Outrigger Stabilizing System with Position-Based Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current stabilizing systems for self-propelling work machines, such as cranes, are complex and unsafe due to cumbersome remote controls requiring multiple activation commands for outriggers, which can lead to incorrect operation and reduced visibility for operators, compromising stability and safety during loading and unloading.
Innovation Solution
A stabilizing system with a positioning apparatus that detects the operator's position relative to outriggers, allowing a single command device to control all outriggers, eliminating the need for multiple levers and ensuring correct operation by identifying the nearest outrigger and adjusting its configuration based on operator input.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If multiple command levers are provided for each outrigger in the remote control, then each outrigger can be controlled individually, but the remote control becomes complex and awkward to operate
Solution Approach 1:
A single command lever is designed to control multiple outriggers sequentially. The lever can be actuated to extend or retract shafts of different outriggers (first, second, third, and fourth outriggers) in a predetermined sequence, making one component perform the function of multiple dedicated controls.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically determines which outrigger should be controlled next based on the operator's position detected by the positioning apparatus. The processing unit autonomously selects the target outrigger and activates it without requiring the operator to manually select among multiple levers, making the system self-organizing and reducing operational complexity.
2Reliability
If the operator activates outriggers from a fixed position, then the remote control operation is convenient, but the operator cannot directly observe the outrigger movements, compromising safety
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning apparatus continuously detects the operator's position relative to the outriggers and provides feedback to the processing unit. This feedback enables the system to adaptively control which outrigger is activated next, ensuring the operator remains in a safe observing position while maintaining direct visual contact with the active outrigger.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the control sequence based on the operator's real-time position. As the operator moves to observe different outriggers, the system automatically transitions control to the nearest outrigger, making the control system flexible and adaptive to the operator's observational needs.
3Device complexity
If a single command lever is used to control all outriggers, then the remote control becomes simpler, but it becomes difficult to determine which outrigger is being controlled
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning apparatus acts as an intermediary between the operator and the outrigger selection process. It provides information about the operator's position and the system uses this to automatically identify and control the nearest outrigger, eliminating the need for manual outrigger selection while preventing information loss about which outrigger is active.
Data Source
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AI summary
A stabilising system for a lifting work machine (1 ), comprising: a plurality of outriggers (2) mobile between a rest configuration and at least a use configuration; at least an activating apparatus (3) able to selectively activate said outriggers (2), able to receive movement signals and able to make the outriggers (2) pass from a configuration to another, according to said movement signals received; at least a positioning apparatus able to detect at least a position of an operator (5) relative to at least one of the outriggers (2) and able to produce position signals according to the detections made; at least a portable command device (6), comprising an interface adapted to enable selection of commands by said operator (5) and able to produce command signals according to said selections carried out by the operator (5); and at least a processing unit (4) able to transmit movement signals to said activating apparatus (3) and able to receive said command signals and said position signals, comprising: at least a localising module (41 ) configured for determining which is the nearest outrigger (2) on the basis of the position signals received; and at least an adjustment module (42) configured for producing movement signals according to said nearest outrigger (2) determined and to the command signals received.