Quay Crane Relay Platform Positioning for Cycle Time Balance
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing crane control systems do not account for the varying arrival times of transportation vehicles, leading to standby times for one trolley, which decreases cargo handling efficiency by causing accumulation of containers and inefficiencies in both loading and unloading operations.
Innovation Solution
A crane control system that includes a position acquisition device and a control device to predict standby times and adjust the position of the relay mounting platform to equalize the cycle times of the land-side and sea-side cargo handling devices, thereby optimizing the container handling operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the relay point is set to equalize cargo handling paths for two trolleys, then the cycle times for container handling operations are made equal, but standby time occurs when transportation vehicles arrive at different times, decreasing cargo handling efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The relay point position is made dynamically adjustable rather than fixed. The control device calculates optimal relay point positions based on predicted standby times and dynamically repositions the relay mounting platform to equalize cycle times between trolleys, preventing standby time accumulation and improving overall cargo handling efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the positional parameter of the relay point based on operational conditions. By calculating different optimal positions considering vehicle arrival times and trolley cycle times, the system adjusts the relay point location to balance the workload and eliminate standby time for both trolleys
2Adaptability or versatility
If the relay point position is fixed to equalize cargo handling paths, then the system structure is simple, but it cannot adapt to varying vehicle arrival times, causing container accumulation or shortage at the relay point
Solution Approach 1:
The control device continuously monitors trolley positions, vehicle arrival times, and cycle times, then uses this feedback to calculate and adjust the optimal relay point position. This closed-loop control system adapts to varying operational conditions while maintaining balanced cargo handling operations between both trolleys
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary calculation of the optimal relay point position based on predicted standby times before actual cargo handling operations begin. By pre-positioning the relay mounting platform at the calculated optimal location, the system prevents standby time occurrence and container accumulation issues before they happen
Data Source
AI summary
A control system for a quay crane a mounting platform position acquisition device, a land-side position acquisition device, a transportation vehicle position acquisition device, and a control device. The control system 30 is configured such that, when the control device predicts that a standby time will occur for a land-side cargo handling device based on a vehicle stop position, a current position of a relay mounting platform, a current position of the land-side cargo handling device, and a current position of an in-terminal transportation vehicle, the control device performs control that moves the relay mounting platform to a relay position which equalizes an actual land-side cycle time for the land-side cargo handling device including the standby time and a sea-side cycle time for a sea-side cargo handling device with each other.