Work Vehicle Implement Position Control via Hydraulic Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional work vehicles with loader arms face challenges in maintaining a constant angular position of the implement relative to the vehicle's driving surface, leading to poor system responsiveness and imprecise control, resulting in materials being inadvertently dumped during operations.
Innovation Solution
A closed-loop control algorithm combining feed-forward and feedback control is implemented, using flow-related parameters and secondary input signals to generate control signals for hydraulic cylinders, ensuring the implement is maintained at a desired angular orientation as the loader arms are raised or lowered.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If conventional automatic control systems are used to maintain constant angular implement position, then the control function is automated, but the system responsiveness is poor and implement position control is imprecise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a closed-loop feedback control system that continuously monitors the actual implement position using sensors and compares it with the desired position. The controller adjusts hydraulic cylinder actuation based on the position error signal, ensuring precise and responsive implement position control while maintaining automation.
2Device complexity
If manual adjustment of implement position is used, then the system is simpler, but the operator struggles to maintain constant angular position leading to material spillage
Solution Approach 1:
The control system automatically monitors and adjusts the implement position without requiring continuous manual intervention. The system serves itself by detecting position deviations and autonomously actuating hydraulic cylinders to correct the implement orientation, ensuring stable material containment while reducing operational complexity.
3Productivity
If the loader arms are moved rapidly to increase productivity, then the operation speed increases, but the implement position control becomes less accurate
Solution Approach 1:
The control system anticipates position deviations that occur during rapid loader arm movement and applies corrective actuation in advance. By predicting the implement position trajectory based on loader arm motion, the system pre-adjusts hydraulic cylinder positions to maintain accurate implement orientation even during high-speed operations.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method for automatically adjusting the position of an implement (32) for a work vehicle (10) may generally include receiving an input associated with a flow-related parameter (206) of the work vehicle as loader arms (36) of the work vehicle are being moved and determining a speed control signal (216) for the implement based at least in part on the flow-related parameter (206), wherein the speed control signal is associated with an implement speed at which the implement is to be moved in order to maintain the implement at a fixed orientation relative to a given reference point. In addition, the method may include generating a valve command signal (242) based at least in part on the speed control signal (216) and transmitting the valve command signal (242) to a valve associated with the implement in order to maintain the implement at the fixed orientation as the loader arms are being moved.