23 rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body 20, a crawler 42 linked to the traveling sprocket, an upper rotating body 21 rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body 20, a boom 25 rotatably mounted on the upper rotating body 21, an arm 26 rotatably mounted at the tip of the boom, a bucket 27 rotatably mounted at the tip of the arm, a boom cylinder 28 that drives the boom 25, and an arm cylinder 29 that drives the arm 26. , a bucket cylinder 30 that drives the bucket 27, a front working implement 22 that is composed of the boom 25, the arm 26, the bucket 27, the boom cylinder 28, the arm cylinder 29, and the bucket cylinder 30, a traveling motor 24 that drives the traveling sprocket 23, a swing motor 31 that rotates the upper rotating structure 21, and a control device 32 that controls the overall operation of the hydraulic excavator 1, including the drive devices, the boom cylinder 28, the arm cylinder 29, the bucket cylinder 30, the traveling motor 24, and the swing motor 31. Here, the lower traveling structure 20 and the upper rotating structure 21 constitute the machine body of the hydraulic excavator 1, which is a construction machine.

[0016] A boom angle sensor 33, an arm angle sensor 34, and a bucket angle sensor 35, which are attitude measurement devices, are attached to the rotation axes of the boom 25, arm 26, and bucket 27 that make up the front work implement 22, respectively, and the rotation angle of the boom 25 relative to the upper rotating body 21, the rotation angle of the arm 26 relative to the boom 25, and the rotation angle of the bucket 27 relative to the arm 26 can be obtained.

[0017] In addition, a gyroscope 36 and an acceleration sensor 37 are attached to the upper rotating body 21 as attitude measurement devices, and the gyroscope 36 can obtain the angular velocity of the upper rotating body 21 in the roll, pitch, and yaw directions, and the acceleration sensor can obtain the forward / backward tilt angle and left / right tilt angle of the upper rotating body 21.

[0018] A pair of satellite positioning antennas 38a and 38b constituting the position measurement device are disposed on the upper part of the upper revolving body 21 constituting the machine body, and are supported by antenna support members 10a and 10b, respectively.

[0019] The antenna support members 10a, 10b have a rod shape with their longitudinal direction oriented in the vertical direction and are erected at a distance from each other on the left and right ends of the upper part of the upper rotating body 21, with satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b attached to their upper ends. The antenna support members 10a, 10b are detachably attached to the upper rotating body 21 together with the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b. The control device 32 has a functional unit (a position calculation unit 61b, described below) that calculates the positions of the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b in the Earth coordinate system (a coordinate system fixed to the Earth) used in GNSS surveying based on positioning signals transmitted from positioning satellites and received by the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b, and the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b and the control device 32 function as a position measurement device.

[0020] The installation positions of the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b relative to the hydraulic excavator 1 are predetermined and clear based on the design information, so the position of the hydraulic excavator 1 (more precisely, the upper rotating body 21) can be identified by determining the positions of the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b in the Earth coordinate system. Furthermore, the orientation and inclination of the hydraulic excavator 1 (more precisely, the upper rotating body 21) can be identified by determining the relative positions of the pair of satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b.

[0021] 3 is an enlarged view showing the satellite positioning antenna together with the surrounding configuration, and only one of the pair of satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b is shown as a representative.

[0022] 3, the satellite positioning antenna 38 is supported by a bracket attached to the upper end of the antenna support member 10. In addition, at least one of a shape measuring device 39, an imaging device 40, and a surrounding warning device 45 is attached to the antenna support member 10 as an information handling device that acquires information about the surroundings of the hydraulic excavator 1 and / or issues a report of that information to the surroundings of the hydraulic excavator 1.

[0023] <Shape measurement device 39> As the shape measurement device 39, for example, a 3D LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) is attached to the antenna support member 10. Measurements by the shape measurement device 39 (3D LiDAR) can measure the shapes of objects such as the terrain, buildings, vehicles, and workers around the hydraulic excavator 1 in a machine coordinate system (a coordinate system fixed to the hydraulic excavator 1, which is a construction machine). The shape measurement device 39, such as the 3D LiDAR attached to the hydraulic excavator 1, is preferably installed at the outer end of the hydraulic excavator 1 and in a high position that is less susceptible to the influence of dust and the like, in order to prevent the body of the excavator from being captured in the measurement range. The shape measurement device 39 can be attached and detached integrally with the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b because the antenna support members 10a, 10b are detachably attached integrally to the upper rotating body 21.

[0024] <Imaging device 40> As the imaging device 40, for example, a camera is attached to the antenna support member 10. Images of the surroundings of the hydraulic excavator 1 can be acquired by capturing images with the imaging device 40 (camera). The imaging device 40, such as a camera attached to the hydraulic excavator 1, is desirably installed at the outer end of the hydraulic excavator 1 to prevent the vehicle body from being captured in the camera's angle of view, and is desirably installed in a high position to minimize blind spots in the vicinity while ensuring a clear field of view. The imaging device 40 is detachable integrally with the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b because the antenna support members 10a, 10b are detachably attached integrally to the upper rotating body 21.

[0025] <Periphery Warning Device 45> As the surrounding warning device 45, for example, a stacked signal light is attached to the antenna support member 10. The warning from the surrounding warning device 45 can notify workers around the hydraulic excavator 1 of the operating status of the hydraulic excavator 1 and that approaching is dangerous. The surrounding warning device 45, such as a stacked signal light, attached to the hydraulic excavator 1 is preferably installed at the outer end of the hydraulic excavator 1 and in a high position so that the workers can easily notice the issuance of information when notifying and calling the attention of workers of the location of an object or danger in accordance with the result of object detection around the hydraulic excavator 1. The surrounding warning device 45 can be attached and detached integrally with the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b because the antenna support members 10a, 10b are provided detachably and integrally with the upper rotating body 21.

[0026] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, a satellite positioning antenna 38 is installed at the upper end of the antenna support member 10, and three devices are installed below it, in order from top to bottom: a surrounding warning device 45, a shape measurement device 39, and an imaging device 40.

[0027] In this way, by attaching the shape measurement device 39, the imaging device 40, the surrounding warning device 45, etc., which are preferably installed at the outer end and in a high position of the hydraulic excavator 1, to the antenna support member 10 together with the satellite positioning antenna 38, it is possible to easily secure installation space while satisfying the conditions of the installation location (space saving).

[0028] Furthermore, by installing the surrounding warning device 45, the imaging device 40, and the shape measuring device 39 on the antenna support member 10 in this order from top to bottom, an effect (eaves effect) can be obtained in which sunlight and other light incident on the imaging device 40 is blocked by the surrounding warning device 45, or an eaves effect can be obtained in which sunlight and other light incident on the shape measuring device 39 is blocked by the surrounding warning device 45, the imaging device 40, etc.

[0029] Furthermore, by installing the surrounding warning device 45 and the imaging device 40 on the antenna support member 10 in this order from above, the light emitted from the surrounding warning device 45 can provide an effect of illuminating the imaging range of the imaging device 40 (illumination effect).

[0030] Furthermore, because the satellite positioning antenna 38, shape measuring device 39, imaging device 40, surrounding warning device 45, etc. are very expensive, they are often removed from the hydraulic excavator 1 and stored separately when work is completed and the work site is left unmanned. However, by attaching the shape measuring device 39, imaging device 40, and surrounding warning device 45 to the antenna support member 10 together with the satellite positioning antenna 38, the shape measuring device 39, imaging device 40, and surrounding warning device 45 can be handled as a unit, and removal and installation work from and installation to the hydraulic excavator 1 can be performed more efficiently (improved maintainability).

[0031] FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing the control device together with the related configuration.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 4, the control device 32 includes an input / output unit 60, a processing unit 61, and a storage unit 62.

[0033] The input / output unit 60 is an interface for connecting the control device 32 to the outside. The control device 32 is connected to a boom angle sensor 33, an arm angle sensor 34, a bucket angle sensor 35, a gyroscope 36, an acceleration sensor 37, a shape measurement device 39 (3D LiDAR), an imaging device 40 (camera), a satellite positioning antenna 38, a surrounding warning device 45 (stacked signal light), and an information providing device 4 via the input / output unit 60. The information providing device 4 is, for example, a display input device such as a tablet that is installed around the driver's seat and provides information to the operator and allows the operator to input information.

[0034] The processing unit 61 realizes its functions by a combination of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and programs executed on these. The processing unit 61 is composed of an attitude calculation unit 61a, a position calculation unit 61b, an obstacle detection unit 61c, a notification determination unit 61g, and an information generation unit 61h. The source code of the software used in the processing of the processing unit 61 is stored in the storage unit 62.

[0035] The attitude calculation unit 61a calculates the attitudes of the front work implement 22, undercarriage 20, and upper rotating structure 21 based on outputs from the boom angle sensor 33, arm angle sensor 34, bucket angle sensor 35, gyroscope 36, acceleration sensor 37, and satellite positioning antenna 38 acquired via the input / output unit 60. The attitude of the front work implement 22 can be calculated from the outputs of the boom angle sensor 33, arm angle sensor 34, and bucket angle sensor 35. The pitch angle, which is the attitude of the upper rotating structure 21 in the fore-and-aft direction, and the roll angle, which is the attitude of the upper rotating structure 21 in the left-and-right direction, can be calculated from the output of the acceleration sensor 37. The azimuth angle of the upper rotating structure can be calculated from the output of the satellite positioning antenna 38. The swing angle, which is the relative angle between the upper rotating structure 21 and the lower rotating structure 20, can be calculated by integrating the angular velocity around the swing axis measured by the gyroscope 36. Here, the attitude of each member is based on a planar rectangular coordinate system on the Earth (Earth coordinate system). Furthermore, if necessary, localization processing, i.e., coordinate conversion from a planar rectangular coordinate system to a site coordinate system at the construction site, may be performed, and the coordinate values ​​may be calculated as coordinate values ​​in the site coordinate system.

[0036] The position calculation unit 61b calculates the coordinate values ​​(position) of the upper rotating body 21 in a planar rectangular coordinate system (earth coordinate system) on the earth based on the attitude of the upper rotating body 21 calculated by the attitude calculation unit 61a, the signal from the satellite positioning antenna 38 acquired via the input / output unit 60, and design information including installation information for the satellite positioning antenna 38. The position of the front working implement 22 can be calculated using the position and attitude of the hydraulic excavator 1 and the design information. The position of the imaging device 40 (camera) and shape measuring device 39 (3D LiDAR) installed on the antenna support member 10 on the upper rotating body 21 can be determined using the position of the satellite positioning antenna 38.

[0037] In other words, when multiple measuring devices such as an imaging device 40 (camera) and a shape measuring device 39 (3D LiDAR) are attached to the hydraulic excavator 1 at positions other than the antenna support member 10, the position of each device must be calculated based on design information including installation information for the satellite positioning antenna 38. However, in this embodiment, the shape measuring device 39, imaging device 40, and surrounding warning device 45 are configured to be installed on the antenna support member 10 that supports the satellite positioning antenna 38, so the positioning results of the satellite positioning antenna 38 can be used as their positions (at least the horizontal position), thereby reducing the amount of calculations.

[0038] The obstacle detection unit 61c detects an obstacle based on the output results of the shape measurement device 39 (3D LiDAR) or the imaging device 40 (camera), or both, acquired via the input / output unit 60. Furthermore, the obstacle detection unit 61c determines the position of the obstacle based on the position of the shape measurement device 39 (3D LiDAR) acquired by the position calculation unit 61b and the distance from the shape measurement device 39 (3D LiDAR) (for example, coordinate values ​​(X, Y, Z)).

[0039] When an obstacle is detected by the obstacle detection unit 61c, the notification determination unit 61g determines whether or not to issue a warning notification to the operator of the hydraulic excavator 1 and surrounding workers. For example, the notification determination unit 61g determines to issue a warning notification when the calculation result of the shortest distance between the obstacle and the hydraulic excavator 1 is 5 m or less, and determines not to issue a warning notification when the calculation result is greater than 5 m.

[0040] When the notification determination unit 61g determines that a warning notification should be issued, the information generation unit 61h generates warning information to be notified to the operator of the hydraulic excavator 1 or surrounding workers, and outputs the warning information to the information providing device 4 or the surrounding warning device 45, which notifies the warning information.

[0041] Of the warning information generated and output by the information generation unit 61h, the warning information generated and output to an information providing device 4 such as a tablet is, for example, a display or sound that notifies the operator that an obstacle, worker, etc. is approaching around the hydraulic excavator 1.

[0042] Furthermore, among the warning information generated and output by the information generating unit 61h, the warning information generated and output to the surrounding warning device 45 such as a stacked signal light follows a predetermined and well-known lighting format so that workers around the hydraulic excavator 1 can recognize that the operating state of the hydraulic excavator 1 is an operating state in which work in the vicinity is not recommended.

[0043] When issuing a warning notification from a plurality of surrounding warning devices 45 (here, two surrounding warning devices 45a and 45b), the surrounding warning device 45 closest to the object may be selected from the positions of the surrounding warning devices 45 acquired by the position calculation unit 61b and the position of the object (obstacle or worker) acquired by the obstacle detection unit 61c, and warning information may be output only to the selected surrounding warning device 45. In this way, by selecting one surrounding warning device 45 from the plurality of surrounding warning devices 45 to issue a warning notification based on the positional relationship between the hydraulic excavator 1 and the detected object, the worker who is the target of the warning notification can recognize that he or she is the target of the warning notification, and work safety can be improved.

[0044] The effects of the present embodiment configured as above will be described.

[0045] In order to achieve both productivity and safety at construction sites, progress is being made in the development of systems that use sensors to detect obstacles around construction machinery and notify operators and nearby workers of the location of obstacles and dangers, as well as topographical measurement systems that measure surrounding objects and terrain.However, as the number and types of sensors mounted on construction machinery increase, problems arise, such as a decrease in the ease of maintenance of the installed sensors and an increase in the proportion of space on construction machinery that is taken up by sensors, which affects the installation and handling of other equipment.

[0046] In response to these issues, in this embodiment, a construction machine (e.g., a hydraulic excavator 1) is provided with a machine body (e.g., a lower traveling body 20 and an upper rotating body 21), a position measurement device (e.g., a control device 32) that measures the position in a predetermined coordinate system in accordance with positioning signals received by satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b from positioning satellites, and an antenna support member 10 that is arranged on the machine body to support the satellite positioning antennas 38a, 38b. The construction machine is also provided with an information handling device (e.g., a shape measurement device 39, an imaging device 40, a surrounding warning device 45) that is attached to the antenna support member 10 and that performs at least one of acquiring information about the surroundings of the construction machine and transmitting information to the surroundings of the construction machine. This makes it possible to prevent an increase in the proportion of space on the construction machine that is taken up by sensors, and improves the maintainability of the installed sensors.

[0047] <Additional Notes> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes various modifications and combinations within the scope of the gist thereof. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to those including all of the configurations described in the above-described embodiments, and includes those in which some of the configurations are omitted. Furthermore, the above-described configurations, functions, etc. may be realized in part or in whole by designing them as, for example, integrated circuits. Furthermore, the above-described configurations, functions, etc. may be realized in software by a processor interpreting and executing a program that realizes each function. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 1...hydraulic excavator, 4...information providing device, 10a...antenna support member, 10b...antenna support member, 20...lower traveling body, 21...upper rotating body, 22...front working implement, 23...traveling sprocket, 24...traveling motor, 25...boom, 26...arm, 27...bucket, 28...boom cylinder, 29...arm cylinder, 30...bucket cylinder, 31...swing motor, 32...control device, 33...boom angle sensor, 34...arm Angle sensor, 35... bucket angle sensor, 36... gyroscope, 37... acceleration sensor, 38a... satellite positioning antenna, 38b... satellite positioning antenna, 39... shape measurement device, 40... imaging device, 42... track, 45a... surrounding warning device, 45b... surrounding warning device, 60... input / output unit, 61... processing unit, 61a... attitude calculation unit, 61b... position calculation unit, 61c... obstacle detection unit, 61g... notification determination unit, 61h... information generation unit, 62... memory unit

Claims

1. The machine body, a position measurement device that measures a position in a predetermined coordinate system in accordance with a positioning signal received from a positioning satellite by a satellite positioning antenna; an antenna support member disposed on the machine body for supporting the satellite positioning antenna; In a construction machine equipped with A construction machine characterized in that the antenna support member is equipped with at least one of a shape measurement device that measures the shape of objects around the machine body, an imaging device that acquires images of the area around the machine body, and an information notification device that issues notifications to the area around the machine body.

2. 2. The construction machine according to claim 1, A construction machine characterized in that the shape measuring device and the imaging device are attached to the antenna support member.

3. 2. The construction machine according to claim 1, A construction machine characterized in that the imaging device and the information notification device are attached to the antenna support member.

4. 2. The construction machine according to claim 1, A construction machine characterized in that the information notification device and the shape measurement device are attached to the antenna support member.

5. 2. The construction machine according to claim 1, A construction machine characterized in that the shape measuring device, the imaging device, and the information notification device are attached to the antenna support member.

6. 3. The construction machine according to claim 2, A construction machine characterized in that the positions of the imaging device and the shape measuring device are calculated from the position of the satellite positioning antenna.

7. The construction machine according to claim 2 or 3, The construction machine is characterized in that the imaging device is disposed below the shape measuring device.

8. 6. The construction machine according to claim 5, The construction machine is characterized in that the imaging device is disposed below the information notification device, and the shape measurement device is disposed below the imaging device.

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