阅读说明：本技术 挖土机 (Excavator ) 是由 白谷龙二 黑川朋纪 于 2020-03-27 设计创作，主要内容包括：挖土机(100)具备：下部行走体(1)；上部回转体(3),可回转地搭载于下部行走体(1)；挖掘附件(AT),安装在上部回转体(3)上；及作为附件致动器的动臂缸(7)、斗杆缸(8)及铲斗缸(9),使挖掘附件(AT)动作。并且,挖土机(100)构成为支援操作者,以使形成在相邻的两个修整面之间的台阶(LD1)的大小(HT1)成为规定值(TH1)以下。(A shovel (100) is provided with: a lower traveling body (1); an upper revolving body (3) which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body (1); an excavation Attachment (AT) mounted on the upper slewing body (3); and a boom cylinder (7), an arm cylinder (8), and a bucket cylinder (9) as attachment actuators for operating the excavation Attachment (AT). The shovel (100) is configured to assist an operator so that the size (HT1) of a step (LD1) formed between two adjacent dressing surfaces is equal to or less than a predetermined value (TH 1).)

1. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the operator is assisted so that the step formed between two adjacent trimming surfaces is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

2. The shovel according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined portion of the attachment is moved along a target track set according to a design surface, and the height of the target track is adjusted when the step is larger than a predetermined value.

3. The shovel of claim 1 displaying information related to said steps.

4. The shovel of claim 1,

when the distance between two slope surface portions of finishing disposed on both sides across a slope surface portion of unfinished finishing is smaller than a predetermined value, the difference between the height of the finishing surface of one slope surface portion and the height of the finishing surface of the other slope surface portion is calculated.

5. The shovel of claim 1,

three or more successive dressing surfaces are formed to be raised or lowered in stages.

6. The shovel of claim 1,

at least one of the adjacent two dressing surfaces is unfinished.

7. The shovel of claim 1,

the two adjacent finishing surfaces are part of a bevel or part of the surface of a base on which the pavers are laid.

8. The shovel of claim 1,

and outputting an alarm when the step is larger than a specified value.

9. The shovel of claim 1,

the attachment actuator comprises a hydraulic cylinder which is,

and causing the hydraulic cylinder to autonomously expand and contract so that the step becomes a predetermined value or less.

10. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the size of the step formed between the adjacent two dressing surfaces is calculated.

11. The shovel of claim 1 wherein said attachment is controlled so that said step is below a predetermined value.

12. The shovel of claim 1,

the prescribed value is less than the allowable error.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an excavator as an excavator.

Background

Conventionally, a shovel that supports a slope dressing operation is known (for example, see patent document 1). The excavator automatically adjusts the position of the cutting edge of the bucket and moves the cutting edge of the bucket along the design surface to dig the slope, thereby forming the slope. Specifically, in a slope trimming operation in which the cutting edge of the bucket is moved from the lower end (toe) to the upper end (top) of the slope, the slope is formed by automatically adjusting the position of the cutting edge of the bucket so that the cutting edge of the bucket follows the slope.

Prior art documents

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2013-217137

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved by the invention

However, the excavator may have a relatively large step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions formed by repeatedly performed excavation operations due to the influence of an error included in the output of the GNSS antenna due to the satellite position, the weather, or the like, an error included in the output of the IMU, an error related to the discharge amount of the hydraulic pump due to the temperature of the hydraulic oil, the temperature of the hydraulic actuator, or the like, or an error related to the expansion and contraction amount of the hydraulic cylinder. The belt-like region is a part of the finished surface having a width corresponding to the width of the bucket.

Therefore, it is preferable to provide a shovel capable of suppressing a step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions.

Means for solving the technical problem

An excavator according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a lower traveling body; an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body; an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and an attachment actuator that operates the attachment to support an operator so that a step formed between two adjacent dressing surfaces is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.

Effects of the invention

With the above configuration, a shovel capable of suppressing a step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions is provided.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a side view of a shovel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a top view of the excavator of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a hydraulic system mounted on the shovel of fig. 1.

Fig. 4A is a diagram of extracting a hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the arm cylinder.

Fig. 4B is a diagram of extracting a portion of the hydraulic system related to the operation of the boom cylinder.

Fig. 4C is a diagram of extracting a portion of the hydraulic system related to the operation of the bucket cylinder.

Fig. 4D is a diagram of extracting a portion of the hydraulic system related to the operation of the swing hydraulic motor.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the controller.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a shovel for performing a work of dressing a slope of a downhill.

Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the 1 st support process.

Fig. 8 shows a configuration example of the 1 st support screen.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a 2-stage shovel that performs a work of dressing a slope of a downhill.

Fig. 10 is a flowchart of the 2 nd support processing.

Fig. 11 shows a configuration example of the 2 nd support screen.

Fig. 12A is a functional block diagram showing an example of a detailed configuration related to the equipment control function of the shovel.

Fig. 12B is a functional block diagram showing an example of a detailed configuration related to the equipment control function of the shovel.

Fig. 13 is a functional block diagram showing another example of the detailed configuration related to the equipment control function of the shovel.

Fig. 14 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an electric operation system.

Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a construction system.

Fig. 16 is a schematic view showing another example of the construction system.

Detailed Description

First, a shovel 100 as an excavator according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 1 and 2. Fig. 1 is a side view of the shovel 100, and fig. 2 is a plan view of the shovel 100.

In the present embodiment, the lower traveling body 1 of the shovel 100 includes a crawler belt 1C. The crawler belt 1C is driven by a traveling hydraulic motor 2M as a traveling actuator mounted on the lower traveling body 1. Specifically, crawler belt 1C includes left crawler belt 1CL and right crawler belt 1 CR. The left crawler belt 1CL is driven by a left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML, and the right crawler belt 1CR is driven by a right traveling hydraulic motor 2 MR.

An upper turning body 3 is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body 1 via a turning mechanism 2. The turning mechanism 2 is driven by a turning hydraulic motor 2A as a turning actuator mounted on the upper turning body 3. However, the slewing actuator may be a slewing motor generator as an electric actuator.

A boom 4 is attached to the upper slewing body 3. An arm 5 is attached to a front end of the boom 4, and a bucket 6 as a terminal attachment is attached to a front end of the arm 5. The boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6 constitute an excavation attachment AT as an example of an attachment. Boom 4 is driven by boom cylinder 7, arm 5 is driven by arm cylinder 8, and bucket 6 is driven by bucket cylinder 9. The boom cylinder 7, the arm cylinder 8, and the bucket cylinder 9 constitute an attachment actuator. The termination fitting may also be a bevel bucket.

The boom 4 is supported to be vertically rotatable with respect to the upper slewing body 3. Further, a boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4. The boom angle sensor S1 can detect a boom angle α that is a turning angle of the boom 4. The boom angle α is, for example, a rising angle from a state in which the boom 4 is lowered to the lowest position. Therefore, the boom angle α becomes maximum when the boom 4 is lifted to the highest position.

The arm 5 is supported rotatably with respect to the boom 4. Further, the arm 5 is attached with an arm angle sensor S2. The arm angle sensor S2 can detect an arm angle β as a rotation angle of the arm 5. The arm angle β is, for example, an opening angle from a state in which the arm 5 is maximally closed. Therefore, the arm angle β is maximized when the arm 5 is maximally opened.

The bucket 6 is supported rotatably with respect to the arm 5. Further, a bucket angle sensor S3 is attached to the bucket 6. The bucket angle sensor S3 can detect a bucket angle γ that is a rotation angle of the bucket 6. The bucket angle γ is an opening angle from a state where the bucket 6 is maximally closed. Therefore, the bucket angle γ is maximized when the bucket 6 is maximally opened.

In the embodiment of fig. 1, the boom angle sensor S1, the arm angle sensor S2, and the bucket angle sensor S3 are each configured by a combination of an acceleration sensor and a gyro sensor. However, the acceleration sensor may be constituted only by the acceleration sensor. The boom angle sensor S1 may be a stroke sensor attached to the boom cylinder 7, or may be a rotary encoder, a potentiometer, an inertial measurement unit, or the like. The same applies to the stick angle sensor S2 and the bucket angle sensor S3.

The upper slewing body 3 is provided with a cab 10 as a cab, and is mounted with a power source such as an engine 11. The upper slewing body 3 is provided with a space recognition device 70, a direction detection device 71, a positioning device 73, a body inclination sensor S4, a slewing angular velocity sensor S5, and the like. The cabin 10 is provided therein with an operation device 26, a controller 30, an information input device 72, a display device D1, a voice output device D2, and the like. In the present description, for convenience, the side of the upper revolving structure 3 to which the excavation attachment AT is attached is referred to as the front side, and the side to which the counterweight is attached is referred to as the rear side.

The space recognition device 70 is configured to be able to recognize objects existing in a three-dimensional space around the shovel 100. Examples of the object include a construction surface, a human being, an animal, a vehicle (a dump truck or the like), a work tool, a construction machine, a building, an electric wire, a fence, a hole, and the like. In the case where the space recognition device 70 is configured to detect a person as an object, the space recognition device is configured to be able to distinguish between the person and an object other than the person. The space recognition device 70 may be configured to recognize the type of the object as a person based on a work vest or a helmet worn by the person.

The space recognition device 70 may be configured to recognize the terrain. Specifically, the space recognition device 70 may be configured to calculate a difference between the current terrain and the design surface, for example. The difference between the current topography and the design surface is, for example, the distance between the surface of the current topography and the design surface in the direction perpendicular to the design surface.

The space recognition device 70 may be configured to calculate a distance from the space recognition device 70 or the shovel 100 to the recognized object. The space recognition device 70 includes, for example, an ultrasonic sensor, a millimeter wave radar, a monocular camera, a stereo camera, a LIDAR, a range image sensor, an infrared sensor, or the like, or any combination thereof. In the present embodiment, space recognition device 70 includes a front sensor 70F attached to the front end of the upper surface of cab 10, a rear sensor 70B attached to the rear end of the upper surface of upper revolving unit 3, a left sensor 70L attached to the left end of the upper surface of upper revolving unit 3, and a right sensor 70R attached to the right end of the upper surface of upper revolving unit 3. An upper sensor for recognizing an object existing in a space above the upper slewing body 3 may be attached to the shovel 100.

The direction detection device 71 is configured to detect information relating to the relative relationship between the direction of the upper revolving unit 3 and the direction of the lower traveling unit 1. Direction detecting device 71 may be constituted by a combination of a geomagnetic sensor attached to lower traveling structure 1 and a geomagnetic sensor attached to upper revolving structure 3, for example. Alternatively, the direction detection device 71 may be constituted by a combination of a GNSS receiver mounted on the lower traveling structure 1 and a GNSS receiver mounted on the upper revolving structure 3. The orientation detection device 71 may be a rotary encoder, a rotary position sensor, or the like, or any combination thereof. In the configuration in which the upper slewing body 3 is rotationally driven by the slewing motor generator, the direction detector 71 may be constituted by a resolver. The orientation detection device 71 may be attached to, for example, a center joint portion provided in association with the turning mechanism 2 that realizes relative rotation between the lower traveling body 1 and the upper turning body 3.

The orientation detection device 71 may be constituted by a camera attached to the upper revolving unit 3. At this time, the orientation detection device 71 performs known image processing on an image (input image) captured by a camera attached to the upper revolving structure 3 to detect an image of the lower traveling structure 1 included in the input image. Then, the orientation detection device 71 detects the image of the lower traveling body 1 by using a known image recognition technique, and determines the longitudinal direction of the lower traveling body 1. Then, an angle formed between the front-rear axis direction of the upper revolving structure 3 and the longitudinal direction of the lower traveling structure 1 is derived. The front-rear axis direction of the upper revolving structure 3 is derived from the mounting position of the camera. In particular, since the crawler belt 1C protrudes from the upper revolving structure 3, the orientation detection device 71 can determine the longitudinal direction of the lower traveling structure 1 by detecting an image of the crawler belt 1C. At this time, the orientation detection device 71 may be integrated with the controller 30. Also, the camera may be the space recognition device 70.

The information input device 72 is configured to allow an operator of the excavator to input information to the controller 30. In the present embodiment, the information input device 72 is a switch panel provided in the vicinity of the display unit of the display device D1. However, the information input device 72 may be a touch panel disposed on the display portion of the display device D1, or may be a voice input device such as a microphone disposed in the cabin 10. The information input device 72 may be a communication device that acquires information from the outside.

The positioning device 73 is configured to measure the position of the upper slewing body 3. In the present embodiment, positioning device 73 is a GNSS receiver that detects the position of upper revolving unit 3 and outputs the detected value to controller 30. The positioning device 73 may also be a GNSS compass. At this time, since the positioning device 73 can detect the position and the orientation of the upper revolving structure 3, it also functions as the orientation detecting device 71.

The body inclination sensor S4 detects the inclination of the upper slewing body 3 with respect to a predetermined plane. In the present embodiment, the body inclination sensor S4 is an acceleration sensor that detects the inclination of the upper slewing body 3 about the front-rear axis and the inclination about the left-right axis with respect to the horizontal plane. The front-rear axis and the left-right axis of the upper revolving structure 3 are orthogonal to each other and pass through a shovel center point, which is one point on the revolving shaft of the shovel 100, for example.

The rotation angular velocity sensor S5 detects the rotation angular velocity of the upper slewing body 3. In the present embodiment, it is a gyro sensor. Or may be a resolver, rotary encoder, etc., or any combination thereof. The revolution angular velocity sensor S5 may also detect a revolution speed. The slew velocity may be calculated from the slew angular velocity.

Hereinafter, at least one of the boom angle sensor S1, the arm angle sensor S2, the bucket angle sensor S3, the body inclination sensor S4, and the turning angular velocity sensor S5 is also referred to as a posture detection device. The posture of the excavation attachment AT is detected from the outputs of the boom angle sensor S1, the arm angle sensor S2, and the bucket angle sensor S3, for example.

The display device D1 is a device that displays information. In the present embodiment, the display device D1 is a liquid crystal display provided in the cabin 10. However, the display device D1 may be a display of a mobile terminal such as a smartphone.

The voice output device D2 is a device that outputs voice. The voice output device D2 includes at least one of a device for outputting voice to an operator in the cab 10 and a device for outputting voice to a worker outside the cab 10. Or may be a speaker of the mobile terminal.

The operation device 26 is a device used by an operator to operate the actuator. The operation device 26 includes, for example, an operation lever and an operation pedal. The actuator includes at least one of a hydraulic actuator and an electric actuator.

The controller 30 is a control device for controlling the shovel 100. In the present embodiment, the controller 30 is configured by a computer including a CPU, a volatile memory device, a nonvolatile memory device, and the like. The controller 30 reads a program corresponding to each function from the nonvolatile storage device, loads the program into the volatile storage device, and causes the CPU to execute the corresponding processing. The functions include, for example, a facility guidance function for guiding (guiding) an operator to manually operate the shovel 100 and a facility control function for supporting the operator to manually operate the shovel 100 or for automatically or autonomously operating the shovel 100. The controller 30 may also include a contact avoidance function that automatically or autonomously operates or stops the shovel 100 in order to avoid contact of objects present around the shovel 100 with the shovel 100.

For example, when it is determined from the acquired information of the space recognition device 70 that a person is present within a predetermined range (within the monitoring range) from the shovel 100 before the actuator operates, the controller 30 can restrict the operation of the actuator to an inoperable state or an operation in a very low speed state even if the operator operates the operation device 26. Specifically, the controller 30 can disable the actuator by setting the door lock valve to the locked state when it is determined that a person is present within the monitoring range. In the case of the electric operation device 26, the controller 30 can disable the operation of the actuator by invalidating the control command to the operation control valve. In the operation device 26 of the other embodiment, the same applies to the case of using an operation control valve that outputs a pilot pressure corresponding to a control command from the controller 30 and causes the pilot pressure to act on a pilot port of a corresponding control valve (for example, one of the control valves 171 to 176) in the control valve unit 17. When the operation of the actuator is to be slowed down, the control command from the controller 30 to the operation control valve is limited to a relatively small value, so that the operation of the actuator can be brought into a very slow speed state. As described above, if it is determined that the object to be monitored is present within the monitoring range, the actuator is not driven or driven at a speed (very low speed) lower than the speed corresponding to the operation input to the operation device 26 even if the operation device 26 is operated. Further, when the operator is operating the operation device 26 and it is determined that a person is present in the monitoring range, the controller 30 may stop or decelerate the operation of the actuator regardless of the operation of the operator. Specifically, when it is determined that a person is present within the monitoring range, the controller 30 may stop the actuator by bringing the door lock valve into the locked state. When using an operation control valve that outputs a pilot pressure corresponding to a control command from the controller 30 and causes the pilot pressure to act on a pilot port of a corresponding control valve in the control valve unit, the controller 30 can limit the operation of the actuator to an inoperable or very slow state by invalidating the control command to the operation control valve or outputting a deceleration command to the operation control valve. Further, when the detected object to be monitored is the dump truck, the control related to the stop or deceleration of the actuator may not be performed. For example, the actuators may be controlled to avoid a detected dump truck. In this way, the kind of the detected object can be identified, and the actuator can be controlled based on the identification.

Next, a configuration example of a hydraulic system mounted on the shovel 100 will be described with reference to fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a hydraulic system mounted on the shovel 100. The mechanical power transmission system, the working oil line, the pilot line, and the electrical control system are shown in fig. 3 by double lines, solid lines, broken lines, and dotted lines, respectively.

The hydraulic system of the shovel 100 mainly includes an engine 11, a regulator 13, a main pump 14, a pilot pump 15, a control valve unit 17, an operation device 26, a discharge pressure sensor 28, an operation pressure sensor 29, a controller 30, and the like.

In fig. 3, the hydraulic system is configured to be able to circulate hydraulic oil from the main pump 14 driven by the engine 11 to the hydraulic oil tank via the intermediate bypass line 40 or the parallel line 42.

The engine 11 is a drive source of the shovel 100. In the present embodiment, the engine 11 is, for example, a diesel engine that operates to maintain a predetermined number of revolutions. An output shaft of the engine 11 is coupled to respective input shafts of the main pump 14 and the pilot pump 15.

The main pump 14 is configured to be able to supply hydraulic oil to the control valve unit 17 via a hydraulic oil line. In the present embodiment, the main pump 14 is a swash plate type variable displacement hydraulic pump.

The regulator 13 is configured to be able to control the discharge rate of the main pump 14. In the present embodiment, the regulator 13 controls the discharge rate of the main pump 14 by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the main pump 14 in accordance with a control command from the controller 30.

The pilot pump 15 is an example of a pilot pressure generating device, and is configured to be able to supply hydraulic oil to a hydraulic control apparatus including the operation device 26 via a pilot pipe. In the present embodiment, the pilot pump 15 is a fixed displacement hydraulic pump. However, the pilot pressure generating device may be implemented by main pump 14. That is, the main pump 14 may have a function of supplying hydraulic oil to various hydraulic control devices including the operation device 26 via a pilot line in addition to a function of supplying hydraulic oil to the control valve unit 17 via a hydraulic line. In this case, the pilot pump 15 may be omitted.

The control valve unit 17 is a hydraulic control device that controls a hydraulic system in the shovel 100. In the present embodiment, the control valve unit 17 includes control valves 171 to 176. Control valve 175 includes control valve 175L and control valve 175R, and control valve 176 includes control valve 176L and control valve 176R. The control valve unit 17 is configured to be able to selectively supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the main pump 14 to one or more hydraulic actuators via the control valves 171 to 176. The control valves 171 to 176 control, for example, the flow rate of hydraulic oil flowing from the main pump 14 to the hydraulic actuators and the flow rate of hydraulic oil flowing from the hydraulic actuators to the hydraulic oil tank. The hydraulic actuators include a boom cylinder 7, an arm cylinder 8, a bucket cylinder 9, a left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML, a right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR, and a swing hydraulic motor 2A.

The operation device 26 is configured to be able to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the pilot port of the corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17 via the pilot pipe. The pressure (pilot pressure) of the hydraulic oil supplied to each pilot port is a pressure corresponding to the operation direction and the operation amount of the operation device 26 corresponding to each hydraulic actuator. However, the operation device 26 may be of an electrically controlled type, instead of the pilot pressure type as described above. At this time, the control valve in the control valve unit 17 may be an electromagnetic solenoid type spool valve.

The discharge pressure sensor 28 may be configured to detect the discharge pressure of the main pump 14. In the present embodiment, the discharge pressure sensor 28 outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The operation pressure sensor 29 can be configured to detect the content of an operation performed by the operator on the operation device 26. In the present embodiment, the operation pressure sensor 29 detects the operation direction and the operation amount of the operation device 26 corresponding to each actuator as a pressure (operation pressure), and outputs the detected values to the controller 30. The operation content of the operation device 26 may be detected by a sensor other than the operation pressure sensor.

Main pump 14 includes a left main pump 14L and a right main pump 14R. The left main pump 14L circulates hydraulic oil to the hydraulic oil tank through the left intermediate bypass line 40L or the left parallel line 42L, and the right main pump 14R circulates hydraulic oil to the hydraulic oil tank through the right intermediate bypass line 40R or the right parallel line 42R.

The left intermediate bypass line 40L is a working oil line passing through the control valves 171, 173, 175L, and 176L arranged in the control valve unit 17. The right intermediate bypass line 40R is a working oil line passing through control valves 172, 174, 175R, and 176R arranged in the control valve unit 17.

The control valve 171 is a spool valve that switches the flow of the hydraulic oil in order to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L to the left travel hydraulic motor 2ML and discharge the hydraulic oil discharged from the left travel hydraulic motor 2ML to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 172 is a spool valve that switches the flow of the hydraulic oil in order to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the right main pump 14R to the right travel hydraulic motor 2MR and discharge the hydraulic oil discharged from the right travel hydraulic motor 2MR to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 173 is a spool valve that switches the flow of the hydraulic oil in order to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L to the hydraulic swing motor 2A and discharge the hydraulic oil discharged from the hydraulic swing motor 2A to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 174 is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil in order to supply hydraulic oil discharged from the right main pump 14R to the bucket cylinder 9 and discharge the hydraulic oil in the bucket cylinder 9 to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 175L is a spool valve for switching the flow of the hydraulic oil in order to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L to the boom cylinder 7. The control valve 175R is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil in order to supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the right main pump 14R to the boom cylinder 7 and discharge the hydraulic oil in the boom cylinder 7 to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 176L is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil in order to supply hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L to the arm cylinder 8 and discharge the hydraulic oil in the arm cylinder 8 to a hydraulic oil tank.

The control valve 176R is a spool valve that switches the flow of hydraulic oil in order to supply hydraulic oil discharged from the right main pump 14R to the arm cylinder 8 and discharge the hydraulic oil in the arm cylinder 8 to a hydraulic oil tank.

The left parallel line 42L is a working oil line in parallel with the left intermediate bypass line 40L. When the flow of the hydraulic oil through the left intermediate bypass line 40L is restricted or blocked by any one of the control valves 171, 173, and 175L, the left parallel line 42L can supply the hydraulic oil to the control valve further downstream. The right parallel line 42R is a working oil line in parallel with the right intermediate bypass line 40R. When the flow of the hydraulic oil through the right intermediate bypass line 40R is restricted or blocked by any one of the control valves 172, 174, and 175R, the right parallel line 42R can supply the hydraulic oil to the control valve further downstream.

The regulator 13 includes a left regulator 13L and a right regulator 13R. The left regulator 13L controls the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L in accordance with the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L. Specifically, the left regulator 13L reduces the discharge amount by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L in accordance with, for example, an increase in the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L. The same applies to the right regulator 13R. This is to prevent the absorbed power (absorption horsepower) of the main pump 14, which is expressed by the product of the discharge pressure and the discharge amount, from exceeding the output power (output horsepower) of the engine 11.

Operation device 26 includes a left operation lever 26L, a right operation lever 26R, and a travel lever 26D. The travel bar 26D includes a left travel bar 26DL and a right travel bar 26 DR.

The left operation lever 26L is used for the swing operation and the operation of the arm 5. When the left control lever 26L is operated in the front-rear direction, the control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount is introduced into the pilot port of the control valve 176 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. When the control valve is operated in the left-right direction, the control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount is introduced into the pilot port of the control valve 173 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15.

Specifically, when the left control lever 26L is operated in the arm closing direction, the hydraulic oil is introduced into the right pilot port of the control valve 176L, and the hydraulic oil is introduced into the left pilot port of the control valve 176R. When the left control lever 26L is operated in the arm opening direction, the hydraulic oil is introduced into the left pilot port of the control valve 176L, and the hydraulic oil is introduced into the right pilot port of the control valve 176R. The left control lever 26L introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 173 when operated in the leftward turning direction, and introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 173 when operated in the rightward turning direction.

The right control lever 26R is used for the operation of the boom 4 and the operation of the bucket 6. When the right control lever 26R is operated in the front-rear direction, the control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount is introduced into the pilot port of the control valve 175 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. When the control valve is operated in the left-right direction, the control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount is introduced into the pilot port of the control valve 174 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15.

Specifically, when the right control lever 26R is operated in the boom lowering direction, the hydraulic oil is introduced into the left pilot port of the control valve 175R. When the right control lever 26R is operated in the boom raising direction, the hydraulic oil is introduced into the right pilot port of the control valve 175L and the hydraulic oil is introduced into the left pilot port of the control valve 175R. The right control lever 26R introduces hydraulic oil to the right pilot port of the control valve 174 when operated in the bucket closing direction, and introduces hydraulic oil to the left pilot port of the control valve 174 when operated in the bucket opening direction.

The traveling bar 26D is used for the operation of the crawler belt 1C. Specifically, the left travel lever 26DL is used for the operation of the left crawler belt 1 CL. The left travel pedal may be linked to the vehicle. When the control is performed in the forward/backward direction, the left travel lever 26DL introduces a control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount to the pilot port of the control valve 171 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. The right walking bar 26DR is used for the operation of the right crawler belt 1 CR. The right travel pedal may be linked to the vehicle. When the control is performed in the forward/backward direction, the right travel lever 26DR introduces a control pressure corresponding to the lever operation amount to the pilot port of the control valve 172 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15.

The discharge pressure sensor 28 includes a discharge pressure sensor 28L and a discharge pressure sensor 28R. The discharge pressure sensor 28L detects the discharge pressure of the left main pump 14L, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The same applies to the discharge pressure sensor 28R.

The operation pressure sensors 29 include operation pressure sensors 29LA, 29LB, 29RA, 29RB, 29DL, 29 DR. The operation pressure sensor 29LA detects the content of the operation of the left operation lever 26L by the operator in the front-rear direction in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The operation contents include, for example, a lever operation direction and a lever operation amount (lever operation angle).

Similarly, the operation pressure sensor 29LB detects the content of the operation performed by the operator on the left operation lever 26L in the left-right direction in a pressure manner, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The operation pressure sensor 29RA detects the content of the operation of the right operation lever 26R in the front-rear direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The operation pressure sensor 29RB detects the content of the operation of the right operation lever 26R in the left-right direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The operation pressure sensor 29DL detects the content of the operation of the left travel lever 26DL by the operator in the front-rear direction in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The operation pressure sensor 29DR detects the content of the operation of the right travel lever 26DR in the front-rear direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The controller 30 receives the output of the operating pressure sensor 29 and outputs a control command to the regulator 13 as needed to vary the discharge rate of the main pump 14. The controller 30 receives the output of the control pressure sensor 19 provided upstream of the throttle 18, and outputs a control command to the regulator 13 as necessary to change the discharge rate of the main pump 14. The throttle 18 includes a left throttle 18L and a right throttle 18R, and the control pressure sensor 19 includes a left control pressure sensor 19L and a right control pressure sensor 19R.

In the left intermediate bypass line 40L, a left choke 18L is disposed between the control valve 176L located at the most downstream side and the hydraulic oil tank. Therefore, the flow of the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L is restricted by the left throttle 18L. And, the left orifice 18L generates a control pressure for controlling the left regulator 13L. The left control pressure sensor 19L is a sensor for detecting the control pressure, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30. The controller 30 controls the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L by adjusting the swash plate tilt angle of the left main pump 14L in accordance with the control pressure. The controller 30 decreases the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L as the control pressure increases, and the controller 30 increases the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L as the control pressure decreases. The discharge rate of the right main pump 14R is controlled in the same manner.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 3, when the hydraulic actuators in the shovel 100 are not operated in the standby state, the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L passes through the left intermediate bypass line 40L and reaches the left throttle 18L. The flow of the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L increases the control pressure generated upstream of the left throttle 18L. As a result, the controller 30 reduces the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L to the allowable minimum discharge rate, and suppresses the pressure loss (pumping loss) when the discharged hydraulic oil passes through the left intermediate bypass line 40L. On the other hand, when any one of the hydraulic actuators is operated, the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L flows into the operation target hydraulic actuator through the control valve corresponding to the operation target hydraulic actuator. The flow of the hydraulic oil discharged from the left main pump 14L decreases or disappears the amount of hydraulic oil reaching the left throttle 18L, and the control pressure generated upstream of the left throttle 18L is reduced. As a result, the controller 30 increases the discharge rate of the left main pump 14L, circulates a sufficient amount of hydraulic oil in the hydraulic actuator to be operated, and ensures the driving of the hydraulic actuator to be operated. The controller 30 also controls the discharge rate of the right main pump 14R in the same manner.

According to the above configuration, the hydraulic system of fig. 3 can suppress unnecessary energy consumption in the main pump 14 in the standby state. Unnecessary energy consumption includes pumping loss of the working oil discharged from main pump 14 in intermediate bypass line 40. When the hydraulic actuator is operated, the hydraulic system of fig. 3 can reliably supply a sufficient amount of hydraulic oil required for the hydraulic actuator to be operated from the main pump 14.

Next, a configuration of the controller 30 for operating the actuator by the device control function will be described with reference to fig. 4A to 4D. Fig. 4A to 4D are diagrams of a part of the extraction hydraulic system. Specifically, fig. 4A is a diagram of extracting a hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the arm cylinder 8, and fig. 4B is a diagram of extracting a hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the boom cylinder 7. Fig. 4C is a diagram of extracting a hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the bucket cylinder 9, and fig. 4D is a diagram of extracting a hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the swing hydraulic motor 2A.

As shown in fig. 4A to 4D, the hydraulic system includes a proportional valve 31, a shuttle valve 32, and a proportional valve 33. Proportional valve 31 includes proportional valves 31 AL-31 DL and 31 AR-31 DR, shuttle valve 32 includes shuttle valves 32 AL-32 DL and 32 AR-32 DR, and proportional valve 33 includes proportional valves 33 AL-33 DL and 33 AR-33 DR.

The proportional valve 31 functions as a control valve for controlling the plant. The proportional valve 31 is disposed in a pipe line connecting the pilot pump 15 and the shuttle valve 32, and is configured to be capable of changing a flow passage area of the pipe line. In the present embodiment, the proportional valve 31 operates in accordance with a control command output from the controller 30. Therefore, regardless of the operation device 26 by the operator, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the pilot port of the corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17 via the proportional valve 31 and the shuttle valve 32.

The shuttle valve 32 has two inlet ports and one outlet port. One of the two inlet ports is connected to the operating device 26 and the other is connected to the proportional valve 31. The discharge port is connected to a pilot port of a corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17. Therefore, the shuttle valve 32 can cause the higher pilot pressure of the pilot pressure generated by the operation device 26 and the pilot pressure generated by the proportional valve 31 to act on the pilot port of the corresponding control valve.

The proportional valve 33 functions as a plant control valve, similarly to the proportional valve 31. The proportional valve 33 is disposed in a pipe line connecting the operation device 26 and the shuttle valve 32, and is configured to be capable of changing a flow passage area of the pipe line. In the present embodiment, the proportional valve 33 operates in accordance with a control command output from the controller 30. Therefore, regardless of the operation device 26 by the operator, the controller 30 can reduce the pressure of the hydraulic oil discharged from the operation device 26 and supply the pressure to the pilot port of the corresponding control valve in the control valve unit 17 via the shuttle valve 32.

With this configuration, even when an operation is not performed on a specific operation device 26, the controller 30 can operate the hydraulic actuator corresponding to the specific operation device 26. Even when an operation is performed on a specific operation device 26, the controller 30 can forcibly stop the operation of the hydraulic actuator corresponding to the specific operation device 26.

For example, as shown in fig. 4A, the left operation lever 26L is used to operate the arm 5. Specifically, the left control lever 26L causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation in the front-rear direction to act on the pilot port of the control valve 176 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. More specifically, when the arm closing direction (rear side) is operated, the left operation lever 26L causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and the left pilot port of the control valve 176R. When the operation is performed in the arm opening direction (forward side), the left operation lever 26L causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and the right pilot port of the control valve 176R.

The left operating lever 26L is provided with a switch NS. In the present embodiment, the switch NS is a push switch provided at the distal end of the left operating lever 26L. The operator can operate the left operating lever 26L while pressing the switch NS. The switch NS may be provided on the right operating lever 26R, or may be provided at another position in the cabin 10.

The operation pressure sensor 29LA detects the content of the operation of the left operation lever 26L by the operator in the front-rear direction in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The proportional valve 31AL operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and the left pilot port of the control valve 176R via the proportional valve 31AL and the shuttle valve 32AL is adjusted. The proportional valve 31AR operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and the right pilot port of the control valve 176R via the proportional valve 31AR and the shuttle valve 32AR is adjusted. Proportional valves 31AL, 31AR can adjust pilot pressure so that control valves 176L, 176R can be stopped at any valve position.

With this configuration, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and the left pilot port of the control valve 176R via the proportional valve 31AL and the shuttle valve 32AL, regardless of the boom closing operation performed by the operator. That is, the arm 5 can be closed. The controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and the right pilot port of the control valve 176R via the proportional valve 31AR and the shuttle valve 32AR, regardless of the boom opening operation performed by the operator. That is, the arm 5 can be opened.

The proportional valve 33AL operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Pilot pressure generated by hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and the left pilot port of the control valve 176R via the left control lever 26L, the proportional valve 33AL, and the shuttle valve 32AL is reduced. The proportional valve 33AR operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and the right pilot port of the control valve 176R via the left control lever 26L, the proportional valve 33AR, and the shuttle valve 32AR is reduced. The proportional valves 33AL, 33AR can adjust the pilot pressures so that the control valves 176L, 176R can be stopped at arbitrary valve positions.

With this configuration, even when the operator performs the arm closing operation, the controller 30 can reduce the pilot pressure acting on the closed pilot port of the control valve 176 (the left pilot port of the control valve 176L and the right pilot port of the control valve 176R) as necessary, and forcibly stop the arm 5 closing operation. The same applies to a case where the opening operation of the arm 5 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the arm opening operation.

Alternatively, even when the operator performs the arm closing operation, the controller 30 may forcibly stop the closing operation of the arm 5 by increasing the pilot pressure acting on the pilot port on the opening side of the control valve 176 (the right pilot port of the control valve 176L and the left pilot port of the control valve 176R) located on the opposite side of the pilot port on the closing side of the control valve 176 by controlling the proportional valve 31AR as necessary, and forcibly returning the control valve 176 to the neutral position. In this case, the proportional valve 33AL may be omitted. The same applies to a case where the opening operation of the arm 5 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the arm opening operation.

Although the following description with reference to fig. 4B to 4D is omitted, the same applies to a case where the operation of the boom 4 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the boom raising operation or the boom lowering operation, a case where the operation of the bucket 6 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the bucket closing operation or the bucket opening operation, and a case where the turning operation of the upper turning body 3 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the turning operation. The same applies to the case where the walking operation of the lower walking body 1 is forcibly stopped when the operator performs the walking operation.

As shown in fig. 4B, the right operation lever 26R is used to operate the boom 4. Specifically, the right control lever 26R causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation in the front-rear direction to act on the pilot port of the control valve 175 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. More specifically, when the operation is performed in the boom raising direction (rear side), the right control lever 26R causes the pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the right pilot port of the control valve 175L and the left pilot port of the control valve 175R. When the operation is performed in the boom lowering direction (forward side), the right control lever 26R causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the right pilot port of the control valve 175R.

The operation pressure sensor 29RA detects the content of the operation of the right operation lever 26R in the front-rear direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The proportional valve 31BL operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 175L and the left pilot port of the control valve 175R via the proportional valve 31BL and the shuttle valve 32BL is adjusted. The proportional valve 31BR operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Pilot pressure generated by hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 175L and the right pilot port of the control valve 175R via the proportional valve 31BR and the shuttle valve 32BR is adjusted. The proportional valves 31BL, 31BR can adjust pilot pressures so that the control valves 175L, 175R can be stopped at arbitrary valve positions.

With this configuration, regardless of the boom raising operation by the operator, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 175L and the left pilot port of the control valve 175R via the proportional valve 31BL and the shuttle valve 32 BL. That is, the boom 4 can be lifted. Further, regardless of the boom lowering operation performed by the operator, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 175R via the proportional valve 31BR and the shuttle valve 32 BR. That is, the boom 4 can be lowered.

As shown in fig. 4C, the right operating lever 26R is used to operate the bucket 6. Specifically, the right control lever 26R causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation in the left-right direction to act on the pilot port of the control valve 174 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. More specifically, when the control lever is operated in the bucket closing direction (left direction), the right control lever 26R causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the left pilot port of the control valve 174. When the control lever 26R is operated in the bucket opening direction (right direction), the pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount is applied to the right pilot port of the control valve 174.

The operation pressure sensor 29RB detects the content of the operation of the right operation lever 26R in the left-right direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The proportional valve 31CL operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 174 via the proportional valve 31CL and the shuttle valve 32CL is adjusted. The proportional valve 31CR operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 174 via the proportional valve 31CR and the shuttle valve 32CR is adjusted. The proportional valves 31CL and 31CR can adjust the pilot pressure so that the control valve 174 can stop at any valve position.

With this configuration, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 174 via the proportional valve 31CL and the shuttle valve 32CL, regardless of the bucket closing operation performed by the operator. I.e. the bucket 6 can be closed. The controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 174 via the proportional valve 31CR and the shuttle valve 32CR, regardless of the bucket opening operation performed by the operator. I.e. the bucket 6 can be opened.

Also, as shown in fig. 4D, the left operating lever 26L is also used to operate the swing mechanism 2. Specifically, the left control lever 26L causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation in the left-right direction to act on the pilot port of the control valve 173 by the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15. More specifically, when the left swing direction (left direction) is operated, the left control lever 26L causes a pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount to act on the left pilot port of the control valve 173. When the left operation lever 26L is operated in the rightward turning direction (rightward direction), the pilot pressure corresponding to the operation amount is applied to the right pilot port of the control valve 173.

The operation pressure sensor 29LB detects the content of the operation of the left operation lever 26L in the left-right direction by the operator in a pressure form, and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The proportional valve 31DL operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 173 via the proportional valve 31DL and the shuttle valve 32DL is adjusted. The proportional valve 31DR operates in accordance with a control command (current command) output from the controller 30. Then, the pilot pressure generated by the hydraulic oil introduced from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 173 via the proportional valve 31DR and the shuttle valve 32DR is adjusted. The proportional valves 31DL, 31DR can adjust the pilot pressure so that the control valve 173 can be stopped at an arbitrary valve position.

With this configuration, the controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the left pilot port of the control valve 173 via the proportional valve 31DL and the shuttle valve 32DL regardless of the left swing operation performed by the operator. That is, the turning mechanism 2 can be turned left. The controller 30 can supply the hydraulic oil discharged from the pilot pump 15 to the right pilot port of the control valve 173 via the proportional valve 31DR and the shuttle valve 32DR regardless of the right swing operation performed by the operator. That is, the turning mechanism 2 can be turned right.

The shovel 100 may have a structure in which the lower traveling unit 1 is automatically or autonomously advanced/retreated. At this time, the hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the left traveling hydraulic motor 2ML and the hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the right traveling hydraulic motor 2MR may be configured similarly to the hydraulic system portion related to the operation of the boom cylinder 7 and the like.

Further, as a form of the operation device 26, a description is given of a hydraulic operation lever provided with a hydraulic pilot circuit, but an electric operation lever provided with an electric pilot circuit may be adopted instead of the hydraulic operation lever. At this time, the lever operation amount of the electric operation lever is input to the controller 30 as an electric signal. Further, an electromagnetic valve is disposed between the pilot pump 15 and the pilot port of each control valve. The solenoid valve is configured to operate in response to an electric signal from the controller 30. According to this configuration, when a manual operation using an electric operation lever is performed, the controller 30 controls the solenoid valve based on an electric signal corresponding to the lever operation amount to increase or decrease the pilot pressure, thereby moving each control valve. In addition, each control valve may be constituted by an electromagnetic spool valve. At this time, the solenoid spool operates in response to an electric signal from the controller 30 corresponding to the lever operation amount of the electric operation lever.

Next, a configuration example of the controller 30 will be described with reference to fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the controller 30. In fig. 5, the controller 30 is configured to be able to receive signals output from at least one of the posture detection device, the operation device 26, the space recognition device 70, the direction detection device 71, the information input device 72, the positioning device 73, the switch NS, and the like, to perform various calculations, and to output a control command to at least one of the proportional valve 31, the display device D1, the voice output device D2, and the like. The attitude detection device includes, for example, a boom angle sensor S1, an arm angle sensor S2, a bucket angle sensor S3, a body inclination sensor S4, and a turning angular velocity sensor S5. The controller 30 includes a position calculating unit 30A, a trajectory acquiring unit 30B, and an autonomous control unit 30C as functional elements. Each functional element may be constituted by hardware or software.

The position calculation unit 30A is configured to calculate the position of the positioning target. In the present embodiment, the position calculating unit 30A calculates a coordinate point in a reference coordinate system of a predetermined portion of the attachment. The predetermined portion is, for example, a cutting edge or a back surface of the bucket 6. The origin of the reference coordinate system is, for example, the intersection of the revolving shaft and the ground plane of the shovel 100. The reference coordinate system is, for example, an XYZ rectangular coordinate system having an X axis parallel to the front-rear axis of the shovel 100, a Y axis parallel to the left-right axis of the shovel 100, and a Z axis parallel to the rotation axis of the shovel 100. The position calculation unit 30A calculates a coordinate point of the cutting edge of the bucket 6 from the respective pivot angles of the boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6, for example. The position calculating unit 30A may calculate not only the coordinate point of the center of the cutting edge of the bucket 6 but also the coordinate point of the left end of the cutting edge of the bucket 6 and the coordinate point of the right end of the cutting edge of the bucket 6. At this time, the position calculating unit 30A may use the output of the body inclination sensor S4. The position calculating unit 30A may calculate a coordinate point in the world coordinate system of the predetermined portion of the attachment using the output of the positioning device 73.

The track acquisition unit 30B is configured to acquire a target track, which is a track to be followed by a predetermined portion of the attachment when the shovel 100 is autonomously operated. In the present embodiment, the track acquisition unit 30B acquires a target track used when the autonomous control unit 30C autonomously operates the shovel 100. Specifically, the track acquiring unit 30B derives the target track from data on the design surface stored in the nonvolatile storage device (hereinafter, referred to as "design data"). The target trajectory is typically a trajectory that conforms to the design surface. The track acquisition unit 30B may derive the target track from information on the terrain around the shovel 100 recognized by the space recognition device 70. Alternatively, the trajectory acquisition unit 30B may derive information on the past trajectory of the cutting edge of the bucket 6 from the past output of the posture detection device stored in the volatile storage device, and derive the target trajectory from the information. Alternatively, the trajectory acquisition unit 30B may derive the target trajectory from the current position of the predetermined portion of the accessory and the design data.

The autonomous control unit 30C is configured to be able to autonomously operate the shovel 100. In the present embodiment, the autonomous control unit 30C is configured to move the predetermined portion of the attachment along the target trajectory acquired by the trajectory acquisition unit 30B when a predetermined start condition is satisfied. Specifically, when the operation device 26 is operated in a state where the switch NS is pressed, the shovel 100 is autonomously operated to move the predetermined portion along the target track.

In the present embodiment, the autonomous control unit 30C is configured to support manual operation of the excavator by the operator by autonomously operating the actuator. For example, when the operator manually performs an arm closing operation while pressing the switch NS, the autonomous control unit 30C may autonomously extend and contract at least one of the boom cylinder 7, the arm cylinder 8, and the bucket cylinder 9 so that the target trajectory is aligned with the position of the cutting edge of the bucket 6. At this time, the operator can close arm 5 while aligning the cutting edge of bucket 6 with the target trajectory simply by operating left control lever 26L in the arm closing direction, for example.

In the present embodiment, the autonomous control unit 30C can autonomously operate each actuator by individually adjusting the pilot pressure acting on the control valve corresponding to each actuator by issuing a control command (current command) to the proportional valve 31. For example, at least one of the boom cylinder 7 and the bucket cylinder 9 can be operated regardless of whether the right control lever 26R is tilted.

Next, a process of the controller 30 for assisting the bevel finishing operation performed by the operator (hereinafter referred to as "1 st assistance process") will be described with reference to fig. 6 to 8. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the shovel 100 performing a work of dressing a slope of a downhill. Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the 1 st support process. Fig. 8 shows a configuration example of the 1 st support screen displayed on the display unit of the display device D1 when the 1 st support processing is performed.

As shown in fig. 6, the operator of the excavator 100 alternately performs a dressing operation of moving the slope bucket 6S from the toe FS to the top TS along the design surface and a traveling operation of moving the lower traveling body 1 by a predetermined distance in the direction indicated by the arrow AR to dress the slope.

Specifically, the dressing work includes a work of digging an inclined surface as a construction surface with a cutting edge of the inclined surface bucket 6S, a work of performing construction while pressing the inclined surface as the construction surface with a back surface of the inclined surface bucket 6S, a work of digging the construction surface while pressing the inclined surface as the construction surface with a back surface of the inclined surface bucket 6S, and the like.

The band-shaped region SW is a region (dressing surface) on the slope dressed in 1 dressing operation. In the present embodiment, the strip-shaped region SW has a width substantially equal to the width of the bucket 6S. The band-shaped area SW0 is an unfinished area finished by the finishing operation of this time. The belt-shaped area SW1 is an area that has been trimmed by the last (previous 1) trimming job, and the belt-shaped area SW2 is an area that has been trimmed by the last (previous 2) trimming jobs. The same applies to the band regions SW3 to SW 10. In addition, in fig. 6, the region shown by the dot pattern indicates a slope portion in which trimming has been completed, and the region shown by the cross pattern indicates a slope portion in which trimming has not been completed.

The target trajectory is set to coincide with the design surface during the dressing operation. Therefore, the shovel 100 is controlled so that the trajectory of the actual working site falls within a predetermined allowable error range with respect to the design surface. However, even if the construction of the excavator 100 can be continued so that the trajectory of the working portion actually falls within the predetermined allowable error range, a step LD may occur between two adjacent belt-shaped regions. For example, the step LD6 as the step LD in fig. 6 is a step formed between the band-shaped region SW5 and the band-shaped region SW 6. If the step LD is large, there is a possibility that a problem such as a concrete block floating when the concrete block is set on an inclined surface may occur even if each of the band-shaped regions SW to be constructed is within the allowable range.

In the present embodiment, the controller 30 executes the 1 st support process when the autonomous control unit 30C positions the back surface of the bucket 6 at the toe FS.

First, the controller 30 calculates the difference between the surface of the band-shaped area SW1 formed by the previous trimming operation and the design surface (step ST 1). For example, in the example of fig. 6, the controller 30 calculates a difference DS1 (refer to fig. 8) between the surface and the design surface of the band-shaped area SW1 formed by the last trimming operation.

For example, the controller 30 derives a difference DS1 between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the design surface in the direction perpendicular to the design surface from the trajectory of the working portion of the attachment when the band-shaped region SW1 is trimmed. At this time, the controller 30 may derive the difference DS1 between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the design surface in the direction perpendicular to the design surface from the output of the space recognition device 70 and the output of the positioning device 73. The working site of the attachment is, for example, the cutting edge of the slope bucket 6S or the back surface of the slope bucket 6S.

Then, the controller 30 calculates the difference between the surface (estimated surface) of the band-shaped area SW0 formed by the present trimming operation and the design surface (step ST 2). For example, in the example of fig. 6, the controller 30 estimates the difference DS0 between the estimated surface and the design surface of the band-shaped region SW0 formed by the present trimming operation.

For example, at the time of the dressing work, the cutting edge of the slope bucket 6S is moved to the toe of the slope, which is the work surface, by manual operation or autonomous control of the operator. When the cutting edge of the slope bucket 6S moves to the toe, the controller 30 derives a difference DS0 between the estimated surface of the unfinished strip-shaped region SW0 and the design surface in the direction perpendicular to the design surface from the coordinate point of the cutting edge of the slope bucket 6S calculated by the position calculating unit 30A. That is, the controller 30 derives the difference DS0 between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished strip-shaped region SW0, with the coordinate point of the cutting edge of the current slope bucket 6S being the coordinate point on the estimated surface of the unfinished strip-shaped region SW 0. Here, the controller 30 may derive the difference DS0 between the estimated surface and the design surface of the incomplete belt-shaped area SW0, with the coordinate point of the contact point between the back surface of the current bevel bucket 6S and the bevel, which is the construction surface, as the coordinate point on the estimated surface of the incomplete belt-shaped area SW 0.

Then, the controller 30 determines whether or not the size of the step is larger than a predetermined value (step ST 3).

For example, the controller 30 derives the size HT1 of the step LD1 between the band-shaped region SW0 and the band-shaped region SW1 from the difference DS1 between the surface and the design surface of the already-formed band-shaped region SW1 and the difference DS0 between the estimated surface and the design surface of the not-yet-formed band-shaped region SW 0. That is, the controller 30 derives the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 as the size HT1 of the step LD 1.

Also, the controller 30 determines whether the size HT1 of the step LD1 is greater than the predetermined value TH 1. The predetermined value TH1 is, for example, a value stored in advance in a nonvolatile storage device, and is typically several mm (e.g., 5 mm). The predetermined value TH1 may be zero.

When it is determined that the size HT1 of the step LD1 is greater than the predetermined value TH1 (yes in step ST3), the controller 30 notifies that the size HT1 of the step LD1 is greater than the predetermined value TH1 (step ST 4).

For example, the controller 30 notifies the content that the size HT1 of the step LD1 between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 that has been formed and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 that has not been formed is likely to be larger than the prescribed value TH 1. Specifically, the controller 30 causes the voice output device D2 to output voice information "the height of the bucket is adjusted because the step may be increased", and/or displays the same information on the display unit of the display device D1.

Then, the controller 30 changes the target related to the autonomous control (step ST 5). The target related to autonomous control is, for example, a target track. For example, when the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 is higher than the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0, and when the size HT1 of the step LD1 is larger than the predetermined value TH1 by the value DF, that is, when HT1 is TH1+ DF, the controller 30 changes the target track so that the target track is raised from the design surface by at least the value DF. This is because the size HT1 of the step LD1 is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 1. Further, the controller 30 may change the target trajectory so that the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 is flush with the surface of the band-shaped region SW 0. Then, the controller 30 autonomously operates the shovel 100 to move the predetermined portion of the attachment along the newly set target track.

In this way, the controller 30 changes the target trajectory so that the position of the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 with respect to the design surface is within the predetermined allowable range and the size HT1 of the step LD1 becomes the predetermined value TH1 or less. The specified allowable range is, for example, a design surface ± 30 mm.

When it is determined that the size HT1 of the step LD1 is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH1 (no in step ST3), the controller 30 ends the present 1 ST support processing without changing the target related to the autonomous control.

Fig. 8 shows a configuration example of the 1 st support screen displayed on the display unit of the display device D1 when the slope bucket 6S is positioned on the toe FS in order to complete the strip-shaped region SW 0.

The 1 st support screen includes a cross-section display area G1, a front surface display area G2, and an information display area G3.

The section display area G1 is an area that displays a section of a slope. In the present embodiment, the cross-section display region G1 shows a cross section of a slope on an imaginary plane perpendicular to the slope including the one-dot chain line LN1 of fig. 6.

The image portions GL1 to GL6 are portions of the solid line LS indicating the unevenness of the slope, and indicate the sizes of the steps LD1 to LD6, respectively. The image portion GL2 indicates that the size of the step LD2 is substantially zero, i.e., the surface of the belt-shaped region SW1 is substantially on the same plane as the surface of the belt-shaped region SW 2.

The thick solid line L0 indicates the position of the design surface, the broken line L1 indicates the allowable upper limit position of the finishing surface (for example, the design surface +30mm), and the broken line L2 indicates the allowable lower limit position of the finishing surface (for example, the design surface-30 mm). That is, the trimming surface is regarded as an acceptable surface as long as the position with respect to the design surface is below the allowable upper limit position and above the allowable lower limit position.

By observing the cross-section display area G1, the operator of the shovel 100 can easily recognize that the distance between the design surface and the surface of the belt-shaped area SW1 is DS1, the distance between the design surface and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped area SW0 is DS0, the size of the step LD1 between the surface of the belt-shaped area SW1 and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped area SW0 is HT1, and the size HT1 of the step LD1 is greater than the predetermined value TH 1. In the present embodiment, the dashed arrows indicating DS0, DS1, DS2, HT1, and TH1 are for illustrative purposes only and are not actually shown. However, the display device D1 may display auxiliary graphics such as the dashed arrows.

The surface display region G2 is a region that displays a difference in the height of the surface of each of the belt-shaped regions constituting the slope, and indicates a state in which each of the belt-shaped regions is viewed from above. In the present embodiment, the surface display region G2 shows the difference in height of the surface of each band-shaped region in a plurality of colors.

The image portion GS0 shows, in the 1 st color (cross pattern), that the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished strip-shaped region SW0 finished by the present finishing operation is DS 0.

The image portion GS1 shows, in the 2 nd color (thick dot pattern), the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 trimmed by the previous trimming work and the design surface as DS 1.

The image portion GS2 shows, in the 2 nd color (thick dot pattern), a DS1 in which the difference between the surface and the design surface of the band-shaped region SW2 trimmed by the previous 2-time trimming work is the same as the band-shaped region SW 1.

The image portion GS3 shows, in the 3 rd color (fine dot pattern), that the difference between the surface of the band-shaped area SW3 trimmed by the previous 3 trimming jobs and the design surface is DS 2.

The image portion GS4 shows, in the 1 st color (cross pattern), a DS0 in which the difference between the surface and the design surface of the band-shaped region SW4 trimmed by the previous 4 trimming jobs is the same as the band-shaped region SW 0.

The image portion GS5 shows, in the 3 rd color (fine dot pattern), a DS2 in which the difference between the surface and the design surface of the band-shaped region SW5 trimmed by the previous 5-time trimming work is the same as the band-shaped region SW 3.

The image portion GS6 shows, in the 2 nd color (thick dot pattern), a DS1 in which the difference between the surface and the design surface of the band-shaped region SW6 trimmed by the previous 6 trimming jobs is the same as the band-shaped region SW 1.

In the example of fig. 8, in order to distinguish from the image portions GS1 to GS6 corresponding to the band-shaped areas SW1 to SW6, which have finished trimming, the image portion GS0 corresponding to the band-shaped area SW0, which has not finished trimming, is surrounded by a thick-line frame FR1 and is accompanied by a graphic GB. The graph GB is a graph showing the slope bucket 6S, and shows the current position of the slope bucket 6S.

The image portion GSx represents an area not reached by the shovel 100 in the 4 th color (white).

By observing the surface display region G2, the operator of the shovel 100 can easily grasp the height of the surface of each of the band-shaped regions SW1 to SW6, which has finished finishing, with respect to the design surface, that is, the unevenness of the slope. The operator of the excavator 100 can compare the height of the estimated surface of the strip-shaped region SW0, which has not been finished, with respect to the design surface with the height of the surface of each of the strip-shaped regions SW1 to SW6 with respect to the design surface.

The information display area G3 is an area in which information generated by the controller 30 is displayed. In the example of fig. 8, when the controller 30 determines that the size HT1 of the step LD1 between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 is likely to be larger than the predetermined value TH1, the information generated by the controller 30 is displayed in the information display region G3.

By observing the information displayed in the information display area G3, the operator of the excavator 100 can recognize that the height of the slope bucket 6S is autonomously adjusted upward so that the size HT1 of the step LD1 becomes the predetermined value TH1 or less. However, the controller 30 may also autonomously adjust the height of the bevel bucket 6S without allowing the operator to recognize that the height of the bevel bucket 6S is autonomously adjusted.

Next, another process (hereinafter, referred to as "the 2 nd support process") in which the controller 30 supports the bevel finishing operation performed by the operator will be described with reference to fig. 9 to 11. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the shovel 100 and the shovel 100A performing a work of dressing a slope of a downhill. Fig. 10 is a flowchart of the 2 nd support processing. Fig. 11 shows a configuration example of the 2 nd support screen displayed on the display unit of the display device D1 when the 2 nd support processing is performed.

As shown in fig. 9, the operator of the excavator 100 alternately performs the dressing operation of moving the slope bucket 6S from the toe FS to the top TS along the design surface and the traveling operation of moving the lower traveling member 1 by a predetermined distance in the direction indicated by the arrow AR1 to dress the slope.

Similarly, the operator of the excavator 100A alternately performs the dressing operation of moving the slope bucket 6S from the toe FS to the top TS along the design surface and the traveling operation of moving the lower traveling member 1 by a predetermined distance in the direction indicated by the arrow AR2 to dress the slope. In the present embodiment, the shovel 100A has the same configuration as the shovel 100. However, the shovel 100A may be provided with a controller without functional elements such as the position calculating unit 30A, the track acquiring unit 30B, and the autonomous control unit 30C.

Similarly to the case of fig. 6, the operator of the excavator 100 and the operator of the excavator 100A continue the work of dressing the slope while forming the band-shaped region SW. In fig. 9, as in the case of fig. 6, the region shown by the dot pattern indicates a finishing bevel portion, and the region shown by the cross pattern indicates an unfinished finishing bevel portion. Specifically, the area shown by the dotted pattern includes a slope portion SF1 that completes the finishing based on the shovel 100 and a slope portion SF2 that completes the finishing based on the shovel 100A. The area shown by the cross pattern includes a bevel portion SN1 that does not complete a finishing based on shovel 100 and a bevel portion SN2 that does not complete a finishing based on shovel 100A. The coupling portion LK is a portion where the slope portion SN1 where the finishing by the shovel 100 is not completed contacts the slope portion SF2 where the finishing by the shovel 100A is completed, that is, a portion where the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are coupled in the future.

The diagram of the portion enclosed by the broken line circle CL1 is an enlarged diagram of the portion enclosed by the broken line circle CL 2. The enlarged view shows a step LDa between the slope portion SN1 and the slope portion SF2, that is, the size of the current step LDa in the connection portion LK is HTa.

In the present embodiment, the controller 30 mounted on the shovel 100 repeatedly executes the 2 nd support processing at a predetermined control cycle during the operation of the shovel 100.

First, the controller 30 determines whether the distance DT to the coupling portion LK is smaller than a predetermined distance TH2 (step ST 11). For example, in the example of fig. 9, the controller 30 determines whether or not the distance DT between the slope portion SF1 and the coupling portion LK in the extending direction of the slope is smaller than a predetermined distance TH 2. The predetermined distance TH2 is, for example, a distance stored in advance in a nonvolatile storage device, and is typically several meters (e.g., 5 meters).

For example, the controller 30 derives the distance DT from the output of the space recognition device 70. Alternatively, the controller 30 may derive the distance DT from the output of the positioning device 73 and information relating to the position of the slope portion SF2 obtained from the shovel 100A via the communication device. The information on the position of the slope portion SF2 may be information measured by a measurement device carried by an operator who works around the shovel 100, or may be information acquired by a space recognition device mounted on an aircraft such as a multi-axis aircraft.

When determining that the distance DT is smaller than the predetermined distance TH2 (yes in step ST11), the controller 30 calculates the size HTb of the step LDb that can be formed in the connection portion LK (step ST 12).

Specifically, the controller 30 estimates the size HTb of the step LDb formed when the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are connected by the connection portion LK, based on at least one of the output of the space recognition device 70, information on the position of the working portion of the attachment, the output of the positioning device 73, information on the position of the slope portion SF2 acquired from the shovel 100A via the communication device, and the like. The estimated surface position of the slope portion SF1 when the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are connected by the connection portion LK is indicated by a broken line HM within a broken line circle CL1 in fig. 9.

For example, the controller 30 estimates the size HTb from the difference DS1 (see fig. 11) between the design surface and the surface of the slope portion SF1 at the current time, that is, the time when the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are not connected by the connection portion LK. The height DS1 is the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 formed by the previous trimming operation and the design surface. Specifically, the controller 30 derives the height DS1, which is the difference between the surface of the strip-shaped region SW1 and the design surface in the direction perpendicular to the design surface, from the trajectory of the working portion of the attachment when the strip-shaped region SW1 is trimmed by the previous trimming operation. At this time, the controller 30 may derive the height DS1 as the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 in the direction perpendicular to the design surface and the design surface from the output of the space recognition device 70 and the output of the positioning device 73. The working site of the attachment is, for example, the cutting edge of the slope bucket 6S or the back surface of the slope bucket 6S.

Then, the controller 30 determines whether the size HTb of the step LDb is larger than the predetermined value TH3 (step ST 13). The predetermined value TH3 is, for example, a value stored in advance in a nonvolatile storage device, and is typically several mm (e.g., 5 mm). The predetermined value TH3 may be zero.

When the size HTb of the step LDb is determined to be larger than the predetermined value TH3 (yes in step ST13), the controller 30 notifies that the size HTb of the step LDb is larger than the predetermined value TH3 (step ST 14).

For example, the controller 30 notifies that the size HTb of the step LDb formed in the coupling portion LK may be larger than the predetermined value TH3 when the slope portion SF1 is continuously formed as it is. Specifically, the controller 30 causes the voice output device D2 to output voice information "the height of the bucket is adjusted because there is a possibility that the step increases at the connecting portion", and/or causes the display unit of the display device D1 to display the same information.

Then, the controller 30 changes the target related to the autonomous control (step ST 15). In the example of fig. 9, the controller 30 determines the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each band-shaped region until the coupling portion LK is trimmed.

Specifically, the controller 30 derives that the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are connected by the connection portion LK when 4 trimming operations including the incomplete band-shaped area SW0 trimmed by the current trimming operation are performed.

As shown in fig. 11, the unfinished strip region SW finished by the 4 finishing operations includes strip regions SW0, SW10, SW11, and SW 12.

Then, the controller 30 determines the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each of the 4 strip-shaped regions so that the sizes of all of the 5 steps associated with these 4 strip-shaped regions become equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 3. As shown in fig. 11, the 5 steps include a step LD1 formed between the belt-shaped region SW1 and the belt-shaped region SW0, a step LD10 formed between the belt-shaped region SW0 and the belt-shaped region SW10, a step LD11 formed between the belt-shaped region SW10 and the belt-shaped region SW11, a step LD12 formed between the belt-shaped region SW11 and the belt-shaped region SW12, and a step LDb formed between the belt-shaped region SW12 and the belt-shaped region SW 21.

In the example of fig. 9, the controller 30 determines the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each of the 4 belt-shaped areas SW0 and SW10 to SW12 so that the size of the step LDb formed between the belt-shaped area SW12 and the belt-shaped area SW21 becomes zero and the remaining 4 steps LD1 and LD10 to LD12 all become the smallest and the same size.

Then, the controller 30 changes the target related to the autonomous control. The target related to autonomous control is, for example, a target track. For example, the controller 30 changes the target trajectory according to the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each of the 4 band-shaped regions SW0 and SW10 to SW 12.

Specifically, when trimming the band-shaped region SW0, the controller 30 changes the target trajectory such that the target trajectory is reduced from the design surface by the size of the step LD1, which is the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW 0. Then, the controller 30 autonomously operates the shovel 100 to move the predetermined portion of the attachment along the newly set target track.

When trimming the band-shaped region SW10, the controller 30 changes the target trajectory such that the target trajectory further decreases the step LD10, which is the difference between the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW10, from the design surface. The same applies to the case where the band regions SW11 and SW12 are trimmed separately.

The controller 30 may determine the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each of the 4 belt-shaped regions SW0 and SW10 to SW12 so that the size of the step LDb formed between the belt-shaped region SW12 and the belt-shaped region SW21 becomes zero and the sizes of the remaining 4 steps LD1 and LD10 to LD12 are different from each other. Alternatively, the controller 30 may determine the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of each of the 4 band-shaped regions SW0 and SW10 to SW12 so that all of the 5 steps have the smallest and the same size.

In this way, the controller 30 changes the target track so that the positions of the surfaces of the 6 band-shaped regions SW1, SW0, SW10 to SW12, and SW21 are all within a predetermined allowable range, and the sizes of the 5 steps LD1, LD10 to LD12, and LDb associated with the 6 band-shaped regions are all equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 3. The specified allowable range is, for example, a design surface ± 30 mm.

If it is determined that the distance DT to the coupling portion LK is equal to or greater than the predetermined distance TH2 (no in step ST11), or if it is determined that the size HTb of the step LDb is equal to or less than the predetermined value TH3 (no in step ST13), the controller 30 ends the present 2 nd support processing without changing the target related to autonomous control.

Fig. 11 is a2 nd support screen displayed on the display unit of the display device D1 mounted on the excavator 100 when the slope bucket 6S is positioned on the toe FS in order to complete the strip-shaped region SW 0.

Like the 1 st support screen, the 2 nd support screen includes a cross-section display area G1, a front surface display area G2, and an information display area G3.

The section display area G1 is an area that displays a section of a slope. In fig. 11, a section display area G1 shows a section of the inclined plane on an imaginary plane perpendicular to the inclined plane including the one-dot chain line LN2 of fig. 9.

The image portion GL1 is a portion of a solid line LS1 indicating the unevenness of the slope formed by the shovel 100, and indicates the size of the step LD 1.

The image portions GL10 to GL12 are portions of a dotted line LS2 showing the irregularities of the slope formed by the trimming operation, and show the sizes of the steps LD10 to LD12, respectively.

The image portion GLb is a portion of a solid line LS3 indicating the unevenness of the slope formed by the shovel 100A, and indicates the size of the step LDb formed by the trimming operation thereafter. In the example of fig. 11, the image portion GLb indicates that the size of the step LDb is substantially zero, that is, the surface of the band-shaped area SW12 is substantially on the same plane as the surface of the band-shaped area SW 21.

The thick solid line L0 indicates the position of the design surface, the broken line L1 indicates the allowable upper limit position of the finishing surface (for example, the design surface +30mm), and the broken line L2 indicates the allowable lower limit position of the finishing surface (for example, the design surface-30 mm).

By observing the cross-section display area G1, the operator of the excavator 100 can easily grasp as follows: the distance between the design face and the surface of the strip-shaped region SW1 is DS 1; the distance between the design surface and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW0 is DS 0; the size of the step LD1 between the surface of the belt-shaped region SW1 and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW0, the size of the step LD10 between the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW0 and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW10, the size of the step LD11 between the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW10 and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW11, and the size of the step LD12 between the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW11 and the estimated surface of the belt-shaped region SW12 are substantially the same; and the size of the step LDb formed between the estimated surface of the belt-like region SW12 and the surface of the belt-like region SW21 is substantially zero.

In the example of fig. 11, the dashed arrows indicating DS0, DS1, DS10 to DS12, HTb, and TH3 are for explanation only and are not actually shown. However, the display device D1 may display auxiliary graphics such as the dashed arrows.

The surface display region G2 is a region that displays a difference in the height of the surface of each of the belt-shaped regions constituting the slope, and indicates a state in which each of the belt-shaped regions is viewed from above. In the present embodiment, the surface display region G2 shows the difference in height of the surface of each band-shaped region in a plurality of colors.

The image portion GS0 shows that the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished band-shaped region SW0 finished by the present finishing operation is DS0 in the 1 st color (dot pattern).

The image portion GS1 shows, in the 2 nd color (thick dot pattern), the difference between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 trimmed by the previous trimming work and the design surface as DS 1.

The image portion GS10 shows, in the 3 rd color (bold-slant line pattern), DS10 where the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished strip-shaped area SW10 finished by the next finishing operation becomes smaller than DS 0.

The image portion GS11 shows, in the 4 th color (fine oblique line pattern), DS11 where the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished strip-shaped region SW11 finished by the next (2-time post) finishing work becomes smaller than DS 10.

The image portion GS12 shows, in the 5 th color (cross pattern), that the difference between the estimated surface and the design surface of the unfinished strip-shaped area SW12 finished by the finishing work after 3 times becomes DS12 smaller than DS 11.

The image portions GS21 to GS23 show, in 5 th color (cross pattern), DS12 where the differences between the design surfaces and the surfaces of the respective belt-shaped regions SW21 to SW23 trimmed by the trimming operation by the shovel 100A are the same as the belt-shaped region SW 12.

In the example of fig. 11, in order to distinguish an image portion corresponding to another band-shaped region, an image portion GS0 corresponding to a band-shaped region SW0 formed by the current trimming operation by the shovel 100 is surrounded by a thick-line frame FR2 and is accompanied by a graphic GB. The graph GB is a graph showing the slope bucket 6S, and shows the current position of the slope bucket 6S. Here, the image portions corresponding to the other strip-shaped areas include, for example, the image portions GS1 corresponding to the strip-shaped area SW1 in which the trimming by the shovel 100 is completed, the image portions GS21 to GS23 corresponding to the strip-shaped areas SW21 to SW23 in which the trimming by the shovel 100A is completed, and the image portions GS10 to GS12 corresponding to the strip-shaped areas SW10 to SW12 in which the trimming by the shovel 100 is not started.

In order to distinguish the image portions GS10 to GS12 from the other strip-shaped areas, the image portions GS10 to GS12 corresponding to the strip-shaped areas SW10 to SW12 where the trimming operation by the shovel 100 is not started are surrounded by a dotted line frame FR 3. Here, the image portions corresponding to the other strip-shaped areas include, for example, the image portion GS0 corresponding to the strip-shaped area SW0 formed by the present trimming operation by the shovel 100, the image portion GS1 corresponding to the strip-shaped area SW1 in which trimming by the shovel 100 is completed, and the image portions GS21 to GS23 corresponding to the strip-shaped areas SW21 to SW23 in which trimming by the shovel 100A is completed.

By observing the surface display area G2, the operator of the excavator 100 can easily grasp the estimated surface heights of the belt-shaped areas SW0 and SW10 to SW12 trimmed in 4 trimming operations including the current trimming operation. The operator of the shovel 100 can also confirm that the sizes of the steps LD1, LD10 to LD12, and LDb are equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH3, that is, that the slope finished by the shovel 100 and the slope finished by the shovel 100A are smoothly connected.

The information display area G3 is an area in which information generated by the controller 30 is displayed. In the example of fig. 11, when the controller 30 determines that the size HTb of the step LDb of the coupling portion LK may be larger than the predetermined value TH3, the information generated by the controller 30 is displayed in the information display area G3.

By observing the information displayed in the information display area G3, the operator of the excavator 100 can recognize that the height of the slope bucket 6S is autonomously adjusted downward so that the size HTb of the step LDb becomes equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 3. Specifically, it can be recognized that the height of the slope bucket 6S is autonomously and stepwise adjusted downward in the subsequent 4 times of the dressing work. However, the controller 30 may also autonomously adjust the height of the bevel bucket 6S without allowing the operator to recognize that the height of the bevel bucket 6S is autonomously adjusted.

Next, an example of a detailed configuration related to the device control function will be described with reference to fig. 12A and 12B. Fig. 12A and 12B are functional block diagrams showing an example of a detailed configuration related to the equipment control function of the shovel 100 according to the present embodiment.

The controller 30 includes, as function sections relating to the apparatus control function, an operation content acquisition section 3001, a target construction surface acquisition section 3002, a target track setting section 3003, a current position calculation section 3004, a target position calculation section 3005, a trajectory acquisition section 3006, a construction surface acquisition section 3007, an estimation surface acquisition section 3008, a comparison section 3009, a target position correction section 3010, an operation command generation section 3011, a pilot command generation section 3012, and an attitude angle calculation section 3013. These functional units repeatedly perform the operations described below for each predetermined control cycle when the switch NS is pressed, for example.

The operation content acquisition unit 3001 acquires the operation content related to the operation of the arm 5 on the left operation lever 26L (i.e., the tilting operation in the front-rear direction) based on the detection signal read from the operation pressure sensor 29 LA. For example, the operation content acquisition part 3001 acquires (calculates) an operation direction (whether an arm opening operation or an arm closing operation) and an operation amount as operation contents.

The target construction surface acquisition unit 3002 acquires data on a target construction surface (design surface) from, for example, an internal memory or a predetermined external storage device.

The target trajectory setting unit 3003 sets information on a target trajectory of a working portion for moving the working portion of the attachment along the design surface, based on the data on the design surface. For example, the target trajectory setting unit 3003 may set an inclination angle of the design surface in the front-rear direction with respect to the body (upper revolving structure 3) of the shovel 100 as information related to the target trajectory.

The current position calculation unit 3004 calculates the position (current position) of the working portion of the attachment. Specifically, the boom angle β may be calculated by the attitude angle calculation unit 3013, which will be described later₁Angle beta of bucket rod₂And bucket angle beta₃The position of the working site of the attachment is calculated.

The target position calculation unit 3005 calculates the target position of the working portion of the attachment based on the operation content (the operation direction and the operation amount) related to the operation of the arm 5 on the left operation lever 26L, the information related to the set target trajectory, and the current position of the working portion of the attachment. The target position is a position on the design surface (in other words, the target trajectory) that should be a target in the present control cycle when the arm 5 is assumed to be operated in accordance with the operation direction and the operation amount of the arm 5 on the left operation lever 26L. The target position calculation unit 3005 can calculate the target position of the working portion of the accessory using a map, an arithmetic expression, or the like stored in advance in a nonvolatile internal memory or the like, for example.

The trajectory acquisition unit 3006 acquires data related to the trajectory of the operation portion of the past attachment from, for example, an internal memory or a predetermined external storage device.

The construction surface acquisition unit 3007 acquires data on the surface of the band-shaped area SW1 (see fig. 6), which is an area finished by the previous (previous 1) finishing work, from the trajectory of the work site of the attachment in the past acquired by the trajectory acquisition unit 3006.

The estimated surface acquisition unit 3008 acquires data on an estimated surface of a belt-shaped area SW0 (see fig. 6), which is an unfinished area finished by the present finishing operation, from the position (current position) of the working site of the attachment calculated by the current position calculation unit 3004.

The comparison unit 3009 compares the size HT1 of the step LD1 between the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 and the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0 with a predetermined value TH 1. For example, as shown in fig. 8, the comparison unit 3009 derives the size HT1 of the step LD1 between the band-shaped region SW0 and the band-shaped region SW1 from the difference DS1 between the surface of the already formed band-shaped region SW1 and the design surface and the difference DS0 between the estimated surface of the not yet formed band-shaped region SW0 and the design surface. The comparison unit 3009 compares the size HT1 of the step LD1 with a predetermined value TH 1.

When the comparison unit 3009 determines that the size HT1 of the step LD1 is greater than the predetermined value TH1, the target position correction unit 3010 corrects the target position of the working portion of the attachment calculated by the target position calculation unit 3005. For example, when the surface of the band-shaped region SW1 is higher than the estimated surface of the band-shaped region SW0, and when the size HT1 of the step LD1 is larger than the predetermined value TH1 by the value DF, that is, when HT1 is TH1+ DF, the target position correction unit 3010 corrects the target position so that the target position is raised from the design surface by at least the value DF. This is because the size HT1 of the step LD1 is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 1. The target position correcting unit 3010 may correct the target position so that the surface of the strip-shaped region SW1 is flush with the surface of the strip-shaped region SW 0.

When the comparison unit 3009 determines that the size HT1 of the step LD1 is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH1, the target position correction unit 3010 outputs the target position of the working portion of the attachment calculated by the target position calculation unit 3005 to the operation command generation unit 3011 as it is.

The operation command generation unit 3011 generates a command value β (hereinafter referred to as "boom command value") related to the operation of the boom 4 based on the target position of the working site of the attachment_1rAnd a command value β related to the operation of the arm 5 (hereinafter referred to as "arm command value")_2rAnd a command value (bucket command value) beta relating to the operation of the bucket 6_3r. For example, the boom command value β_1rArm command value beta_2rAnd bucket command value beta_3rThe boom angle, the arm angle, and the bucket angle are respectively the target positions that can be achieved by the working portion of the attachment. The operation command generation unit 3011 includes a master command value generation unit 3011A and a slave command value generation unit 3011B.

The boom command value, the arm command value, and the bucket command value may be angular velocities or angular accelerations of the boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6 required for the working site of the attachment to achieve the target position.

The main command value generation unit 3011A generates a command value (hereinafter referred to as "main command value") relating to the operation of an operation element (hereinafter referred to as "main element") that operates in accordance with an operation input in the front-rear direction of the left control lever 26L, among the operation elements (the boom 4, the arm 5, and the bucket 6) constituting the attachment AT. In the present embodiment, the main component is the arm 5, and the main command value generation unit 3011A generates an arm command value β_2rAnd outputs the command to an arm pilot command generation unit 3012B, which will be described later. Specifically, the main command value generation unit 3011A generates an arm command value β corresponding to the operation content (operation direction and operation amount) of the left operation lever 26L_2r. For example, the main command value generation unit 3011A may limit the operation content of the left operation lever 26L and the arm command value β_2rA predetermined map or conversion expression of the relationship (b), and generates and outputs an arm command value β_2r。

Further, the arm command value β output from the main command value generation unit 3011A_2rIn the case of "0", arm 5 is operated by the operator regardless of the control of controller 30The operation of the device 26 with respect to the arm 5. The main command value generation unit 3011A may be omitted. This is because the pilot pressure corresponding to the content of the forward and backward operation of the left control lever 26L acts on the pilot ports of the control valves 176L and 176R corresponding to the drive arm cylinder 8 of the arm 5 via the shuttle valves 32AL and 32AR, as described above.

The slave command value generation unit 3011B generates a command value (hereinafter referred to as a "slave command value") relating to the operation of a slave component that operates so that the working site of the accessory moves along the design surface in accordance with (in synchronization with) the operation of the main component (arm 5) among the operation components constituting the accessory AT. In the present embodiment, the slave elements are the boom 4 and the bucket 6, and the boom command value β is generated from the command value generation unit 3011B_1rAnd bucket command value beta_3rAnd outputs the signals to a boom pilot command generation unit 3012A and a bucket pilot command generation unit 3012C, which will be described later. Specifically, boom command value β is generated from command value generation unit 3011B_1rAnd bucket command value beta_3rSo as to match (synchronize) at least one of the boom 4 and the bucket 6 with the arm command value β_2rThe operation of the arm 5 is performed in response to the movement, and the work site of the attachment can achieve the target position (i.e., move along the design surface). Thus, controller 30 can move the working site of the attachment along the design surface by operating arm 5 in accordance with the operation of arm 5 on left control lever 26L in coordination with (i.e., in synchronization with) boom 4 and bucket 6 of attachment AT. That is, arm 5 (arm cylinder 8) operates in accordance with an operation input to left control lever 26L, and boom 4 (arm cylinder 7) and bucket 6 (bucket cylinder 9) are controlled to move the tip of attachment AT such as the cutting edge of bucket 6 along the design surface in accordance with the operation of arm 5 (arm cylinder 8).

The pilot command generating unit 3012 generates command values of pilot pressures (hereinafter referred to as "pilot pressure command values") to be applied to the control valves 174 to 176 for realizing the command values β to the boom with respect to the control valves 174 to 176_1rArm command value beta_2rAnd bucket command value beta_3rCorresponding boom angle, stick angle, and bucket angle. The pilot command generating unit 3012 includes a boom pilot command generating unit3012A, an arm pilot command generation unit 3012B, and a bucket pilot command generation unit 3012C.

Boom pilot instruction generating section 3012A generates a boom pilot instruction value β based on the boom instruction value β_1rA pilot pressure command value to be applied to the control valves 175L and 175R corresponding to the boom cylinder 7 that drives the boom 4 is generated from a deviation from a calculated value (measured value) of the current boom angle by a boom angle calculation unit 3013A, which will be described later. Boom pilot command generation unit 3012A outputs a control current corresponding to the generated pilot pressure command value to proportional valves 31BL and 31 BR. As a result, as described above, the pilot pressure corresponding to the pilot pressure command value output from the proportional valves 31BL, 31BR acts on the corresponding pilot ports of the control valves 175L, 175R via the shuttle valves 32BL, 32 BR. Then, the boom cylinder 7 is operated by the action of the control valves 175L and 175R, and the boom 4 is adjusted to achieve the boom command value β_1rAnd the corresponding boom angle mode is performed.

The arm pilot command generation unit 3012B generates an arm command value β from the arm command value β_2rA pilot pressure command value to be applied to the control valves 176L and 176R corresponding to the arm cylinder 8 that drives the arm 5 is generated based on a deviation from a calculated value (measured value) of the current arm angle by an arm angle calculation unit 3013B, which will be described later. Then, arm pilot command generation unit 3012B outputs a control current corresponding to the generated pilot pressure command value to proportional valves 31AL and 31 AR. As a result, as described above, the pilot pressures corresponding to the pilot pressure command values output from the proportional valves 31AL, 31AR act on the corresponding pilot ports of the control valves 176L, 176R via the shuttle valves 32AL, 32 AR. Then, by the action of control valves 176L and 176R, arm cylinder 8 is operated, and arm 5 reaches arm command value β_2rAnd the corresponding bucket rod angle mode is operated.

Bucket pilot command generation unit 3012C generates a bucket pilot command value β from the bucket command value β_3rA pilot pressure command value acting on the control valve 174 corresponding to the bucket cylinder 9 that drives the bucket 6 is generated from a deviation from a current bucket angle calculated value (measured value) by a bucket angle calculating unit 3013C, which will be described later. Then, bucket pilot command generation unit 3012C outputs a control current corresponding to the generated pilot pressure command valueTo proportional valves 31CL, 31 CR. Thus, as described above, the pilot pressure corresponding to the pilot pressure command value output from the proportional valves 31CL, 31CR acts on the corresponding pilot port of the control valve 174 via the shuttle valves 32CL, 32 CR. Then, the bucket cylinder 9 is operated by the action of the control valve 174, and the bucket 6 is set to achieve the bucket command value β_3rAnd operating in a manner corresponding to the bucket angle.

The attitude angle calculation unit 3013 calculates (measures) (the current) the boom angle β from the detection signals of the boom angle sensor S1, arm angle sensor S2, and bucket angle sensor S3₁Angle beta of bucket rod₂And bucket angle beta₃. Posture angle calculation unit 3013 includes a boom angle calculation unit 3013A, an arm angle calculation unit 3013B, and a bucket angle calculation unit 3013C.

The boom angle calculation unit 3013A calculates (measures) the boom angle β from the detection signal read from the slave arm angle sensor S1₁. The arm angle calculation unit 3013B calculates (measures) an arm angle β from the detection signal read from the arm angle sensor S2₂. The bucket angle calculation unit 3013C calculates (measures) a bucket angle β from the detection signal read from the bucket angle sensor S3₃。

Next, another example of the detailed configuration of the device control function will be described with reference to fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a functional block diagram showing another example of the detailed configuration of the equipment control function of the shovel 100 according to the present embodiment. In this example, the configuration corresponding to fig. 12B is the same as the above example, and therefore fig. 12B is applied. Hereinafter, a description will be given mainly on a portion different from the above example (fig. 12A).

In this example, the shovel 100 includes a communication device T1, and the controller 30 realizes an autonomous driving function based on a signal received from an external device defined by the communication device T1.

The communication device T1 controls communication between the shovel 100 and the outside of the shovel 100. The communication device T1 receives, for example, a command (hereinafter referred to as a "start command") indicating the start of the autonomous driving function of the shovel 100 from a predetermined external device.

The controller 30 includes, as function sections related to the device control function, a work start determination section 3001A, an operation content determination section 3001B, an operation condition setting section 3001C, an operation start determination section 3001D, a target construction surface acquisition section 3002, a target track setting section 3003, a current position calculation section 3004, a target position calculation section 3005, a trajectory acquisition section 3006, a construction surface acquisition section 3007, an estimation surface acquisition section 3008, a comparison section 3009, a target position correction section 3010, an operation instruction generation section 3011, a pilot instruction generation section 3012, and an attitude angle calculation section 3013.

The work start determination unit 3001A determines the start of a predetermined work of the shovel 100. The predetermined work is, for example, excavation work or the like. For example, when a start instruction is input from an external device via the communication device T1, the job start determination unit 3001A determines the start of the job designated by the start instruction. Further, the work start determination unit 3001A may be configured to determine the start of the work specified by the start instruction when the periphery monitoring function determines that the object to be monitored is not present in the monitoring range around the shovel 100 when the start instruction is input from the external device via the communication device T1.

The operation content determination unit 3001B determines the current operation content when the work start determination unit 3001A determines the start of the work. The operation content determination unit 3001B determines whether or not the shovel 100 performs an operation corresponding to a plurality of operations constituting a predetermined work, for example, based on the current position of the working portion of the attachment. For example, the plurality of operations constituting the predetermined work include an excavation operation, a boom raising and turning operation, a soil discharging operation, a boom lowering and turning operation, and the like when the predetermined work is an excavation work.

The operating condition setting unit 3001C sets an operating condition related to execution of a predetermined task by the autonomous driving function. For example, when the predetermined work is an excavation work, the operation condition may include conditions relating to an excavation depth, an excavation length, and the like.

The operation start determination unit 3001D determines the start of a predetermined operation constituting a predetermined operation determined to be started by the operation start determination unit 3001A. The operation start determination unit 3001D may determine that the excavation operation can be started, for example, when the operation content determination unit 3001B determines that the boom lowering swing operation is completed and the working portion of the attachment (the cutting edge of the bucket 6) reaches the excavation start position. When the operation start determination unit 3001D determines that the excavation operation can be started, the target position calculation unit 3005 is caused to input an operation command of the operation element (actuator) corresponding to the autonomous driving function generated in the preparation step of the predetermined work. Thus, the target position calculation unit 3005 can calculate the target position of the working portion of the attachment based on the operation command corresponding to the autonomous driving function.

In this way, in the present example, the controller 30 can cause the shovel 100 to perform a predetermined operation (e.g., an excavation operation) in accordance with the autonomous driving function.

Next, an electric operation system including an electric operation lever will be described with reference to fig. 14. In the case of employing an electric operating system including an electric operating lever, the controller 30 can easily perform an autonomous control function, as compared to the case of employing a hydraulic operating system including a hydraulic operating lever as described above. Fig. 14 shows a configuration example of the motor-driven operation system. Specifically, the electric operation system of fig. 14 is an example of a boom operation system, and is mainly configured by a pilot pressure operation type control valve unit 17, a boom operation lever 26A as an electric operation lever, a controller 30, a boom-up operation solenoid valve 65, and a boom-down operation solenoid valve 66. The electric operation system of fig. 14 can be similarly applied to an arm operation system, a bucket operation system, and the like.

The pilot pressure operation type control valve unit 17 includes a control valve 175 (see fig. 4B) associated with the boom cylinder 7, a control valve 176 (see fig. 4A) associated with the arm cylinder 8, a control valve 174 (see fig. 4C) associated with the bucket cylinder 9, and the like. The solenoid valve 65 is configured to be able to adjust the flow path area of a pipe line connecting the pilot pump 15 and the lift-side pilot port of the control valve 175. The solenoid valve 66 is configured to be able to adjust the flow path area of a pipe line connecting the pilot pump 15 and the lower pilot port of the control valve 175.

When the manual operation is performed, the controller 30 generates a boom raising operation signal (electric signal) or a boom lowering operation signal (electric signal) from the operation signal (electric signal) output from the operation signal generating portion of the boom control lever 26A. The operation signal output from the operation signal generating unit of the boom control lever 26A is an electric signal that changes in accordance with the operation amount and the operation direction of the boom control lever 26A.

Specifically, when the boom operation lever 26A is operated in the boom raising direction, the controller 30 outputs a boom raising operation signal (electric signal) corresponding to the lever operation amount to the solenoid valve 65. The solenoid valve 65 adjusts the flow path area in response to a boom-up operation signal (electric signal) and controls the pilot pressure acting on the lift-side pilot port of the control valve 175 as a boom-up operation signal (pressure signal). Similarly, when the boom manipulating lever 26A is manipulated in the boom lowering direction, the controller 30 outputs a boom lowering manipulation signal (electric signal) corresponding to the lever manipulation amount to the electromagnetic valve 66. The solenoid valve 66 adjusts the flow path area in accordance with a boom lowering operation signal (electric signal) and controls the pilot pressure acting on the lowering-side pilot port of the control valve 175 as a boom lowering operation signal (pressure signal).

When the autonomous control is executed, the controller 30 generates a boom-up operation signal (electric signal) or a boom-down operation signal (electric signal) from the correction operation signal (electric signal) instead of the operation signal (electric signal) output from the operation signal generating portion of the boom manipulation lever 26A, for example. The correction operation signal may be an electric signal generated by the controller 30, or may be an electric signal generated by an external control device or the like other than the controller 30.

Next, the construction system SYS will be described with reference to fig. 15. Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the construction system SYS. As shown in fig. 15, the construction system SYS includes a shovel 100, a support device 200, and a management device 300. The construction system SYS is configured to support construction by 1 or more excavators 100.

The information acquired by the shovel 100 may be shared with a manager and other shovel operators through the construction system SYS. The excavator 100, the support device 200, and the management device 300 constituting the construction system SYS may be 1 or more than one. In this example, the construction system SYS includes 1 excavator 100, 1 support device 200, and 1 management device 300.

The support apparatus 200 is typically a mobile terminal apparatus, such as a laptop computer terminal, tablet terminal, or smartphone carried by an operator or the like at a construction site. The support apparatus 200 may be a mobile terminal carried by an operator of the shovel 100. The support apparatus 200 may be a fixed terminal apparatus.

The management device 300 is typically a fixed terminal device, and is, for example, a server computer (so-called cloud server) installed in a management center or the like outside a construction site. The management device 300 may be, for example, an edge server installed at a construction site. The management device 300 may be a portable terminal device (for example, a mobile terminal such as a laptop computer terminal, a tablet terminal, or a smartphone).

At least one of the support apparatus 200 and the management apparatus 300 may include a monitor and a remote operation device. At this time, the operator using the support apparatus 200 or the manager using the management apparatus 300 may operate the shovel 100 using the remote operation operating apparatus. The remote operation device is connected to the controller 30 mounted on the shovel 100 so as to be able to communicate with the remote operation device via a wireless communication network such as a short-range wireless communication network, a mobile phone communication network, or a satellite communication network.

Various information (for example, image information indicating the state of the surroundings of the shovel 100, various setting screens, and the like) displayed on the display device D1 provided in the cab 10 may be displayed on a display device connected to at least one of the support device 200 and the management device 300. The image information indicating the state of the surroundings of the shovel 100 may be generated from an image captured by an imaging device (e.g., a camera as the space recognition device 70). Thus, the operator using the support apparatus 200 or the manager using the management apparatus 300 can perform remote operation of the shovel 100 or perform various settings related to the shovel 100 while confirming the surrounding state of the shovel 100.

For example, in the construction system SYS, the controller 30 of the shovel 100 may transmit information related to at least one of the time and the place when the switch NS is pressed, a target trajectory used when the shovel 100 autonomously operates, a trajectory actually followed by the predetermined position during autonomous operation, and the like to at least one of the support apparatus 200 and the management apparatus 300. At this time, the controller 30 may transmit the image captured by the imaging device to at least one of the support device 200 and the management device 300. The captured image may be a plurality of images captured during the autonomous action. The controller 30 may transmit information on at least one of data related to the operation content of the shovel 100 during the autonomous operation, data related to the posture of the shovel 100, data related to the posture of the excavation attachment, and the like to at least one of the support apparatus 200 and the management apparatus 300. Thus, the operator using the support apparatus 200 or the manager using the management apparatus 300 can obtain information on the excavator 100 during the autonomous operation.

In this way, the construction system SYS enables the operator of the shovel 100 to share information related to the shovel 100 with a manager, an operator of another shovel, and the like.

As shown in fig. 15, the communication device mounted on the shovel 100 may be configured to transmit and receive information to and from a communication device T2 provided in the remote control room RC via wireless communication. In the example shown in fig. 15, the communication device and the communication device T2 mounted on the shovel 100 are configured to transmit and receive information via a 5 th generation mobile communication line (5G line), an LTE line, a satellite line, or the like.

In the remote control room RC, a remote controller 30R, a sound output device a2, an indoor imaging device C2, a display device RD, a communication device T2, and the like are provided. Further, a driver seat DE on which an operator OP of the remote-controlled shovel 100 sits is provided in the remote control room RC.

The remote controller 30R is an arithmetic device that performs various operations. In the present embodiment, the remote controller 30R is constituted by a microcomputer including a CPU and a memory, as in the controller 30. Also, various functions of the remote controller 30R are realized by the CPU executing programs stored in the memory.

The sound output device a2 is configured to output sound. In the present embodiment, the sound output device a2 is a speaker and is configured to play sound collected by a sound collector (not shown) attached to the shovel 100.

The indoor imaging device C2 is configured to image the inside of the remote control room RC. In the present embodiment, the indoor imaging device C2 is a camera provided inside the remote control room RC and is configured to image the operator OP sitting on the driver's seat DE.

The communication device T2 is configured to control wireless communication with a communication device mounted on the shovel 100.

In the present embodiment, the operator's seat DE has the same configuration as an operator's seat provided in the cab 10 of a general excavator. Specifically, a left steering box is disposed on the left side of the driver seat DE, and a right steering box is disposed on the right side of the driver seat DE. A left operating lever is disposed at the top surface front end of the left console box, and a right operating lever is disposed at the top surface front end of the right console box. A travel lever and a travel pedal are disposed in front of the driver seat DE. A control panel 75 is disposed at the center of the upper surface of the right console box. The left operating lever, the right operating lever, the travel lever, and the travel pedal constitute an operating device 26E, respectively.

The control panel 75 is a control panel for adjusting the rotation speed of the engine 11, and is configured to be capable of switching the engine rotation speed in 4 stages, for example.

Specifically, the control panel 75 is configured to be able to switch the engine speed in 4 stages of the SP mode, the H mode, the a mode, and the idle mode. The control panel 75 transmits data relating to the setting of the engine speed to the controller 30.

The SP mode is a rotational speed mode selected when the operator OP wants to give priority to the amount of work, and uses the highest engine rotational speed. The H mode is a rotational speed mode selected when the operator OP wants to achieve both the workload and the fuel efficiency, and uses the second highest engine rotational speed. The a mode is a rotational speed mode selected when the operator OP wants to operate the excavator with low noise while prioritizing fuel economy, and utilizes the third highest engine rotational speed. The idle mode is a rotational speed mode selected when the operator OP wants to bring the engine into an idle state, and uses the lowest engine rotational speed. The engine 11 is controlled to have a constant engine speed in the speed mode selected by the control panel 75.

The operation device 26E is provided with an operation sensor 29A for detecting the operation content of the operation device 26E. The operation sensor 29A is, for example, a tilt sensor for detecting a tilt angle of the operation lever, an angle sensor for detecting a swing angle around a swing axis of the operation lever, or the like. The operation sensor 29A may be configured by another sensor such as a pressure sensor, a current sensor, a voltage sensor, or a distance sensor. The operation sensor 29A outputs information related to the detected operation content of the operation device 26E to the remote controller 30R. The remote controller 30R generates an operation signal based on the received information, and transmits the generated operation signal to the shovel 100. The operation sensor 29A may be configured to generate an operation signal. At this time, the operation sensor 29A may output an operation signal to the communication device T2 without going through the remote controller 30R.

The display device RD is configured to display information related to the situation around the shovel 100. In the present embodiment, the display device RD is a multifunction display including 9 monitors in 3 stages in the vertical direction and 3 rows in the horizontal direction, and is configured to be able to display the state of the space in the front, left, and right directions of the excavator 100. Each monitor is a liquid crystal monitor, an organic EL monitor, or the like. However, the display device RD may be constituted by 1 or more curved monitors, or may be constituted by a projector. The display device RD may be configured to display the state of the space in front of, to the left of, to the right of, and to the rear of the shovel 100.

The display device RD may be a display device that the operator OP can wear. For example, the display device RD may be a head-mounted display, and may be configured to transmit and receive information to and from the remote controller 30R by wireless communication. The head mounted display may also be wired to the remote controller 30R. The head-mounted display may be a transmissive head-mounted display or a non-transmissive head-mounted display. The head-mounted display may be a monocular type head-mounted display or a binocular type head-mounted display.

The display device RD is configured to display an image that allows the operator OP in the remote operation room RC to recognize the surroundings of the shovel 100. That is, the display device RD displays an image so that the situation around the shovel 100 can be confirmed as in the cab 10 of the shovel 100 even though the operator is in the remote operation room RC.

Next, another configuration example of the construction system SYS will be described with reference to fig. 16. In the example shown in fig. 16, the construction system SYS is configured to support construction by the shovel 100. Specifically, the construction system SYS includes a communication device CD and a control device CTR that communicate with the shovel 100. In the example shown in fig. 16, the communication device CD and the control device CTR are provided outside the shovel 100. The control device CTR is configured to support an operator of the shovel 100 so that a step formed between two adjacent trimming surfaces becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value when performing a trimming operation based on a slope of the shovel 100. For example, the control device CTR may be configured to autonomously extend and contract the hydraulic cylinder so that the step becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.

Alternatively, the control device CTR may be configured to move the predetermined portion of the attachment along a target track set on the design surface, and adjust the height of the target track when the step is larger than a predetermined value. Alternatively, the control device CTR may be configured to display information related to the step. Alternatively, the control device CTR may be configured to output an alarm when the step is larger than a predetermined value.

Alternatively, the control device CTR may be configured to calculate a difference between the height of the finished surface of one of the slope portions and the height of the finished surface of the other slope portion when the distance between the two slope portions finished at both sides across the slope portion not finished is smaller than a predetermined value.

Alternatively, the control device CTR may be configured to be able to calculate the size of the step formed between two adjacent dressing surfaces. In this case, the control device CTR may be configured to control the attachment so that the step becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.

As described above, the shovel 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes: a lower traveling body 1; an upper revolving structure 3 which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling structure 1; an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body 3; and an attachment actuator for actuating the attachment. The shovel 100 is configured to assist an operator so that a step formed between two adjacent finishing surfaces is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.

Specifically, for example, as shown in fig. 8, the shovel 100 is configured to support the operator by autonomously operating the excavation attachment AT so that the size HT1 of the step LD1 formed between the surface of the belt-shaped region SW1 and the surface of the belt-shaped region SW0, which are two adjacent trimming surfaces, becomes equal to or smaller than the predetermined value TH 1.

With this configuration, the shovel 100 can suppress a step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions. Accordingly, the excavator 100 can realize a continuous finished surface. Moreover, the excavator 100 can reduce the frequency of the extra work required to remove a relatively large step, and can improve the work efficiency.

Even if the step on the inclined surface is within the allowable error range in design, there is a possibility that a problem such as the concrete block floats when the concrete block is set on the inclined surface may occur. However, since the excavator 100 can reduce the size of the step, the generation of problems associated with the step can be suppressed or prevented.

Further, even if the result of the trimming work performed by the manual operation notices that a relatively large step is generated between the adjacent two belt-shaped regions, the operator may sometimes place the step as it is without performing the trimming work again as long as the step is within the allowable error in design. In this case, the above-described problem may eventually occur. In contrast, since the shovel 100 autonomously changes the target trajectory of the excavation attachment AT so as to avoid the step being larger than the predetermined value TH1, it is possible to reliably prevent the above-described problem from eventually occurring.

The shovel 100 is preferably configured to calculate the size of the step each time the attachment is brought into contact with the ground. With this configuration, the shovel 100 can continuously suppress the step between the two adjacent belt-shaped regions from becoming relatively large.

Preferably, the shovel 100 is configured to move a predetermined portion of the attachment along a target track set on the basis of the design surface, and adjust the height of the target track when the step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions is larger than a predetermined value. With this configuration, the shovel 100 can suppress a step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions without forcing the operator to perform a special operation.

The shovel 100 may be configured to display information on the step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions as an example of processing for assisting the operator so that the step formed between two adjacent finishing surfaces becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. For example, the shovel 100 may be configured to display the 1 st support screen shown in fig. 8 or the 2 nd support screen shown in fig. 11 on the display unit of the display device D1 when performing the trimming operation. With this configuration, the shovel 100 enables the operator to recognize the state of the slope in advance by the autonomous control.

The shovel 100 may be configured to calculate a difference between a height of the finishing surface of one of the slope portions and a height of the finishing surface of the other slope portion when a distance between two slope portions of finishing disposed on both sides across the slope portion of which finishing is not finished is smaller than a predetermined value. For example, as shown in fig. 9, the shovel 100 may be configured such that, when the distance DT between the finished slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 disposed on both sides with the unfinished slope portion SN1 interposed therebetween is smaller than the predetermined distance TH2, the size HTb of the step LDb formed in the connection portion LK, which is the difference between the height of the band-shaped region SW1 of the slope portion SF1 and the height of the band-shaped region SW21 of the slope portion SF2, is calculated. This is to effectively perform a function for reducing the step LDb that may be formed at the coupling portion LK when the slope portion SF1 and the slope portion SF2 are coupled in the future.

The shovel 100 may autonomously operate the actuator so as to raise or lower three or more successive dressing surfaces in a stepwise manner. For example, as shown in fig. 11, the shovel 100 may autonomously operate the actuator so that the difference between the surface and the design surface of each of the strip-shaped regions SW1, SW0, SW10, SW11, and SW12 is gradually reduced in the order of DS1, DS0, DS10, DS11, and DS 12. This is to prevent one of the steps LD1, LD10, LD11, LD12, and LDb from protruding and becoming large.

At least one of the adjacent two dressing surfaces may also be unfinished. For example, the shovel 100 may be configured to estimate the size of the step between two adjacent dressing surfaces when both of the two adjacent dressing surfaces are not completed, and adjust the height of the target track according to the estimated size. With this configuration, the shovel 100 can flexibly determine the state of the slope by autonomous control.

The two adjacent dressing surfaces may be, for example, part of a bevel or part of the surface of a base on which the pavers are laid. With this configuration, the shovel 100 can suppress steps between each of the plurality of belt-shaped regions constituting the slope or the base.

The shovel 100 may output an alarm when the step between two adjacent belt-shaped regions is larger than a predetermined value. With this configuration, the shovel 100 can notify the operator of the adjustment of the target track in order to suppress the step. At this time, the operator may prohibit the target trajectory from being adjusted by performing a predetermined operation.

The shovel 100 may also be configured such that a hydraulic cylinder, which is an example of an attachment actuator, is autonomously extended and retracted so that the step formed between two adjacent finishing surfaces is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. The hydraulic cylinders include, for example, a boom cylinder 7, an arm cylinder 8, and a bucket cylinder 9. With this structure, the shovel 100 can simply and easily reduce the size of the step.

The shovel 100 may be configured to output a sound corresponding to the distance between the predetermined portion of the attachment and the target track. For example, the shovel 100 may output intermittent sound corresponding to the magnitude of the distance (the vertical distance or the shortest distance) between the rear surface of the slope bucket 6S and the target track from the voice output device D2 using the implement guide function. This is to make the operator of the excavator 100 audibly recognize the magnitude of the distance between the back surface of the bevel bucket 6S and the target track. Specifically, the shovel 100 may notify the operator that the back surface of the slope bucket 6S is approaching the target trajectory by shortening the intermittent sound output interval as the distance decreases.

The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The above-described embodiment can be applied to various modifications, replacements, and the like without departing from the scope of the present invention. Further, the features described separately can be combined as long as technically contradictory results are not generated.

For example, in the above embodiment, the dressing operation is an operation of moving the slope bucket 6S from the toe FS to the top TS along the design surface, but the dressing operation may be an operation of moving the slope bucket 6S from the top TS to the toe FS along the design surface.

This application claims priority based on japanese patent application No. 2019-066681, filed on 29/3/2019, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference in this specification.

Description of the symbols

1-lower traveling body, 1C-track, 1 CL-left track, 1 CR-right track, 2-swing mechanism, 2A-swing hydraulic motor, 2M-travel hydraulic motor, 2 ML-left travel hydraulic motor, 2 MR-right travel hydraulic motor, 3-upper swing body, 4-boom, 5-arm, 6-bucket, 7-arm cylinder, 8-arm cylinder, 9-bucket cylinder, 10-cockpit, 11-engine, 13-regulator, 14-main pump, 15-pilot pump, 17-control valve unit, 18-restrictor, 19-control pressure sensor, 26-operating device, 26D-travel lever, 26 DL-left travel lever, 26 DR-right travel lever, 26L-left lever, 26R-right lever, 28-discharge pressure sensor, 29DL, 29DR, 29LA, 29LB, 29RA, 29 RB-operation pressure sensor, 30-controller, 30A-position calculating section, 30B-track acquiring section, 30C-autonomous control section, 31 AL-31 DL, 31 AR-31 DR-proportional valve, 32 AL-32 DL, 32 AR-32 DR-reciprocating valve, 33 AL-33 DL, 33 AR-33 DR-proportional valve, 40-middle bypass line, 42-parallel line, 70-space identifying device, 70F-front sensor, 70B-rear sensor, 70L-left sensor, 70R-right sensor, 71-orientation detecting device, 72-information input device, 73-positioning device, 100A-excavator, 171-176-control valve, AT-excavation attachment, D1-display device, D2-voice output device, FS-toe, G1-section display area, G2-surface display area, G3-information display area, GB-graph, GL 1-GL 6, GL 10-GL 12, GS 0-GS 6, GS 10-GS 12, GS 21-GS 23-image portion, LD-step, LK-linking portion, NS-switch, S1-boom angle sensor, S2-arm angle sensor, S3-bucket angle sensor, S4-body inclination sensor, S5-rotation angular velocity sensor, SW-belt area, TS-top of slope.

The claims (modification according to treaty clause 19)

1. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the operator is assisted so that the step formed between two adjacent trimming surfaces is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

2. The shovel according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined portion of the attachment is moved along a target track set according to a design surface, and the height of the target track is adjusted when the step is larger than a predetermined value.

3. The shovel of claim 1 displaying information related to said steps.

4. The shovel of claim 1,

when the distance between two slope surface portions of finishing disposed on both sides across a slope surface portion of unfinished finishing is smaller than a predetermined value, the difference between the height of the finishing surface of one slope surface portion and the height of the finishing surface of the other slope surface portion is calculated.

5. The shovel of claim 1,

three or more successive dressing surfaces are formed to be raised or lowered in stages.

6. The shovel of claim 1,

at least one of the adjacent two dressing surfaces is unfinished.

7. The shovel of claim 1,

the two adjacent finishing surfaces are part of a bevel or part of the surface of a base on which the pavers are laid.

8. The shovel of claim 1,

and outputting an alarm when the step is larger than a specified value.

9. The shovel of claim 1,

the attachment actuator comprises a hydraulic cylinder which is,

and causing the hydraulic cylinder to autonomously expand and contract so that the step becomes a predetermined value or less.

10. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the size of the step formed between the adjacent two dressing surfaces is calculated.

11. The shovel of claim 1 wherein said attachment is controlled so that said step is below a predetermined value.

12. The shovel of claim 1,

the prescribed value is less than the allowable error.

(additional) the shovel according to claim 1, wherein the size of the step formed between two adjacent finishing surfaces is calculated from the finishing surfaces that have already been formed.

(additional) the shovel according to claim 1, wherein the size of the step formed between two adjacent finishing surfaces is calculated from a difference in height between the already formed finishing surface and the design surface.

(appendant) the shovel of claim 1, wherein,

the two adjacent trimming surfaces formed so that the step becomes equal to or smaller than the predetermined value include trimming surfaces formed so that the height thereof is different from the design surface.

(appendant) the shovel of claim 1, wherein,

two adjacent dressing surfaces formed so that the step becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value include dressing surfaces formed at positions higher than the design surface.

Statement or declaration (modification according to treaty clause 19)

In accordance with the PCT treaty at article 19 and the provisions of the chinese patent office, the applicant modifies the claims to add claims 13-16. For the specific modification, refer to the appended revision tab.

1. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the operator is assisted so that the step formed between two adjacent trimming surfaces is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

2. The shovel according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined portion of the attachment is moved along a target track set according to a design surface, and the height of the target track is adjusted when the step is larger than a predetermined value.

3. The shovel of claim 1 displaying information related to said steps.

4. The shovel of claim 1,

when the distance between two slope surface portions of finishing disposed on both sides across a slope surface portion of unfinished finishing is smaller than a predetermined value, the difference between the height of the finishing surface of one slope surface portion and the height of the finishing surface of the other slope surface portion is calculated.

5. The shovel of claim 1,

three or more successive dressing surfaces are formed to be raised or lowered in stages.

6. The shovel of claim 1,

at least one of the adjacent two dressing surfaces is unfinished.

7. The shovel of claim 1,

the two adjacent finishing surfaces are part of a bevel or part of the surface of a base on which the pavers are laid.

8. The shovel of claim 1,

and outputting an alarm when the step is larger than a specified value.

9. The shovel of claim 1,

the attachment actuator comprises a hydraulic cylinder which is,

and causing the hydraulic cylinder to autonomously expand and contract so that the step becomes a predetermined value or less.

10. A shovel is provided with:

a lower traveling body;

an upper revolving body which is rotatably mounted on the lower traveling body;

an attachment mounted on the upper slewing body; and

an attachment actuator to actuate the attachment,

the size of the step formed between the adjacent two dressing surfaces is calculated.

11. The shovel of claim 1 wherein said attachment is controlled so that said step is below a predetermined value.

12. The shovel of claim 1,

the prescribed value is less than the allowable error.

(additional) the shovel according to claim 1, wherein the shovel is formed by calculating a shape of the formed finishing surface The size of the step between two adjacent dressing surfaces.

(addition) the shovel of claim 1, according to the prior artBetween the finished surface and the design surface The size of the step formed between the adjacent two dressing surfaces is calculated.

(appendant) the shovel of claim 1, wherein,

two adjacent trimming surfaces formed so that the step becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value are formed so as not to be different from the design surface The same height of the dressing surface.

(appendant) the shovel of claim 1, wherein,

two adjacent finishing surfaces formed in such a manner that the step becomes a predetermined value or less are formed higher than the design surface The location of (a).