Excavator Motion Prediction and Pre-Movement Worker Alerting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Workers around shovels face difficulties in being aware of the shovel's motion during operation, especially in various environments, as existing systems do not effectively alert them to impending motions such as traveling or swinging.
Innovation Solution
A controller-equipped shovel that includes a motion predicting part to forecast its upcoming motions and an alerting part to notify individuals around the shovel before the motion begins, using sound or vibration alerts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual operation is used, then operational flexibility is maintained, but work efficiency is low and labor intensity is high
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically switches between manual and automated operation modes based on working conditions. The operation mode switching mechanism allows the excavator to transition from manual control to automated control along a predetermined travel path, optimizing both productivity and operational flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The automated operation system enables the excavator to perform tasks autonomously along predetermined paths without continuous human intervention. The system self-manages the excavation operations by automatically controlling movement and excavation actions based on pre-programmed sequences.
2Productivity
If automated operation is used, then work efficiency increases, but adaptability to complex terrain is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system adapts its operation mode dynamically based on terrain complexity and working conditions. For simple, repetitive tasks, automated mode is used for high efficiency. For complex terrain requiring judgment and adaptation, the system switches to manual mode, maintaining versatility across different operating conditions.
3Productivity
If operation mode switching is added, then productivity increases, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The operation mode switching mechanism acts as an intermediary between manual and automated control systems. It coordinates the transition between modes and manages the integration of different control approaches, enabling productivity improvement while maintaining manageable system complexity through structured control architecture.
Data Source
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AI summary
A shovel that can encourage a worker, etc., around the shovel to be aware of a motion of the shovel caused by an operator's operation is provided. The shovel 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes the shovel motion predicting part 303 configured to predict the motion of the shovel 100 and the outside alerting part 304 configured to, when the shovel motion predicting part 303 predicts that the shovel 100 next performs a predetermined motion, announce to the area surrounding the shovel 100 that the predetermined motion is going to be performed before the start of the predetermined motion.