Vehicle Spreader Controller for Precise Material Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current snow and ice control technologies lack precise control and tracking of material distribution on road surfaces, leading to inconsistent application, waste, and legal or financial risks due to manual estimation and reliance on imprecise data collection.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle-mounted spreader system equipped with load sensors, a controller, and a wireless communication system that adjusts the conveyor and spinner speeds based on real-time load measurements and vehicle speed to achieve precise material density and coverage, providing feedback to operators and remote servers for improved fleet management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual control methods are used for material distribution, then ease of operation is maintained, but manufacturing precision and measurement precision deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical control with an automated electronic control system that uses load sensors to measure hopper contents and a controller to automatically adjust conveyor and spinner speeds, eliminating manual estimation and achieving precise material distribution
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback through load sensors that continuously measure hopper contents and provide data to the controller, which then adjusts operational parameters to maintain precise material distribution throughout the spreading process
2Manufacturing precision
If automated control systems are implemented, then manufacturing precision and measurement precision improve, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The controller serves multiple functions including processing load sensor inputs, monitoring vehicle speed, calculating required material distribution rates, controlling conveyor speed, controlling spinner speed, and providing user interface operations, consolidating complexity into a single multi-functional device
Solution Approach 2:
The controller acts as an intermediary that processes information from various sensors (load sensors, vehicle speed input) and translates it into control signals for the conveyor and spinner, simplifying the overall system architecture through centralized intelligence
3Measurement precision
If real-time monitoring and control are implemented, then measurement precision and productivity improve, but loss of information and device complexity worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides real-time feedback through the display interface showing actual material distribution rates, hopper contents, and operational parameters, ensuring complete information availability to operators and preventing information loss in fleet management
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle mounted spreader for spreading materials such as sand, salt, or other granular chemicals onto snow and ice covered road surfaces comprises a hopper for containing the material to be spread, a spinner for spreading the material, a conveyor for conveying the material from the hopper to the spinner, a vehicle speed sensor, a load sensor, and a controller programmed with an intended density of material (e.g., pounds per acre) and desired width of coverage; within the controller the vehicle speed sensor measurement and load sensor inputs are processed to generate outputs to control the speed of the conveyor and spinner, to both control the rate of material distribution and the pattern of material distribution to approach the intended density and width.