Work Vehicle Load Weight Estimation via Hydraulic Pressure Drop
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Solution Overview
Problem
Work vehicles, such as loaders, often lack pressure sensors to provide feedback on the load in their buckets, which can impact machine performance and operator experience.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a controller to estimate the weight of the load in the bucket by monitoring the speed of an actuator's lift and comparing it to the instantaneous command of a hydraulic valve, estimating hydraulic pressure drops, and determining hydraulic force to calculate the load weight without the need for pressure sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If pressure sensors are installed to provide load feedback, then measurement precision and operator experience are improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical pressure sensors with a hydraulic system-based measurement approach. By monitoring hydraulic pressure differential across a valve and actuator speed, the system infers load weight without direct mechanical sensing, thereby eliminating the need for additional pressure sensors while maintaining measurement capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces hydraulic pressure differential as an intermediary parameter to indirectly measure load weight. Instead of directly measuring weight with sensors, the system uses the hydraulic pressure drop across the valve as a mediator that correlates with load conditions, enabling inference of weight information through hydraulic parameters
2Productivity
If pressure sensors are installed to provide load feedback, then machine performance is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables the hydraulic system to serve dual purposes: both actuating the bucket and providing load measurement feedback. The existing hydraulic components (valve, actuator, hydraulic fluid) are utilized to generate measurement data, making the system self-sufficient for both operation and monitoring without requiring separate sensing infrastructure
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the hydraulic system multi-functional by using it for both power transmission and measurement. The same hydraulic circuit that drives the actuator also provides pressure differential information for load estimation, eliminating the need for dedicated measurement subsystems
3Device complexity
If hydraulic pressure drop estimation is performed without pressure sensors, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision may be affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by continuously monitoring actuator speed and comparing it with commanded speed, then using this information to estimate hydraulic pressure differential. This closed-loop approach allows the system to infer pressure conditions from performance data, maintaining measurement accuracy without direct pressure sensing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the measurement parameters from direct pressure sensing to indirect inference through speed measurement. By measuring actuator speed (a different physical parameter) and correlating it with hydraulic pressure through the valve's flow characteristics, the system achieves load estimation without pressure sensors
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Provides accurate load weight estimation to improve machine performance and operator feedback without adding cost or instrumentation, enhancing productivity and system knowledge.
Implementation Method 1
estimating a hydraulic pressure drop across the hydraulic valve based on the comparison of the speed to the instantaneous command
Implementation Method 2
determining a hydraulic force of the actuator
Data Source
AI summary
A method for estimating a weight of a load in a bucket of a work vehicle includes obtaining, via a controller, a speed of an actuator of a lift coupled to the bucket. The method also includes comparing, via the controller, the speed provided to an instantaneous command to a hydraulic valve coupled to the actuator. The method further includes estimating, via the controller, a hydraulic pressure drop across the hydraulic valve based on the comparison of the speed to the instantaneous command to estimate pressures in the cylinder. The method even further includes determining, via the controller, a hydraulic force of the actuator. The method still further includes estimating, via the controller, the weight of the load in the bucket of the work vehicle based on the estimated pressures in the actuator and the hydraulic force.