Earth-moving Machine Fill Level Control System
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Operators of earth-moving machines face challenges in efficiently filling containers to optimal levels, leading to increased fuel consumption, wear and tear, and decreased productivity due to manual adjustments of blade depth and container fill levels, requiring significant experience and concentration.
Innovation Solution
A material sensing and control system that determines a target fill level for the container, measures the current fill level using sensors, and generates control signals to automatically adjust the machine's operations, such as blade and gate positions, to optimize filling efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual control of blade depth and container fill levels is used, then operator skill and concentration can achieve acceptable productivity, but fuel consumption increases and wear and tear occurs due to inefficient operations
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors container fill level using sensors and provides real-time feedback to the control system, which automatically adjusts blade depth and gate position to maintain optimal fill levels, eliminating the need for manual operator judgment and reducing energy-wasting overfilling
Solution Approach 2:
The control system autonomously manages container filling operations by automatically adjusting machine parameters based on sensor data, enabling the system to self-optimize productivity and energy efficiency without requiring skilled manual operation
2Reliability
If manual adjustments of blade depth and container fill levels are used, then experienced operators can maintain acceptable performance, but wear and tear increases due to unnecessary passes and overfilling
Solution Approach 1:
Real-time sensor feedback on container fill level enables the control system to precisely control when to stop filling, preventing overfilling and unnecessary passes that cause wear and tear on machine components
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual mechanical control with automated electronic control based on sensor feedback, eliminating the variability and inefficiency of human operation while reducing mechanical wear through precise, data-driven control
3Productivity
If automated sensing and control systems are implemented, then productivity and fuel efficiency are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control system integrates multiple functions including fill level monitoring, automatic blade depth control, gate position control, and performance optimization into a single integrated system, reducing overall complexity despite the advanced capabilities provided
Data Source
AI summary
An example work machine control system includes target fill level determination logic configured to determine a target fill level for a container of an earth-moving work machine, fill level measurement logic configured to receive a sensor signal from a sensor that detects contents of the container and generate a measurement metric indicative of a current fill level of the container based on the sensor signal, and control logic configured to generate a machine control signal based on the measurement metric and the target fill level.