Systems and methods for material transport

Abstract

The method includes receiving, using a controller (122), at least one signal from a communication device (126) associated with the transport machine (104), the signal including position information indicating a position of the transport machine (104) along a path of travel (114) that the transport machine (104) is assigned to traverse, extending between the material transfer site (102) and the dump site (106), a payload capacity (156) of the transport machine (104), and an estimated volume of material (108) loaded on the transport machine (104) based on the payload capacity of the transport machine (104), and defining, using the controller (122), a degree of completion of the material transport based on the position information.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This disclosure relates to a material transport system and a method for tracking the progress of material transport. More specifically, this disclosure relates to the use of a controller configured to associate a transport machine identifier with a position sensor. [Background technology]

[0002] Transport machines, paving machines, and other types of machinery can be used to perform a variety of tasks related to the movement of materials such as mud, concrete, gravel, and even waste or rubbish. For example, transport machines can be used to transport paving materials from a paving plant to a work site, and as a result, the paving materials can be distributed along the paving surface by one or more paving machines. The operation of such machines can be coordinated to carry out the work in an efficient manner. A ticketing system can be used in this example to determine the amount of material, such as paving materials, to be transported from an asphalt plant to a work site. The ticketing system can generate physical or database material tickets using a controller or other processing device. The tickets may include information such as weight, volume, composition, temperature, and / or indication of other properties of the material loaded onto the transport machine. Furthermore, the tickets may include information that identifies the work site where the material will be used and, among other types of information, uniquely identifies the specific transport machine that will receive the material. In this example, the material ticket may include information indicating the material loaded onto the transport machine at the paving plant and a primary identifier unique to the transport machine. However, some locations may not have, or may not possess, the hardware and / or software infrastructure necessary to support the ticketing system.

[0003] An exemplary system for use in loading target machinery is described in U.S. Patent No. 9,464,913 (hereinafter referred to as '913'). Specifically, '913' describes Global Positioning System (GPS) sensors located on a spotter vehicle and a target machine, respectively. An operator interface located on the target machine displays visual cues, and a driver interface located on the spotter vehicle displays specific auditory cues. An analyzer is configured to interface with the GPS sensors, the target machine's user interface, and the spotter vehicle operator interface to plan a route for the spotter vehicle to follow the target location. The analyzer is further configured to provide at least specific auditory cues to assist the spotter vehicle operator in guiding the spotter vehicle along the route to the target location. When the two machines are in close proximity to each other, the operator may receive an alert, for example, on a graphical user interface (GUI) located on one of the machines. However, the system described in '913' relies on a physical or electronic ticketing system for tracking materials loaded onto and transported by various system vehicles. The system described also lacks the ability to accurately track entry into and exit from various designated areas at the work site. As a result, the system described in reference '913 lacks the ability to effectively create tickets in situations where the material facility from which the material may be obtained does not have a set of weighing instruments or other means to measure the mass or volume of material to be distributed to the material handling machine.

[0004] The embodiments of this disclosure are intended to overcome the aforementioned defects. [Overview of the project]

[0005] In embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may include using a controller to receive at least one signal from a communication device associated with a transport machine. The signal may include location information indicating the position of the transport machine along a travel path to which the transport machine is assigned to traverse between a material transport site and a disposal site, the payload capacity of the transport machine, and an estimated volume of material loaded onto the transport machine based on the payload capacity of the transport machine. The method may also include using a controller to define the degree of completion of material transport based on the location information.

[0006] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the system may include a controller and a network configured to transmit signals between the controller and a communication device associated with the transport machine. The controller is configured to receive at least one signal from the communication device. The signal may include location information indicating the position of the transport machine along a travel path to which the transport machine is assigned to traverse between a material transfer site and a disposal site, and an estimated volume of material loaded onto the transport machine based on the transport machine's payload capacity. The controller may be further configured to define the degree of completion of material transport based on the location information.

[0007] In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include receiving, using a controller, at least one signal from a communication device associated with a transport machine moving along a travel path assigned to the transport machine to traverse, the travel path extending between a first area within a material transport site and a second area within a disposal site, and the signal including an estimated volume of material loaded onto the transport machine based on the payload capacity of the transport machine; and using the controller, generating a ticket that identifies the purchaser of the estimated volume of material. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2]Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a materials plant according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a diagram of an exemplary user interface generated by the controller of the system shown in Figures 1 and 2. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a diagram of another exemplary user interface generated by the controller of the paving system shown in Figures 1 and 2. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method for tracking the material transport operations shown in Figures 1 and 2. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating another exemplary method for tracking the material transport operations shown in Figures 1 and 2. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating another exemplary method for tracking the material transport operations shown in Figures 1 and 2. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Wherever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to identical or similar parts. Referring to Figure 1, the exemplary material transport system 100 may include one or more material plants 102 for producing or supplying material 108. In the embodiments described herein, the material may include paving material such as asphalt, and the material plant 102 may be an asphalt plant. However, the material plant 102 may produce or supply any material, including gravel, soil, mud, and concrete, among other materials. Furthermore, in some embodiments described herein, the material plant 102 may include a material storage plant, such as a recycling center, a waste transfer plant, or another material storage facility. As described herein, the material plant 102 may include a weighing station or other facility / component capable of determining the volume and / or mass of material 108 taken out of or brought into the material plant 102. In other embodiments, the material plant 102 may not include a weighing station or other such component. In this situation, it may be difficult for a foreman or plant operator to determine the exact quantity (e.g., volume and / or mass) of material 108, to bill for that volume and / or mass of material 108, or to otherwise describe that volume and / or mass. Furthermore, it may be difficult to determine the degree of completion of the work site plan, which utilizes at least partially the volume and / or mass of material 108 in order to make such a determination. Therefore, this description provides a system 100 and method for describing material 108 and determining the degree of completion of the work site plan.

[0010] Multiple machines, such as one or more transport machines 104 for transporting material 108, may be included in and used in connection with system 100. In one embodiment, a paving machine 106 for applying a layer of material 108, such as asphalt, to a work surface 110 at a work site 112 may also be included. The machines described herein may also be referred to as equipment herein and in the claims.

[0011] In one embodiment, the paving machine 106 may serve as the destination of the transport machine 104 and / or as the location where the transport machine 104 dumps or deposits the material 108. In another embodiment, the system 100 may not include the paving machine 106, and may have a dumping site where the transport machine 104 dumps the material 108. It should be noted that both the material plant 102, as well as the paving machine 106 and / or the dumping site, may function as locations where the material 108 can be obtained or deposited. Accordingly, the work site 112 may include, for example, a construction site, a road work site, a parking lot, or any other type of construction site. In one embodiment, one or more transport machines 104 may serve to transport the material 108 from the material plant 102 to the paving machine 106 at the work site 112. The transport machine 104 may be loaded with the material 108 at the material plant 102. The transport machine 104 may then move to the appropriate paving machine 106 at the work site 112 and transfer the material 108 to the paving machine 106. The paving machine 106 may then apply the material 108 to the work surface 110. In another embodiment, one or more transport machines 104 may be operable to transport material 108, such as mud or gravel, to a dumping site. In this example, the transport machine 104 may be loaded with the material 108 at the material plant 102. The transport machine 104 may then move to the appropriate dumping site at the work site 112 and deposit the material 108 at the dumping site. Other machines, such as grading machines and compaction machines, may then use the material 108 to build up or create the work surface 110.

[0012] Each of the machines described herein may communicate with each other and / or with a local or remote control system 120 by way of one or more central stations 109. The central station 109 may facilitate wireless communication between the machines described herein and / or between such machines and, for example, the system controller 122 of the control system 120, for the purpose of transmitting and / or receiving operational data and / or instructions.

[0013] With continued reference to Figure 1, in some embodiments, the control system 120 and / or the system controller 122 may be located at a command center (not shown) remote from the work site 112. In other embodiments, one or more components of the system controller 122 and / or the control system 120 may be located at the work site 112. Regardless of the location of the various components of the control system 120, such components may be configured to facilitate communication with and provide information to the transport machine 104 and / or other machines of the system 100. In any of the embodiments described herein, the functionality of the system controller 122 may be distributed such that certain operations are performed at the work site 112, and other operations are performed remotely (e.g., at the remote command center described above). For example, some operations of the system controller 122 may be performed at the work site 112 on the transport machine 104 and one or more of the other machines described herein. It will be appreciated that the system controller 122 may include components of the system 100, components of one or more machines disposed at the work site 112 (e.g., mobile phones, tablets, laptop computers, etc.), components of separate portable devices, and / or the control system 120.

[0014] The system controller 122 may be an electronic controller that operates in a logical manner to perform calculations, execute control algorithms, and store and retrieve data and other desired operations. The system controller 122 may include or have access to memory, secondary storage, a processor, and any other components for executing applications. The memory and secondary storage may be in the form of read-only memory (ROM) or random access memory (RAM) or integrated circuits that are accessible by the controller. Various other circuits, such as power supply circuits, signal conditioning circuits, driver circuits, and other types of circuits, may be associated with the system controller 122.

[0015] The system controller 122 may be a single controller or may include multiple controllers configured to control various functions and / or features of the system 100 (e.g., additional controllers associated with each of the transport machines 104 and / or other machines of the system 100). As used herein, the term “controller” is intended in its broadest sense to include one or more controllers, processors, central processing units, and / or microprocessors that may be associated with the system 100 and may work together to control various functions and operations of the system 100. The functions of the system controller 122 may be implemented in hardware and / or software, regardless of their function. The system controller 122 may rely on one or more data maps, lookup tables, neural networks, algorithms, machine learning algorithms, and / or other components related to the operating conditions and operating environment of the system 100 that may be stored in the memory of the system controller 122. Each of the data maps described above may include the collection of data in the form of tables, graphs, and / or equations to maximize the performance and efficiency of the system 100 and its operation.

[0016] Components of the control system 120 may communicate with any of the components of system 100 via network 124 and / or be otherwise operationally connected. Network 124 may be a larger network such as a local area network ("LAN"), a wide area network ("WAN"), or a collection of networks such as the Internet. Network 124 may be implemented using a network communication protocol such as TCP / IP. While embodiments are described herein using network 124 such as the Internet, other distribution techniques for transmitting information via a memory card, flash memory, or other portable memory device may be implemented.

[0017] The transport machine 104 and / or other machines of System 100 may include their respective controllers, and each of the controllers described herein (including the System Controller 122) may communicate and / or be otherwise operably connected via the Network 124. For example, the Network 124 may comprise components of a wireless communication system of System 100, and as part of such a wireless communication system, the transport machine 104 and / or other machines of System 100 may include their respective communication devices 126. Such communication devices 126 may be configured to enable the wireless transmission of multiple signals, commands, and / or information between the System Controller 122 and the respective controllers of the transport machine 104 and / or other machines of System 100. Such communication devices 126 may also be configured to enable communication with other machines and systems located away from the work site 112. For example, such communication devices 126 may include transmitters configured to transmit signals (e.g., via the Central Station 109 and over the Network 124) to receivers of one or more other such communication devices 126. In these embodiments, each communication device 126 may also include a receiver configured to receive such signals (e.g., via the central station 109 and on the network 124). In some embodiments, the transmitter and receiver of a particular communication device 126 may be combined as a transceiver or other such components. In any of the embodiments described herein, such communication devices 126 may also enable communication (e.g., via the central station 109 and on the network 124) with one or more tablets, computers, mobile phones / wireless phones, personal digital assistants, portable devices, or other electronic devices 128 located at and / or remotely from the work site 112. Such electronic devices 128 may include, for example, the mobile phone and / or tablet of a project manager (e.g., a site supervisor) who oversees the day-to-day operations at the work site 112.

[0018] Network 124, communication device 126, and / or other components of the wireless communication system described herein may implement or utilize any desired system or protocol, including any of several communication standards. The desired protocol enables communication between one or more of the system controller 122, communication device 126, and / or any other desired machine or component of system 100. Examples of wireless communication systems or protocols that may be used by system 100 described herein include wireless personal area networks such as Bluetooth® (e.g., IEEE 802.15), local area networks such as IEEE 802.11b or 802.11g, cellular networks, or any other systems or protocols for data transfer. Other wireless communication systems and configurations are contemplated. In some examples, wireless communication may be transmitted and received directly between the control system 120 and the machines of system 100 (e.g., paving machine 106, transport machine 104, etc.), or between such machines. In other examples, communication may be automatically routed without requiring retransmission by remote personnel.

[0019] In exemplary embodiments, one or more machines of System 100 (such as a transport machine 104) may include a position sensor 130 configured to determine the position, speed, direction of travel, and / or orientation of each machine. In such embodiments, a communication device 126 of each machine may be configured to generate and / or transmit signals indicating the determined position, speed, direction of travel, and / or orientation to, for example, the system controller 122 and / or each other machine of System 100. Furthermore, in one embodiment, each position sensor 130 of a machine may be configured to assist the system controller 122 and / or the machine in determining the machine's position with respect to, for example, a material plant 102, a disposal site, a paving machine 106, and / or a position along a travel path between these locations and elements.

[0020] In some embodiments, the position sensor 130 of each machine may include and / or be a component of a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) or Global Positioning System (GPS). Alternatively, a Universal Total Station (UTS) may be used to determine the position of each machine. In exemplary embodiments, one or more of the position sensors 130 described herein may comprise a GPS receiver, transmitter, transceiver, laser prism, and / or other such devices, and the position sensor 130 may communicate with one or more GPS satellites 132 and / or UTS to determine the position of each machine to which the position sensor 130 is connected continuously, substantially continuously, or at various time intervals. One or more additional machines of the system 100 may also communicate with one or more GPS satellites 132 and / or UTS, and such GPS satellites 132 and / or UTS may be configured to determine the position of each of such additional machines. In any of the embodiments described herein, the machine's position, speed, direction of travel, orientation, and / or other parameters determined by each position sensor 130 can be used by the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 to adjust the activity of the transport machine 104 and / or other components of the system 100. Furthermore, in any of the embodiments described herein, the machine's position, speed, direction of travel, orientation, and / or other parameters determined by each position sensor 130 can be used by the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 to move the material 108 throughout the work site 112 as described herein.

[0021] It is understood that the material plant 102, various transport machines 104, paving machines 106, compaction machines (not shown), and / or other components of system 100 may include their respective controllers, each of which may communicate and / or be otherwise operably connected via network 124. For example, network 124 may comprise components of a wireless communication system of system 100, as part of such a wireless communication system, the material plant 102, one or more transport machines 104, paving machines 106, one or more compaction machines, and / or other components of system 100 may include their respective communication devices 126. Such communication devices 126 may be configured not only to allow wireless transmission of multiple signals, commands, and / or information between the material plant 102, transport machines 104, paving machines 106, compaction machines, electronic devices 128, and system controllers 122, but also to allow communication with other machines and systems located away from the material plant 102, transport machines 104, paving machines 106, and / or work site 112. For example, such a communication device 126 may include a transmitter configured to transmit signals to receivers of one or more other such communication devices 126. In such embodiments, each communication device 126 may also include a receiver configured to receive such signals. In some embodiments, the transmitter and receiver of a particular communication device 126 may be combined as a transceiver or other such components. In any of the embodiments described herein, such a communication device 126 may also enable communication with one or more tablets, computers, mobile phones / wireless phones, personal digital assistants, portable devices, or other electronic devices 128 located at the work site 112, the material plant 102, and / or remotely from the work site 112 or the material plant 102. Such electronic devices 128 may include, for example, the mobile phone and / or tablet of a project manager (e.g., a site supervisor) who oversees the day-to-day operations at the work site 112 and / or the material plant 102.

[0022] In any of the embodiments described herein, the machine positions determined by each position sensor 130 can be used by the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 to coordinate the activities of the transport machines 104, the paving machines 106 and / or other components of the system 100. For example, the machine positions determined by each position sensor 130 can be used by the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 to determine the delivery rate of material 108 delivered from the material plant 102 to the work site 112. For example, such machine positions can be used by the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 to determine the expected arrival time of one or more transport machines 104 to arrive at the work site 112. Such arrival times may be useful, for example, to minimize and / or avoid stoppages of the paving machines 106 caused by insufficient supply of material 108 delivered to the work site 112, or to avoid congestion at the material plant 102 and / or the disposal site / paving machines 106. For example, as will be described in more detail below, in some embodiments, the system controller 122 and / or other components of the system 100 determine such arrival times associated with the conveyor machine 104 having a missing or defective position sensor 130.

[0023] The system controller 122 and / or other components of system 100 may also generate a user interface 133 that includes, among other things, information indicating the arrival time associated with the transport machine 104. The system controller 122 may provide the user interface 133 via the network 124 to, for example, the electronic device 128, the transport machine controller 154 of the transport machine 104, the controller of the paving machine 106, and / or other components of system 100, for indication that the operation of various components of system 100 may be changed and / or otherwise controlled based at least in part on the determined arrival time. In embodiments in which the paving machine 106, the compaction machine, and / or other components of system 100 are operating under autonomous or semi-autonomous control, the speed, steering, paving speed, and / or other functions of these components may be controlled automatically or semi-automatically based at least in part on the determined arrival time.

[0024] Continuing to refer to Figure 1, in some embodiments, the material plant 102 may include various material delivery components, conveyors, mixers, heaters, and / or other equipment configured to assist in the production and / or distribution of material 108 for use in various operations. Such equipment may include, for example, one or more conveyors or other devices configured to transport material 108 to one or more material silos 134 or other storage locations for storage therein. The material plant 102 may also include one or more load stations 136 configured to transfer material 108 from one or more material silos 134 to one or more transport machines 104. In such embodiments, the material silos 134 may include one or more sensors 138 configured to determine the temperature of material 108 stored in the material silo 134, the amount of material 108 stored in the material silo 134 (e.g., the full level of the material silo 134), or other detectable physical properties of the material silo 134 and / or the material stored therein. Similarly, the loading station 136 may include one or more sensors 140 configured to determine the presence and / or location of one or more transport machines 104, the time when the transport machine 104 arrived at the loading station 136, the time when the transport machine 104 departed from the loading station 136, the exact amount or estimate (e.g., weight) of the material 108 loaded onto the transport machine 104, and / or other information associated with the transport machine 104. In some embodiments, the sensors 140 may include weighing instruments or other mass sensors configured to determine the weight of the transport machine 104 when it entered the loading station 136, the weight of the transport machine 104 after the material 108 was loaded onto the transport machine 104, and / or the change in the weight of the transport machine 104. In another embodiment, the sensors 140 may sense the presence of the transport machine 104 and the payload capacity of the dump body 150 of the transport machine 104. In this example, the loading station 136 may deposit a certain amount of material 108 into the dump body 150 based on the payload capacity of the dump body 150.In one embodiment, the load station 136 can identify the transport machine 104 and determine the payload capacity of the transport machine 104 using a lookup table or other data storage array, and can estimate the amount of material 108 to be deposited in the transport machine 104. The lookup table may include a list of transport machines and a capacity indicator for each that defines the payload capacity. In one embodiment, the estimated amount of material 108 deposited in the transport machine 104 may be less than or equal to the payload capacity. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the operator of the load station 136 may deposit the estimated amount of material 108 in the dump body 150 of the transport machine 104 so that the operator can visually confirm that the dump body 150 is full. In these embodiments, the operator may deposit the estimated amount of material 108 using a capacity indicator from a lookup table, an indicator found in the transport machine 104, the operator's experience, or other means.

[0025] The material plant 102 may include one or more control buildings, operator stations, or other stations 142 for use by the material plant personnel, but in some embodiments, the material plant 102 may not be of a plant type or may include infrastructure that provides weighing of materials taken from or deposited in the material plant 102. Thus, as described herein, stations 142 of the material plant 102 may be commonly used for material acquisition or material deposit where the exact amount of material in volume and / or mass is not determined but is instead estimated.

[0026] In the embodiments described herein and as shown in the perspective view of Figure 1, one or more such stations 142 may include a material plant controller 144 substantially similar to and / or identical to the system controller 122 described above. In some embodiments, the material plant controller 144 may include components of the control system 120. In any of the embodiments described herein, the material plant controller 144 and / or other components of the material plant 102 may be configured to monitor, record, and / or communicate the activities of various transport machines 104 entering and leaving the material plant 102. For example, various sensors in the material plant 102 and / or the material plant controller 144 may monitor, sense, determine, record, and / or transmit information indicating the time a particular transport machine 104 enters the material plant 102, the time a transport machine 104 leaves the material plant 102, the amount of material 108 loaded onto a particular departing transport machine 104, the destination of a particular transport machine 104 (e.g., work site 112), the operator of the transport machine 104, and / or other information. Such information may be used, for example, by the system controller 122 to determine the time of arrival, to determine the exact or estimated volume and / or mass of the acquired or deposited material 108, to bill for at least one of the costs of the material and the costs of transporting the material, and / or any other work described herein.

[0027] In some embodiments, further information related to a particular transport machine 104 may be collected while it is being deployed to the material plant 102. For example, each transport machine 104 may have a unique license plate number, a unique machine identification number, a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, and / or other transport machine identifiers unique to each transport machine 104. In such examples, the transport machine identifier unique to each transport machine 104 may be determined by scanning, observing, and / or otherwise by sensors 140 while the transport machine 104 is being deployed to the load station 136. Additionally or alternatively, the transport machine identifier unique to each transport machine 104 may be determined by scanning, observing, and / or otherwise by one or more sensors associated with station 142 when the transport machine 104 is being deployed to station 142. Additionally or alternatively, when a material plant personnel is positioned at the load station 136, station 142, and / or other locations within the material plant 102, one or more handheld scanners, sensors, or other devices may be used to scan, observe, and / or otherwise determine a unique transporter identifier for each transporter 104. In any such embodiment, the aforementioned sensors, handheld scanners, or other devices may provide the material plant controller 144 with the determined transporter identifier, along with a timestamp indicating the time the transporter identifier was determined, in one or more signals transmitted over the network 124.

[0028] As described above, the transport machines 104 of system 100 may be operable to transport materials 108 between the material plant 102 and one or more paving machines 106 located at the work site 112 or at a dumping site. Each of the transport machines 104 may include a chassis 146 supporting a driving force such as an engine, and a cab 148 where an operator may be positioned to provide input commands to operate the transport machine 104. The engine is operably connected to and driven by a ground engagement drive mechanism such as wheels. A material transport unit, such as a dump body 150, is pivotably mounted on the chassis 146 to receive a payload (e.g., materials 108) to be transported from one location to another.

[0029] Each transport machine 104 used within System 100 may include a machine control system 152 and a transport machine controller 154, which are generally similar to or identical to the control system 120 and system controller 122. The machine control system 152 and the transport machine controller 154 may be located on each of the transport machines 104, or they may include components located remotely from each of the machines 104, such as on any of the other machines in System 100, either in the material plant 102 or in a command center (not shown). The functions of the transport machine controller 154 may be distributed so that certain functions are performed on each of the machines 104 and other functions are performed remotely. In some embodiments, the machine control system 152 and / or the transport machine controller 154 may enable autonomous and / or semi-autonomous control of each of the transport machines 104.

[0030] The transport machine 104 may also include a number of sensors connected to and / or communicating with the transport machine controller 154 and / or the system controller 122. These sensors may be configured to provide data indicating (directly or indirectly) various operating parameters of each of the transport machines 104, the systems associated with each of the transport machines 104, and / or the work site 112 and / or other environment in which each of the transport machines 104 is operating. In any of the embodiments described herein, these sensors may generally include components of the machine control system 152, the control system 120, and / or system 100.

[0031] For example, as described above, each of the transport machines 104 may be equipped with a position sensor 130 as described above. The position sensor 130 may be configured to sense, detect, and / or otherwise determine the position, speed, direction of travel, and / or orientation of each machine, including one of the transport machines 104. The position sensor 130 may include a plurality of individual sensors that cooperate to generate position signals indicating the position and / or orientation of each of the transport machines 104 and provide them to the transport machine controller 154 and / or system controller 122. In some embodiments, the position sensor 130 may be fixed to the cab 148, chassis 146, and / or any other component of the transport machine 104. However, in other embodiments, the position sensor 130 may be detachably mounted on one of the transport machines 104 and / or may be located, for example, inside the cab 148 of the transport machine 104 during the operation of the transport machine 104. As described above and later, in some embodiments, one or more of the transport machines 104 (e.g., transport machine 104) may have a missing or faulty position sensor 130. In such embodiments, the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, the transport machine controller 154, and / or other components of the control system 120 may identify a particular transport machine 104 as having a missing or faulty position sensor 130. For example, the system controller 122 and / or other components of the control system 120 may identify a transport machine 104 as having a missing or faulty position sensor 130, at least in part on determining that the transport machine 104 is located in the material plant 102 when at least one signal is not received from the position sensor 130 while the transport machine 104 is located in the material plant 102. In such embodiments, the system controller 122 may determine that the transport machine 104 is located in the material plant 102.The system controller 122 may make this decision based on one or more signals received from sensor 140 while the transport machine 104 is positioned at load station 136, one or more signals received from sensors associated with station 142 (not shown), handheld scanners, sensors, or other equipment of plant personnel, and / or other signals received from various other material plant sensors (e.g., proximity sensors, geofence / geofence sensors, position sensors, etc.) when the transport machine 104 is positioned at load station 136, station 142, and / or other locations within material plant 102.

[0032] In some embodiments, each of the transport machines 104 may also include a load sensor 156 configured to sense, measure, and / or otherwise determine a load indicating the amount of material 108 placed in the dump body 150. As described herein, the material plant 102 may not include infrastructure or elements that enable weighing of the transport machine 104 when acquiring or dumping material 108. In these embodiments, the material plant 102 may provide an amount of material 108 based on the payload capacity of the transport machine 104 or the volume of the dump body 150 of the transport machine 104. An estimate can then be obtained for the amount of material 108 that the material plant 102 has distributed to or received from the transport machine 108. This estimate may be used in situations where the material plant 102 does not include a set of weighing instruments or other mass sensors configured to determine the weight of the transport machine 104 when it enters the load station 136, the weight of the transport machine 104 after the material 108 has been loaded onto the transport machine 104, and / or the change in the weight of the transport machine 104.

[0033] In one example, the system controller 122 and / or the conveyor controller 154 of the conveyor machine 104 can receive data sensed from the load sensor 156 to determine the exact amount of material 108 to be conveyed by the conveyor machine 104. In this way, the exact amount of material 108 and the resulting cost can be obtained, while still allowing for approximations of the material obtained from estimates made in and by the material plant 102.

[0034] Furthermore, an estimate of the amount of material 108 transported by the transport machine 104 can be used by the system controller 122 and / or the transport machine controller 154 to determine the degree of completion of the material transport operation performed by the transport machine 104. In this example, the system controller 122 and / or the transport machine controller 154 may receive information from the material plant 102 described herein, including an estimate of the amount of material 108 supplied to the transport machine 104 based on the volume of the transport machine 104's payload and / or the volume of the transport machine 104's dump body 150. In these embodiments, the estimate may be displayed, for example, on an electronic device 128, a system controller 122, a display provided in the transport machine 104, or a user interface 133 displayed on a display device and a combination thereof. Furthermore, the system controller 122 and / or the transport machine controller 154 may receive information regarding the progress of the transport machine 104, such as the degree of completion of the material transport operation, so that the volume or mass of material 108 intended to be transported in each load, as well as the total amount of material 108, can be compared with the actual volume or mass of material 108 transported so far. The progress of the material transport operation may be measured by the number of round trips between a first area from which material can be acquired by the transport machine 104 and a second area from which material 104 can discard material 108, and the position of the transport machine 104 between these two areas. Thus, the progress of the material transport operation may be measured by the estimated amount of material 108 to be transported, as well as the position and movement of the transport machine 104. The degree of completion of the material transport operation may be presented to the user via a display device as described herein.

[0035] Continuing to refer to Figure 1, when present in system 100, the paving machine 106 may include a frame 160 having a set of ground engagement wheels or tracks 162 mounted thereto, and a screed 164 for spreading material 108 across the width of the work surface 110. The paving machine 106 may further include a hopper 166 for storing material 108 supplied by a transport machine 104 or another supply machine, and a conveyor system for transferring material 108 from the hopper 166 to the screed 164. The paving machine 106 may further include an operator console having a display 168, such as an LCD display. The display 168 may be mounted on the frame 160 for the operator to view. In exemplary embodiments, the display 168 may be configured to display a user interface 133 as described herein. As will be described in more detail below, the exemplary user interface 133 may include, among other things, visual markers for the material plant 102, visual markers for the work site 112, and / or identifiers associated with one or more of the respective transport machines 104. An exemplary user interface 133 may additionally or alternatively include information indicating the arrival times of one or more transport machines 104. For example, the user interface 133 may provide a display of the remaining time (hours, minutes, seconds, etc.) until the next transport machine 104 is expected to arrive at the work site 112. In another embodiment, the user interface 133 may provide a display of the time (e.g., 10:32 am) when the next transport machine 104 is expected to arrive at the work site 112.

[0036] In further embodiments, the user interface 133 may include a map of the work site 112, including icons or other visual markers representing the work surface 110, one or more paving machines 106, transport machines 104, and / or other components of the system 100. The user interface 133 may also include a map of the area surrounding the work site 112. For example, such a map may include lines, icons, markers, or other visual markers representing the material plant 102, the work site 112, a travel route 114 extending from the material plant 102 to the work site 112, one or more transport machines 104 positioned on the travel route 114, one or more additional roads, or other items. In additional embodiments, the user interface 133 may include information associated with each of the transport machines 104, material information, and / or other information that may be included in tickets generated at the material plant 102. Furthermore, the user interface 133 may include information associated with the detected completion rate of material transport operations performed by the transport machines 104. Furthermore, the user interface 133 described herein may be displayed via the display 168, the electronic device 128, and / or any other display associated with the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, or any other component of the control system 120.

[0037] The paving machine 106 may also include a paving machine control system 170 and a paving machine controller 172, which are generally similar to or identical to the control system 120 and system controller 122, respectively. The paving machine control system 170 and the paving machine controller 172 may be located on the paving machine 106, or they may include components located remotely from the paving machine 106, such as on system 100, system controller 122, material plant 102, or other machines in a command center (not shown). The functions of the paving machine controller 172 may be distributed so that certain functions are performed on the paving machine 106 and other functions are performed remotely. In some embodiments, the paving machine control system 170 and / or the paving machine controller 172 may enable autonomous and / or semi-autonomous control of the paving machine 106. For example, the paving machine controller 172 may be configured to receive arrival times for one or more transport machines from the system controller 122. In autonomous or semi-autonomous operating modes, the paving machine controller 172 and / or paving machine control system 170 may generally be able to operate the paving machine 106 at a desired paving machine speed while depositing the material 108 onto the work surface 110, at least in part based on the received arrival time. Such operation and / or control of the paving machine 106 can minimize and / or eliminate paving machine stoppages.

[0038] The paving machine 106 may also include several sensors connected to and / or communicating with the paving machine controller 172 and / or the system controller 122. These sensors may be configured to provide data (directly or indirectly) indicating various operating parameters of the paving machine 106, systems associated with the paving machine 106 and / or the work site 112, and / or other environments in which the paving machine 106 is operating. In any of the embodiments described herein, these sensors may generally include components of the paving machine control system 170, the control system 120, and / or system 100. For example, the sensors may include the position sensor 130 and the communication device 126 described above.

[0039] Figure 2 shows a more detailed illustrative material plant 102. As shown in Figure 2, one or more components of the material plant 102 may be housed in a control building 204 and / or otherwise arranged. For example, in some embodiments, the material plant controller 144 may be located within the control building 204. Additionally, receivers, transmitters, transceivers, and / or one or more other components of the wireless communication system 126 may be located in the control building 204. Such components may be configured to receive one or more signals from, for example, various position sensors 126 (Figure 1) located on or within one or more transport machines 104, and / or transmit one or more signals. Such components of the wireless communication system 126 may also be configured to receive one or more signals from, for example, among other things, various sensors including a volume and / or weight sensor 138, a load sensor 140, a load sensor 156, and / or other wireless communication systems or components, and / or transmit one or more signals to them.

[0040] The material plant 102 may include one or more gates 206, each of which may include an inlet and / or outlet to the material plant 102. The gates 206 may be configured, for example, to allow the passage of a conveyor 104 to the material plant 102 in direction 208. In any of the embodiments described herein, one or more components of the material plant 102 may be configured to sense, detect, and / or otherwise determine the passage of a conveyor 104 through a gate 206, and such components may also be configured to determine whether the conveyor 104 is located within the material plant 102. For example, the material plant 102 may include one or more geofences configured to assist in determining the location of the conveyor 104. In exemplary embodiments, the geofences may include, for example, a virtual geographical boundary defined by GPS, cellular, near-field communication, radio frequency identification (RFID), and / or other components of the material plant 102. Such geofences may allow the material plant controller 144, software running on the material plant controller 144, and / or other components of the material plant 102 to generate signals or other responses when a position sensor 130 carried by a transport machine 104 enters or leaves the virtual geographic boundary of the geofence. In some embodiments, each position sensor 130 may emit a signal continuously, substantially continuously, or at predetermined intervals (e.g., every second, every two seconds, every five seconds, every ten seconds, every fifteen seconds, etc.), and such signals may contain information indicating the location of the transport machine 104 in which the position sensor 130 is located. In such embodiments, the material plant controller 144 may be configured to determine, at least in part, whether the position sensor 130, and therefore the transport machine 104, are located within one or more geofences of the material plant 102 based on such signals.

[0041] As shown in Figure 2, the material plant 102 may include a geofence 210 that extends substantially along the perimeter 212 of the material plant 102 and / or substantially overlaps with it if it does not. The geofence 210 may thus correspond to the outer boundary of the material plant 102, and the transport machine 104 may proceed into the geofence 210 when entering the material plant 102 through the gate 206. Upon entering the material plant 102 through the gate 206, the transport machine 104 may move along a path 214 that extends between the gate 206 and a position 216 in the perimeter 212 of the material plant 102 corresponding to one or more holding positions. For example, position 216 may be an entrance to a material silo 134 in the material plant 102. In these embodiments, the material plant 102 may also include a geofence 218 that extends substantially along the perimeter or outer boundary of position 216 and / or substantially overlaps with it if it does not. The geofence 218 may define the virtual boundary of position 216, and position 216 may be located within the geofence 218 as shown as the shaded area in Figure 2. Naturally, the transport machine 104 may be located at position 216 and therefore within the geofence 218 before entering the loading area of ​​the material silo 134, which is located adjacent to the entrance.

[0042] For example, a location 220 substantially below the material silo 134 may include a loading area of ​​the material silo 134, from which the conveying machine 104 can receive the material 108 into the dump body 150. In such embodiments, the material plant 102 may further include a geofence 222 substantially extending along the perimeter of location 220 and / or substantially overlapping it if not. For example, the geofence 222 (shown as a shaded portion in Figure 2) may define a virtual boundary of location 220, and location 220 may be located within the geofence 222. Additionally, a geofence 218 may be located adjacent to the geofence 222. Furthermore, a location 224 adjacent to location 220 may include an outlet of the material silo 134 from which the conveying machine 104 can be weighed, observed, and / or otherwise evaluated. As shown in Figure 2, in some embodiments, the material plant 102 may also include a geofence 226 that substantially extends along the perimeter of location 224 and / or otherwise substantially overlaps it, as shown in Figure 2 as a shaded portion. For example, the geofence 226 may define the virtual boundary of location 224, and location 224 may be located within the geofence 226. In these embodiments, the geofence 222 may be located adjacent to the geofence 226.

[0043] In some embodiments, upon leaving position 224, the transport machine 104 may move along a path 228 extending between position 224 and position 230 adjacent to the control building 204. In such embodiments, the transport machine 104 may temporarily stop at position 230 so that the operator of the transport machine 104 can receive material tickets associated with the material 108 received in the material silo 134. In some embodiments, material tickets may include text files, image files, data files, and / or information, as well as any other digital or electronic files configured to be executed and / or otherwise consumed by a server, computer, mobile phone, and / or other electronic device. Furthermore, material tickets may be stored in memory connected to the material plant controller 144 and may be transmitted, for example, via a wireless communication system 126 to one or more additional electronic devices (e.g., a system controller 122, an electronic device 128, an electronic device carried by the operator of the transport machine 104, a transport machine controller 154, etc.). Additionally or alternatively, such material tickets may include physical cards, tickets, slips of paper, or other physical objects containing any of the information described herein and configured to be consumed by a human. Furthermore, material tickets may be printed on a printer or other device connected to the material plant controller 144.

[0044] An exemplary material ticket may include information indicating the estimated weight, volume, composition, temperature, and / or other properties of the material 108 deposited in the dump body 150 at position 220. As described herein, in some embodiments, the material plant 102 may not involve, or include, hardware and / or software infrastructure to support the ticketing system, including weighers or other sensors for detecting the exact properties of the material 108 deposited in the dump body 150 of the conveyor machine 104. Thus, for example, estimates of the weight, volume, composition, temperature, and / or other properties of the material 108 may be provided to the system controller 122 or other processing devices and systems described herein. Despite the ability to obtain estimates of these properties of the material 108 rather than precisely sensed properties, the system 100 described herein is provided by the conveyor machine 104 so that users, operators, supervisors, and others can know how the material transport operation is progressing and, based on the estimates, provides a determination of the degree of completion of the material transport. The system 100 may use an estimate of the amount of material 108 to be transported by the transport machine 104 to estimate the level or completion of the material transport operation, and may notify the user of that level or completion of the material transport operation by displaying an indicator in the user interface 133.

[0045] The material ticket may also include information identifying the work site 112 where the material 108 will be used. In a further embodiment, the material ticket may also include information uniquely identifying a specific transport machine 104 that will receive the material 108 at location 220. For example, a plant employee may observe a unique identifier associated with a particular transport machine 104 during an inspection of the transport machine 104 at at least one of locations 216, 220, and 224, where the transport machine 104 is staggered in holding positions, loaded with the material 108, and observed or evaluated. In such an example, the plant employee may record the unique identifier and provide an input to the material plant controller 144 containing information indicating the unique identifier. Alternatively, one or more cameras, scanners, RFID readers, near-field scanners, barcode readers, or other detection devices may automatically capture and / or otherwise observe the unique identifier during an inspection of the transport machine 104 at at least one of locations 216, 220, and 224. In these embodiments, one or more cameras or other detection devices may transmit a signal to the material plant controller 144 containing information indicating a unique identifier. In any embodiment described herein, the material plant controller 144 may generate a material ticket at least in part based on a conveyor 104 receiving material 108 in a material silo 134 of the material plant 102, and the exemplary material ticket may include a unique identifier identifying a particular conveyor 104. Furthermore, any of the material tickets described herein may include a timestamp indicating the date and / or time the material ticket was generated.

[0046] Upon receiving a material ticket at location 230, at another location, or via data transfer (in the case of an electronic material ticket), the transport machine 104 may move from location 230 to gate 206 via path 232. Upon reaching gate 206, the transport machine 204 may exit the material plant 102 and pass through gate 206 to deliver the material to the disposal site or paving machine 106. Specifically, the transport machine 104 may pass through gate 206 in direction 234. By passing through gate 206 in direction 234, the transport machine 104 may also exit the geofence 210 corresponding to the perimeter 212 of the material plant 102. The transport machine 104 may then traverse the travel path 114 between the disposal site or paving machine 106 and the material plant 102.

[0047] Figure 3 shows an exemplary user interface 300 of the present disclosure. The user interface 300 in Figure 3 is an example of the user interface 133 described above with respect to Figure 1. The exemplary user interface 300 may comprise any of the user interfaces 133 described herein with respect to Figure 1, and the user interface 300 in Figure 3 is shown as being displayed on an LCD display, a CRT display, a touchscreen (e.g., capacitive / touch-sensitive) display device, and / or other display 302. In some embodiments, the display 302 may include a display of an electronic device 128, a display associated with a system controller 122, a display associated with a material plant controller 144, and / or a display associated with one or more other components of the control system 120. In further embodiments, the display 302 may include a display of a paving machine 106 which is similar to and / or identical to the display 168 described above with respect to Figure 1.

[0048] As shown in Figure 3, the exemplary user interface 300 may include images, icons, and / or other visual markers associated with one or more of the material plant 102, the work site 112, the transport machinery 104, and / or other components of the system 100. For example, the user interface 300 may include a visual marker 304 relating to, similar to, and / or otherwise indicating the material plant 102, and a visual marker 306 relating to, similar to, and / or otherwise indicating the work site 112. In some embodiments, the layout, arrangement, visual markers, and / or other configuration of the user interface 300 may, in some respects, be analogous to the physical location of one or more components of the system 100 illustrated therein. For example, the visual marker 304 for the material plant 102 may be located in a first part of the user interface 300, and the visual marker 306 for the work site 112 may be located in a second part of the user interface 300, spaced apart from and / or otherwise separated from the first part of the user interface 300. Such intervals and / or separations may indicate the physical and / or geographical distance between the material plant 102 and the work site 112. In some embodiments, the user interface 300 may also include one or more lines, images, icons, and / or other visual markers (not shown) that are similar to and / or otherwise indicate the travel path 114, and / or other visual markers indicating portions 116 and 118 of the travel path 114 extending from the material plant 102 to the work site 112, and in such embodiments, the length, shape, orientation, position, and / or other configurations of such visual markers on the user interface 300 may indicate contours, distances, and / or other physical and / or geographical configurations of the travel path 114.

[0049] The user interface 300 may also include at least one section, part, or window 308 configured to provide information 310 relating to operations at the work site 112, operations at the material plant 102, and / or any other information relating to various components of the system 100. For example, in any of the embodiments described herein, the user interface 300 may provide information 310 indicating the expected arrival time of at least one of the transport machines 104 when it arrives at the work site 112. As shown in Figure 3, in some embodiments, the user interface 300 may provide information 310 indicating the remaining time (hours, minutes, seconds, etc.) until the next transport machine 104 is expected to arrive at the work site 112. In other embodiments, the user interface 300 may provide information 310 indicating the expected arrival time of the next transport machine 104 when it arrives at the work site 112. In even further embodiments, such information 310 may be provided by the user interface 300 in any other additional way or configuration.

[0050] In some embodiments, the user interface 300 may also include one or more lines, dots, images, icons, and / or other visual markers 312 that represent one or more of the transport machines 104 associated with the system 100, in a similar and / or otherwise manner. For example, as shown in Figure 3 and with reference to the exemplary system 100 described herein with respect to Figure 1, the visual markers 312 included in the user interface 300 may, among other things, include identifiers 314 associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a transport machine 104 located in the material plant 102. The visual markers may also include identifiers 316 associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a transport machine 104 that traverses a portion 116 of the travel path 114 in front of the transport machine 104. Furthermore, the visual markers may include identifiers 318 associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a transport machine 104 that traverses a portion 116 of the travel path 114 in front of another transport machine 104. Furthermore, the visual marker may include an identifier 320 associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a transport machine 104 that traverses a portion 116 of the travel path 114 in front of another transport machine 104. And further, the visual marker may include an identifier 322 associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a transport machine 104 that is located at the work site 112. In such embodiments, the visual marker 312 may be associated with, corresponding to, and / or otherwise indicating a plurality of transport machines 104 that are moving sequentially (e.g., successively, one after another) from the material plant 102 to the work site 112 along portion 116 of the travel path 114.

[0051] As shown in Figure 3 and with reference to the exemplary system 100 described herein with respect to Figure 1, the visual markers 312 included in the user interface 300 may include identifiers 324 associated with a transport machine 104 that traverses a portion 118 of the travel path 114 positioned in front of another transport machine 104 (e.g., returning from a work site 112 to a material plant 102), and identifiers 326 associated with a transport machine 104 that traverses a portion 118 of the travel path 114 in front of another transport machine 104, such as the transport machine 104 associated with identifier 324.

[0052] The visual markers 312 illustrated in Figure 3 are shown as dots, circles, and / or other icons. In additional embodiments, the visual markers 312 may be shaped, sized, and / or otherwise configured to resemble the corresponding conveying machine 104. Additionally, in any of the embodiments described herein, each of the visual markers 312 included in the user interface 300 may be shaped, sized, colored, patterned, diagonally lined, shaded, positioned, and / or otherwise configured to provide additional information associated with one of the corresponding conveying machines 104. For example, each of the identifiers 314, 316, 318, and 322 may be colored, patterned, diagonally lined, shaded, and / or otherwise displayed in a first configuration (e.g., shown as the first shaded pattern in Figure 3) to indicate that the conveying machine 104 corresponding to each of the respective identifiers 314, 316, 318, and 322 is currently loaded with material 108. Similarly, each of identifiers 324, 326 may be colored, patterned, diagonally lined, shaded, and / or otherwise displayed in a second configuration (e.g., shown as a second shaded pattern in Figure 3, different from the first shaded pattern) to indicate that the transport machine 104 corresponding to each of the respective identifiers 326, 324 is not currently loaded with material 108. It is also understood that identifier 320 may be colored, patterned, diagonally lined, shaded, and / or otherwise displayed in a third configuration (e.g., shown without a shaded pattern in Figure 3) to indicate that the transport machine 104 corresponding to identifier 320 includes a position sensor 130, which is either missing or defective.

[0053] In such embodiments, identifier 320 may also be represented by one or more additional colors, patterns, shadows, shading, and / or other configurations to indicate whether the material 108 is currently loaded onto the transport machine 104 corresponding to identifier 320, whether the material 108 is currently loaded onto the transport machine 104, or whether the transport machine 104 is in any other state or condition. Similarly, in such embodiments, identifiers 314, 316, 318, 322, 324, and 326 may also be represented by one or more additional colors, patterns, shadows, shading, and / or other configurations to indicate whether the respective transport machine 104 corresponding to identifier 314, 316, 318, 322, 324, and 326 includes a functional position sensor 130.

[0054] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the position, orientation, and / or other configuration of the visual markers 312 can represent, associate, and / or otherwise indicate the position of each transport machine 104. For example, in some embodiments, identifiers 314, 316, 318, 320, 322, 324, and 326 (collectively referred to herein as 314) may be positioned on the user interface 300 between visual markers 304 and 306, indicating the substantially real-time position of each transport machine 104 corresponding to identifier 314. Such substantially real-time positions of the transport machines 104 may include, for example, the positions of the transport machines 104 along portions 116 and 118 of the travel path 114 extending from the work site 112 to the material plant 102.

[0055] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the position, orientation, and / or other configuration of the visual marker 312 may represent, be associated with, and / or otherwise indicate a determined arrival time for each transport machine 104. For example, in some embodiments, identifiers 314, 316, 318, 320, and 322 may be positioned on the user interface 300 between visual markers 304 and 306, indicating the determined arrival times when each transport machine 104 corresponding to identifiers 314, 316, 318, 320, and 322 is expected to arrive at the work site 112. Similarly, identifiers 324 and 326 may be positioned on the user interface 300 between visual markers 306 and 304, indicating the determined arrival times when each transport machine 104 corresponding to identifiers 324 and 326 is expected to arrive at the material plant 102. For example, Figure 3 shows an identifier 322 associated with a transport machine that is positioned closer to a visual marker 306 associated with a work site 112 than to an identifier 320 associated with the transport machine 104. The user interface 300 in Figure 3 also shows an identifier 322 associated with the transport machine 104 positioned between identifier 324 and identifier 320 in the direction of movement 328 of the transport machine. In any of the embodiments described herein, the position, orientation, color, pattern, shading, shadow, and / or other configuration of identifier 314 (e.g., visual marker 312) may be dynamic and / or updated substantially in real time. For example, in some embodiments, identifier 314 may be displayed in the user interface 300 as a moving object that moves between visual markers 304 and 306 in the direction of arrow 328. In this way, the visual marker 312 in the user interface 300 may represent a plurality of transport machines 104 that move sequentially (e.g., successively, one after another) between the machine plant 103 and the work site 112 along a travel path 114. This allows users to visually determine the progress of material transfer operations performed by the transport machinery.

[0056] In any of the exemplary embodiments described herein, the user interface 300 may include an interactive user interface configured to receive one or more inputs from a user via a display 302 and to provide one or more outputs via the display 302 corresponding to such inputs. In such embodiments, one or more of the visual markers 304, 306, 312 described herein may be configured to receive one or more inputs from a user via the display 302 and to provide various information and / or other outputs via the display 302 corresponding to such inputs. The user interface 300 may also include one or more dedicated controls configured to receive inputs via the display 302. As shown in Figure 3, the user interface 300 may include, for example, a control 330 configured to receive inputs from a user. In response to receiving such inputs, the user interface 300 may provide, display, and / or otherwise output via the display 302, typically, various information associated with a paving ticket, a material plant 102, a work site 112, and / or various components of the system 100. For example, as will be explained in more detail below with respect to Figure 4, selecting a control 330 via the display 302, either alone or in combination with the additional selection of one of the visual markers 312, can generate information associated with the material ticket (and each of the transport machines 104 corresponding to the selected one of the visual markers 312) as displayed via the display 302.

[0057] As shown in Figure 3, the user interface 300 may further include, for example, a control 332 configured to receive input from the user. In response to receiving such input, the user interface 300 may provide, display, and / or otherwise output a map via the display device 302 that includes visual markers indicating one or more of the material plant 102, the work site 112, the travel path 114, the transport machinery 104, and / or various other components of the system 100. For example, at least a portion of such a map may be displayed via the display 302 by selecting a control 332 via the display 302, as will be described in more detail below with respect to Figure 4. The user interface 300 may also include various other controls 334, 336 configured to operate, access, and / or control various other functions of the user interface 300 and / or various other operations of the paving system components to which the display 302 is associated.

[0058] Figure 4 shows another exemplary user interface 400 of the present disclosure provided by the display 302. Similar to the user interface 300 in Figure 3, the user interface 400 in Figure 4 is an example of the user interface 133 in Figure 1. For example, as described above, such a user interface 400 may be provided at least partially by the display 302 in response to the reception of an input via the control 330 (shown in Figure 3). In some embodiments, such a user interface 400 may be provided at least partially by the display 302 in response to the reception of a first input via the control 330, and at least partially in response to the reception of a second input via one of the identifiers 314. In such embodiments, the user interface 300 may include information 402 associated with at least one of the conveying machines 104, corresponding to each of the identifiers 314 from which the second input described above is received. For example, such information 402 may include, among other things, information that may be contained in a material ticket issued by the material plant 102 before, during, and / or after one of the conveying machines 104 is loaded with material 108. In some embodiments, such information 402 may include, among other things, a transport machine identifier unique to one of the transport machines 104 (shown as “Track ID” in Figure 4), and a position sensor identifier unique to a specific position sensor 130 located on, connected to, and / or otherwise associated with one of the transport machines 104 (shown as “Sensor ID” in Figure 4). Information 402 may also include the time when one of the transport machines 104 was loaded with material 108 at the material plant 102, and the date on which one of the transport machines 104 was loaded with material 108 at the material plant 102. Furthermore, information 402 may include the amount (e.g., estimated weight or volume) of material 108 loaded onto one of the transport machines 104 at the material plant 102, specified as “Estimated material quantity: 1.32 tons,” and the name of the operator of one of the transport machines 104. Furthermore, the information 402 may include a name, location, and / or other information indicating a specific material plant 102 associated with the system 100, as well as a name, location, and / or other information indicating a work site 112.Furthermore, the information 402 may include the name, location, and / or other information indicating the entity transporting or to which the material 108 is transported, and the temperature of the material 108 loaded onto one of the transport machines 104 at the material plant 102. The information 402 may also include a job identification number / identifier and / or any additional information that may be included in a material ticket issued by the material plant 102. The information 402 may include any combination of the above items. In some embodiments, the user interface 400 may also include at least one additional control 404 configured to receive input from the user via the display 302 and, for example, to provide additional information via the display 302 in response to such input.

[0059] Referring to Figures 1-3, the system controller 122, the transport machine controller 154, the material plant controller 144, the electronic device 128, and / or any other processing device may receive signals from the position sensor 126 of the transport machine 104 continuously, substantially continuously, or at predetermined intervals (e.g., every second, every 2 seconds, every 5 seconds, every 10 seconds, every 15 seconds, etc.). Signals transmitted between elements including the material plant 102, the transport machine 104, the paving machine 106, the system controller 122, the electronic device 128, the GPS satellite 132, and other elements may be achieved by direct communication of communications through the network 124.

[0060] The signal may include first information indicating whether the transport machine 104 is located within a first area within a material transport site, such as a material plant 102, as determined by the position sensor 130. Thus, in the embodiments described herein, the first information may include position information indicating the location of the transport machine 104 along a route assigned to traverse between the material plant 102 and a disposal site, such as a paving machine 106. The first information may include data received from the position sensor 130, GPS data obtained from GPS satellites 132 and / or UTS, GNSS, or other positioning devices. The first area may include any of the locations 216, 220, 224, 230 and their respective geofences 218, 222, 226, or locations based on geolocation information. Furthermore, the first area may include any area within the geofence 210 that extends substantially along the perimeter 212 of the material plant 102, including along paths 214, 228, and 232, and / or otherwise substantially overlaps. The position sensor 130 may provide the area among these areas where the transport machine 104 is located. This first information provides the user with knowledge of how the acquisition of material 108 at the material plant 102 is progressing and may be displayed on the user interface 133 as part of the information 402 displayed on the display 302, in addition to the embodiments described herein.

[0061] Similarly, the system controller 122, the transport machine controller 154, the material plant controller 144, the electronic device 128, and / or any other processing device may receive signals from the transport machine 104 position sensor 126, which include second information associated with a travel path 114 to which the transport machine 104 is assigned to traverse, extending between a material transfer site (e.g., a material plant 102) and a second area within the disposal site (e.g., a paving machine 106 or another disposal site). This second information, like the first information, provides the user with knowledge of how the transport of material 108 from the material plant 102 to the disposal site is progressing. This second information may be displayed in the user interface 133 as part of information 402 displayed in the display 302, in addition to the embodiments described herein. In one embodiment, the second information may include mapped data representing the travel path 114 of the transport machine 104 between the material transfer site (e.g., a material plant 102) and a second area within the disposal site (e.g., a paving machine 106 or another disposal site). In this example, GPS satellite 132 and / or UTS, GNSS, or other positioning device may obtain the travel path 114 from the previous travel path taken by the transport machine 104 and / or from the previous travel path 114 defined by the user or GPS satellite 132 and / or UTS, GNSS, or other positioning device.

[0062] At least one signal may also include the payload capacity of the conveyor 104. The payload capacity may be obtained from information stored in a data storage device associated with the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, the conveyor controller 154, and / or another controller as described herein. The payload capacity may be stored in a lookup table or in other data architectures within the data storage device. Furthermore, the data storage device may include a track ID. The track ID shown in Figure 4 may be associated with additional information defining the characteristics of the conveyor 104, including the payload capacity, such as the volume or weight of the material 108 that can be loaded onto the conveyor 104. As described herein, the system 100, including the material plant 102, may deposit an amount of material 108 onto the conveyor 104, which is an estimate of the actual volume or mass of material 108 that is actually deposited onto the conveyor 104. This may occur in situations where the material plant 102 does not include a weighing instrument or other measuring device that can provide the exact amount of material 108 to be deposited onto the conveyor 104. Therefore, the signal may include an estimated volume of material 108 loaded onto the transport machine 104 based on the payload capacity of the transport machine 104, and this information (i.e., the estimated amount of material 406 illustrated in Figure 4) may be displayed on the user interface 133 as part of the information 402 displayed on the display 302, in addition to the embodiments described herein. Furthermore, the total amount of all material 104 transported by the transport machine 104 (i.e., the total estimated amount of material 408 depicted in Figure 4) may be displayed on the user interface 133 as part of the information 402 presented on the display 302, in addition to the embodiments described herein. This information can help the user understand the completeness of the material transport operation so that the amount or mass of material 108 intended to be transported in each load, and the total amount of material 108 intended to be transported, can be compared with the actual amount or mass of material 108 transported so far.

[0063] The system controller 122 (or another controller or processing unit) may determine the degree of completion of a material transport operation using the estimated or exact amount of material 108 loaded onto the transport machine 104 at the time of completion determination, and / or the position of the transport machine 104 along the travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232 and the number of lengths of the travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232 that the transport machine 104 has traveled. This information assists the system controller 122 in determining the progress and degree of completion of the material transport operation.

[0064] In embodiments where an estimate of material 108 is used to help determine the degree of completion of a material transport operation, the material plant 102 (without using a set of weighing instruments or other means to measure the mass or volume of material distributed to the transport machine 104) may transmit data defining the estimate of material 108 to be loaded onto the transport machine 104 to the system controller 122 via the communication device 126. Each time an estimate of material 108 to be loaded onto the transport machine 104 is transmitted to the system controller 122, the system controller 122 can aggregate the quantities to determine the total estimate of material 108 to be loaded onto the transport machine 104. If the material transport operation requires a target amount of material 108 to be transported, the system controller 122 may calculate what percentage of the target amount of material 108 is included in the total estimate of material 108 loaded onto the transport machine 104 at the time of determination. This percentage may be displayed on a user display device as described herein so that the user can understand the degree of completion of the material transport operation performed by the transport machine 104.

[0065] In one embodiment, the position of the transport machine 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232, and the number of lengths of the transport machine 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232 are used to help determine the degree of completion of a material transport operation. A position sensor 130 of the transport machine 104 may deliver the position of the transport machine 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232, and the number of times the transport machine 104 traverses travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232. A communication device 126 of the transport machine 104 may transmit the data acquired from the position sensor 130 to a system controller 122. The system controller 122 can determine the number of detected positions of the transport machine 104, or the number of times the transport machine 104 traverses the travel paths 114, 214, 228, and 232, to acquire and dump the material 108 at the material plant 102 and the dumping site (i.e., the paving machine 106).

[0066] As described herein, tickets, such as physical or electronic tickets, may be generated at any time during the process of transporting material 108 between the material plant 102 and the disposal site. The tickets may initially include an estimate of the material 108 deposited in the transport machine 104, and / or at least one of the cost of material 108 and the cost of transporting material 108. This information provided in the ticket may be associated with a unique identifier that uniquely identifies the transport machine transporting material 108. Thus, even if the exact volume or mass of material 108 is not initially known and is presented in the ticket, an estimate may be provided. Again, the estimate may assist the user in understanding the degree of completion of the material transport operation performed by the transport machine 104. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the estimated volume or mass of material 108 may be presented as part of information 402 displayed in the display 302.

[0067] In one embodiment, a ticket may be modified or updated using a load sensor 156 configured to sense, measure, and / or otherwise determine the amount of load or material 108 placed inside the dump body 150 of the transport machine 104. In this example, the load sensor 156 may transmit the sensed load or amount of material 108 to one of the system controllers 122 to update the ticket with the exact amount and / or update the volume or mass of material 108 presented as part of the information 402 displayed in the display 302. In this way, the exact cost associated with at least one of the cost of material 108 and the cost of transporting material 108 may be obtained from the load sensor 156 and provided in the ticket to provide the user with the exact cost.

[0068] Regardless of whether the ticket is generated based on the estimated volume or mass of the material 108, or the volume or mass of the exact amount of material 108 determined by the load sensor 156, at least one of the operators of the transport machine 104, the entity transporting the material 108, and the entity to which the material 108 is transported may be billed on the ticket. In some circumstances, the entity transporting the material 108 may be owned, for example, by a construction company, civil engineer, or developer purchasing the material 108. In this embodiment, the construction company, civil engineer, or developer may be billed and an invoice for the material 108 may be issued. Furthermore, in some circumstances, the entity to which the material 108 is transported may contract with a material transport company and / or the owner of the material plant 102. In this example, the entity to which the material 108 is transported may be billed and an invoice for the material 108 and / or the transport of the material 108 may be issued. The system controller 122 may generate a ticket by receiving an estimated volume or mass of material 108 from the material plant 102 (without using a set of weighing instruments or other means to measure the mass or volume of material distributed to the conveying machine 104), or by receiving the exact volume or mass of material 108 from the load sensor 156 of the conveying machine 104. This data may be transmitted via the communication device 126 of the material plant 102 or the conveying machine 104. In this embodiment, the ticket may be generated by identifying at least one of the following: the operator of the conveying machine, the entity transporting the material, the entity to which the material is transported, the project to which the material is provided, the payload capacity of the conveying machine, the estimated volume of material loaded onto the conveying machine, the exact volume or mass of material 108 determined by the load sensor 156, other information, and combinations thereof.

[0069] The progress of a material transport operation, including the definition of the progress of the material transport operation assigned to the transport machine 104 (i.e., the progress of the material transport operation 410 shown in Figure 4), is defined by the system controller 122 and may be displayed as part of the information 402 displayed in the display 302. For this purpose, the estimated volume or mass of the material detected by the load sensor 156, or the exact volume or mass of the material 108, may be displayed as part of the information 402 displayed in the display 302. The material transport operation performed by the transport machine 104 includes at least one transport example of the material transport operation. In one embodiment, the information 402 displayed in the display 302 may include detailed information regarding the volume or mass of the material 108 transported and / or transported by the first transport machine 104, so that the user can understand the effectiveness of the first transport machine 104. In another embodiment, the information 402 displayed in the display 302 may include detailed information regarding the volume or mass of the material 108 transported and / or transported individually by multiple transport machines 104, so that the user can compare the effectiveness of the transport machines 104 with one another. In yet another embodiment, the information 402 displayed within the display 302 may include detailed information regarding the volume or mass of materials 108 transported and / or transported by all transport machines 104 operating within the same material transport operation or work. In this example, the user can see the overall level or degree of completion of the material transport operation performed by the transport machines 104.

[0070] Having described the various functions of the system 100 and its components, Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method 500 for tracking material transport operations. The method 500 of Figure 5 described herein may be carried out by at least one of the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, the transport machine controller 154, the paving machine controller 172, the controller of the electronic device 128, or other processing devices acting separately or together. However, for the sake of clarity, the method of Figure 5 will be described with respect to the system controller 122. The method 500 may also include, using the controller 122, receiving position information indicating the location of the transport machine 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232 to which the transport machine 104 is assigned to traverse, extending between the material transport site 102 and the disposal site (e.g., the paving machine 106). The position sensor 130 can transmit position data to the system controller 122 to inform the system controller 122 of the position of the transport machine 104 along the travel paths 114, 214, 228, and 232.

[0071] In 504, the system controller 122 may receive the payload capacity of the conveyor 104. The payload capacity may be obtained from information stored in a data storage device associated with the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, the conveyor controller 154, and / or another controller as described herein. The payload capacity may be stored in a lookup table or in other data architectures within the data storage device. Furthermore, as described herein, the data storage device may include a track ID that defines the characteristics of the conveyor 104, including the payload capacity, such as the volume or weight of the material 108 that can be loaded onto the conveyor 104. Thus, in some embodiments described herein, the signal received by the system controller 122 may further include a unique identifier for the conveyor 104. The conveyor 104 or the material plant 102 may collect this data and transmit it to the system controller 122. The unique identifier may be associated with at least one of the operators of the conveyor 104, the entity that conveys the material 108, the entity to which the material 108 is conveyed, and the project to which the material 108 is provided.

[0072] In 506, the system controller 122 may receive an estimated volume of material loaded onto the transport machine 104. The estimate may also be received by the material plant 102 via the communication device 126 of the material plant 102, which transmits an estimate of the material 108 distributed into the dump body 150 of the transport machine 104.

[0073] In 508, the system controller 122 may define the degree of completion of material transport based on location information. The system controller 122 may identify the presence of transport machines 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, and 232 and interpret their location information as the degree of completion of material transport carried out by the transport machines 104. Identifying the presence of transport machines 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, and 232 as the degree of completion of material transport in 508 may include identifying the presence of transport machines 104 in a first area as an example of loading material 108 onto the transport machines 104, identifying the presence of transport machines 104 along travel paths 114, 214, 228, and 232 as an example of transporting material 108, and identifying the presence of transport machines 104 in a second area as an example of discarding material 108 by the transport machines 104. Furthermore, the position sensor 130 of the transport machine 104 may transmit data indicating the position of the transport machine 104 to the system controller 122 via the communication device 126 for analysis.

[0074] Furthermore, Method 500 may include billing for at least one of the costs of the materials 108 and the costs of transporting the materials 108, based on a unique identifier of each transport machine 104 involved in the material transport operation or the operations contained therein. The system controller 122 may generate an invoice by receiving from load sensors 156 of the material plant 102 and / or the transport machine 104, or based on a ticket generated by the system controller 122. Again, the data used to generate the invoice may be transmitted via a communication device 126 of the material plant 102 or the transport machine 104, or obtained from the system controller 122 itself in the form of a ticket generated by the system controller 122. In this example, the ticket described herein may be generated by identifying at least one of the estimated volumes of the materials 108 loaded on the transport machine 104, based on the operator of the transport machine 104, the entity transporting the materials 108, the entity to which the materials 108 are transported, the project for which the materials 108 are provided, and the payload capacity of the transport machine 104.

[0075] In one embodiment, method 500 may further include defining the progress of a material transport operation assigned to the transport machine 104. The system controller 122 may complete the material transport operation by receiving input from a user defining the material transport operation and the travel path 114, 214, 228, 232 or an approximation thereof taken by the transport machine 104. In this embodiment, the material transport operation may include at least one transport example of material 108. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the first area may be defined by the first geofences 218, 222, 226 of the loading station at the material transfer site (i.e., material plant 102). The second area may be defined by the second geofence located at the disposal site. In this example, the geofences may be defined around the disposal site or the paving machine 106, for example, by the distance from the disposal site or the paving machine 106, or by the distance from the disposal site or the paving machine 106 as identified by GPS satellites 132. Position data may be transmitted to the system controller 122 continuously, substantially continuously, or at predetermined intervals (e.g., every second, every 2 seconds, every 5 seconds, every 10 seconds, every 15 seconds, etc.) to define the presence of the transport machine 104 along the travel paths 114, 214, 228, 232 as shown in Figures 1 and 2, and within the user interface 302 in Figure 3.

[0076] Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating another exemplary method 600 for tracking material transport operations. Again, the method 600 of Figure 6 described herein may be carried out by at least one of the system controller 122, the material plant controller 144, the transport machine controller 154, the paving machine controller 172, the controller of the electronic device 128, or other processing devices acting separately or together. However, for the sake of ease of explanation, the method of Figure 6 will be described with respect to the system controller 122. The method 600 may also include, in 602, receiving location information, similar to 502 in Figure 5. In 604, the system controller 122 may receive the payload capacity of the transport machine 104, similar to that implemented in 504 in Figure 5. Furthermore, in 606, the system controller 122 may receive an estimated volume of material loaded onto the transport machine 104, similar to that implemented in 506 in Figure 6.

[0077] Method 600 may also include defining the degree of completion of material transport based on location information in 608, as similarly described above in relation to 508 in Figure 5.

[0078] In 610, the system 100 may optionally sense the volume of material 108 loaded onto the transport machine 104. The volume of material 108 may include volume or mass and may be detected, for example, by a load sensor 156 configured to sense, measure, and / or otherwise determine the load or amount of material 108 placed inside the dump body 150. In 612, the system 100 may optionally generate a ticket. The ticket may identify the estimated volume of material 108 received in 608, the sensed volume of the material 108 as sensed by the load sensor 156, or a combination thereof.

[0079] Method 600 may also include generating an invoice at 614 associated with at least one of the following: the operator of the transport machine 104, the entity transporting the material 108, the entity to which the material 108 is transported, and the project to which the material 108 is provided based on the ticket generated at 614. The invoice generated at 614 may indicate a billing based on the unique identifier obtained at the material plant 102 as described herein. Furthermore, because there are costs associated with both the material 108 itself and the transport of the material 108, an entity for which the material 108 is transported may be billed based on these and other costs associated with the material transport operation.

[0080] Figure 7 is a flowchart of Method 700, an alternative embodiment for tracking the material transport operations shown in Figures 1 and 2. Method 700 in Figure 7 involves the i-th equipment (E i This may include determining whether the i-th transport machine (i.e., the i-th transport machine 104) has entered a load zone, such as at a position 220 substantially below the material silo 134. i In response to the determination (702, determination NO) that it is not in the load zone, method 700 may loop back before 702, and system 100 E i You may intermittently monitor whether it has entered the load zone. However, E i In response to the determination that the vehicle has entered the load zone (702, determination YES), method 700, in 704, E i The payload capacity is E i (c) E may be displayed as imay include identifying the payload capacity of. Payload capacity E i (c) is E i (i.e., the i-th transport machine 104) is an estimated amount of material that can be transported in a single material transport trip. E i The position coordinates of (E i (denoted as (L)) may be obtained at 706, for example, via a position sensor 130 of E that relays data to the system controller 122 or other processing device. i can be obtained at 706 via the position sensor 130.

[0081] The method 700 also includes E i determining, based on E i (L), whether a dumping zone (e.g., the location where the pavement creation 106 is located) has been reached. E i If (L) indicates that E i has not reached the dumping zone (708, determination NO), the method may loop back to 706 where the system 100 can continuously monitor whether E i has entered the dumping zone. However, in response to the determination that E i has reached the dumping zone (708, determination YES), the system controller 122 or other processing device may make the total transported by E i equal to the sum of the total transported by E i plus E i (c). In this way, the total material 108 transported by a single transport machine 104 can be identified in an example where an estimated amount, rather than an exact amount, of the material 108 can be obtained. The system 100, using the system controller 122, may make the total transported by all equipment E i (i.e., all transport machines 104) equal to the sum of the total transported by all E i plus E i (c). Thus, in this way, the total material 108 transported by all transport machines 104 involved in the material transport operation can be identified in an example where an estimated amount, rather than an exact amount, of the material 108 can be obtained.

[0082] Method 700 also allows the desired amount of material 108 to be transported to be all E i Add E i (c) This may include determining whether the total amount of material 108 to be transported is greater than the total amount transported by E i Add E i If the total amount transported by (c) is greater than (714, judgment YES), then method 700 is more material 108 i (i.e., all transport machines 104) may loop back to 702 which can be transported. The desired amount of material 108 to be transported is all E i Add E i In response to a determination (714, determination no.) that the total amount transported by (c) is less than or equal to the total amount transported, the material transport operation is deemed complete and the method may be terminated. [Industrial applicability]

[0083] This disclosure describes a system and method for determining the completeness or level of a material transport operation by associating a unique identifier 144 of a transport machine 104 with a specific position sensor 130 located on or inside the transport machine 104. Furthermore, this disclosure describes a system and method for determining the volume or mass of material 108 to be transported when the exact volume or mass of material 108 cannot be obtained, and a system and method for claiming and / or tracking the amount of material 108 to be transported based on an estimated volume or mass obtained from a material plant 102. Such systems and methods may be used to more efficiently coordinate the activities of transport machines 104, paving machines 106, and / or other machines or equipment during paving operations. For example, such systems and methods may enable a system controller 122 to determine the position of a particular transport machine 104 with greater confidence. As a result, the system controller 122 can schedule the pickup and / or delivery of paving material 108 with improved accuracy, thus maximizing efficiency at the paving work site 112. Additionally, these systems and methods can be used to more accurately control and account for the quantity of material 108 obtained at the material plant 102, thereby reducing operating costs.

[0084] Such systems and methods may also include generating material tickets that include information indicating the material 108 loaded onto the conveyor 104 at the material plant 102, and an estimate of its volume or mass. For example, as part of such a method, a system controller 122, a material plant controller 144, or another controller may cause the material 108 to be loaded onto the dump body 150 of the conveyor 104 at the material silo 134, and the controller may generate material tickets based, at least in part, on the conveyor 104 that receives the material 108 at the material plant 102. In any of the embodiments described herein, such material tickets may include a unique identifier that specifically identifies the conveyor 104. In some embodiments, the unique identifier may be directly observed by one or more paving plant employees while the conveyor 104 is positioned at one or more of the above-described locations 216, 220, 224. Alternatively, one or more cameras, scanners, or other components of the paving plant 102 may directly observe the unique identifier 144 while the transport machine 104 is positioned at one or more of the locations 216, 220, and 224. Furthermore, the system and method may include determining whether the first location described herein is within a geofence positioned within the perimeter 212 of the material plant 102. In some embodiments, determining that the first location is within a geofence positioned within the perimeter 212 of the paving plant 102 can provide a relatively high level of confidence that the position sensor 130 providing the first signal described above is actually located on or inside a specific transport machine 104 identified by the unique identifier contained in the paving material ticket. Thus, the controller may associate the unique identifier of the transport machine 104 with the position sensor 130 in a memory connected to the controller, at least in part, based on making such a determination. By utilizing such a method, it is possible to minimize the erroneous association between the unique identifier of the transport machine 104 and the position sensor 130 positioned on or inside the transport machine 104, which can be caused by human error and other factors.Additionally, the system and method may simplify the process of loading the material plan 102 onto the conveying machine 104 and / or other machines.

[0085] While aspects of this disclosure have been specifically shown and described with reference to the above-described examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments are intended by modifications of the disclosed machines, systems, and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosed content. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of this disclosure as determined by the claims and any equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. Using the controller (122), receive at least one signal from the communication device (126) associated with the first device (104), wherein the signal is Location information indicating the position of the first device (104) along a travel path (114) assigned to traverse the first device (104), wherein the travel path (114) extends between a source location (102) and a destination location (106), The data sensed by the load sensor (156) of the first device (104), The estimated volume of material (108) allocated to the first device (104), which is estimated based on the payload capacity of the first device (104), Including receiving, Using the controller (122), the degree of completion of material (108) transport is defined based on the position information and the number of times the first device (104) crosses the travel path (114), Methods including (500, 600, 700).

2. Using the controller (122), the degree of completion of material (108) transport is defined based on the position information and the number of times the first device (104) crosses the travel path (114). The presence of the first device (104) in the first area within the source location (102) is identified as the loading of the material (108) onto the first device (104), The presence of the first device (104) along the aforementioned transport path (114) is identified as the transport of the material (108), The presence of the first device (104) in a second area within the destination location (106) is identified as the disposal of the material (108) by the first device (104), The method according to claim 1, including the method described in claim 1.

3. The signal includes a unique identifier of the first device (104), The unique identifier is associated with at least one of the operators of the first equipment (104), the entity transporting the material (108), the entity to which the material (108) is transported, and the project to which the material (108) is provided. Using the controller (122), an invoice is generated that includes a representation of at least one of the costs of the material (108) and the costs of transporting the material (108), based on the unique identifier. Using the controller (122), a ticket is generated that identifies at least one of the following: the operator of the first equipment (104), the entity transporting the material (108), the entity to which the material (108) is transported, the project to which the material (108) is provided, and the estimated volume of the material (108) to be loaded onto the first equipment (104), which is estimated based on the payload capacity of the first equipment (104). The method according to claim 1.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising defining the progress of a material (108) transport operation assigned to the first equipment (104) based on the completion degree and location information of the transport of the material (108), wherein the material (108) transport operation includes the transport of at least one of the material (108).

5. The first area is defined by the first geofence at the loading station of the source location (102), The method according to claim 2, wherein the second area is defined by a second geofence located at the destination location (106).

6. Using the sensor (156) associated with the first device (104), the sensed volume of the material (108) loaded onto the first device (104) is determined. To generate a ticket that identifies the sensed volume, To charge at least one of the operators of the first equipment (104), the entity transporting the material (108), and the entity to which the material (108) is transported based on the ticket, The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

7. Controller (122) and A network (124) configured to transmit signals between a communication device (126) associated with a transport machine (104) and the controller (122), Equipped with, The controller (122) The controller (122) is used to receive at least one signal from the communication device (126), wherein the signal is Position information indicating the position of the transport machine (104) along a travel path (114) which is assigned to be crossed by the transport machine (104) that extends between the material transport site (102) and the disposal site (106), Based on the payload capacity of the transport machine (104), the estimated volume of the material (108) loaded onto the transport machine (104) is estimated, Including receiving, Using the controller (122), the degree of completion of material (108) transport is defined based on the position information and the number of times the transport machine (104) crosses the travel path (114), A system configured to perform the following actions.

8. The aforementioned signal, The unique identifier of the transport machine (104) It further includes, The unique identifier is associated with at least one of the operators of the transport machine (104), the entity transporting the material (108), the entity to which the material (108) is transported, and the project to which the material (108) is provided. The controller (122) A ticket is generated based on the unique identifier and the estimated volume of the material (108) loaded onto the transport machine (104), To generate an invoice associated with at least one of the following: the operator of the transport machine (104), the entity transporting the material (108), the entity to which the material (108) is transported, and the project to which the material (108) is provided based on the ticket, The system according to claim 7, further configured to perform the following:

9. Using the controller (122), the degree of completion of material (108) transport is defined based on the position information and the number of times the transport machine (104) crosses the travel path (114). The presence of the transport machine (104) in the first area within the material transport site (102) is identified as the loading of material (108) onto the transport machine (104), The presence of the transport machine (104) along the aforementioned transport path (114) is identified as material (108) transport, The presence of the transport machine (104) in the second area within the aforementioned dumping site (106) is identified as material (108) dumping, Includes, The first area is demarcated by a first geofence at the loading station of the material transfer site (102), The second area is demarcated by a second geofence located at the dumping site (106). The system according to claim 7.

10. The degree of completion of the material (108) transport is defined by the controller (122) of the transport machine (104) located in at least one of the first geofence, the transport path (114), and the second geofence. The system further includes a user interface communicatively coupled to the controller (122), the controller (122) further configured to instruct the user interface to display the completion level. The system according to claim 9.

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