Control lever with sliding guide

Abstract

A manual controller for controlling a machine comprises a mounting platform and a control lever. The control lever is mounted in a joint on the mounting platform so that it can pivot about an axis. A position sensor detects the deflection of the control lever and generates a signal corresponding to the deflection. An evaluation and processing unit processes the signal from the position sensor and controls the machine according to the deflection. A return mechanism returns the control lever back to a starting position.

Claims

1. A manual controller (12) for a machine, comprising: a mounting platform (16); a control lever (18), which is mounted in a joint (22) on the mounting platform (16) so that it can pivot about an axis (24); a position sensor (26), which detects a deflection (w) of the control lever (18) and generates a signal corresponding to the deflection (w); an evaluation and processing unit (28), which processes the signal from the position sensor (26) and controls the machine according to the deflection (ω); a return mechanism (30), which returns the control lever (18) back to a starting position (32); and a sliding guide (46) with a curve profile (65) on the control lever (18), whereby a sliding block (50), which is guided along a deflection curve (47) of the curve profile (65) of the sliding guide (46), determines a progression of force required for the deflection of the control lever (18), wherein the curve profile comprises a neutral point which is a closest point along the curve profile to the joint (22), wherein the sliding block (50) touches the neutral point when the control lever (18) is in a neutral position, wherein the curve profile (65) is asymmetrical relative to a normal axis that extends through the neutral point, and wherein the progression of force upon deflecting the control lever in one direction from the neutral position is different from the progression of force upon deflecting the control lever in an opposite direction from the neutral position.

2. The manual controller (12) according to claim 1, wherein the sliding block (50) or the sliding guide (46) is elastically preloaded for the purpose of guiding.

3. The manual controller (12) according to claim 1, wherein the sliding block (50) or the sliding guide (46) has a spring element (54) for the purpose of providing an elastic preload.

4. The manual controller (12) according to claim 1, wherein at least one pivot point (70) and/or one shoulder (68) is provided in the deflection curve (47) for the sliding block (50).

5. The manual controller (12) according to claim 1, further comprising a tracking device (14) with a frame and/or housing (34) which is arranged on the mounting platform (16), whereby the joint (22) is provided in the frame and/or housing (34) of the tracking device (14).

6. The manual controller (12) according to claim 5, wherein a control unit (44) is provided, which controls a drive (36) of the tracking device (14) to move the control lever (18) to an assigned position.

7. The manual controller (12) according to claim 6, wherein the drive (38) has a rotor (42), which moves the tracking device (14) through an angle (β), with which a position assigned to the machine being controlled according to the deflection (ω) is defined.

8. The manual controller (12) according to claim 6, wherein the drive (38) of the tracking device (14) has a gearbox (40).

9. The manual controller (12) according to claim 8, wherein the gearbox (40) of the drive (38) of the tracking device (14) is self-locking.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the basic principle of a manual controller with a tracking device in a front view.

(2) FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a manual controller with a tracking device in a neutral deflection in a side view.

(3) FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram according to FIG. 2 of a manual controller with a tracking device with a deflection in a side view.

(4) FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the manual controller without a tracking device in a front view.

(5) FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a manual controller without a tracking device in a neutral deflection in a side view.

(6) FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram according to FIG. 5 of a manual controller with a tracking device with a deflection in a side view.

(7) FIG. 7a-7d are schematic diagrams of different variants of the sliding guide and the corresponding curve of the restoring forces with respect to the deflection.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(8) FIG. 1 shows a basic diagram 10 of a manual controller 12 with a tracking device 14. The manual controller 12 serves to control a machine, for example a wheel loader. The manual controller 12 is arranged on a mounting platform 16. The manual controller 12 comprises a control lever 18, which is attached to a control shaft 20. The control shaft 20 is rotatably mounted in the mounting platform 16 and forms a joint 22. The control lever 18 is thus provided to be deflectable via a pivot axis 24.

(9) A position sensor leader 26 detects every deflection ω of the control lever 18 and generates an angle signal associated with the corresponding deflection. The angle ω of the deflection is also referred to in the following as the guide angle ω. An evaluation and processing unit 28 processes the signal of the position sensor 26. A machine is controlled through the guide angle ω according to the deflection. A return mechanism 30 always returns the control lever 18 to its starting position 32 without applying any force. The control lever 18 is located in a housing 34 of the tracking device 14 of the manual controller 12.

(10) A tracking device 14 actively operates the control shaft 20 with an actuator 36. For this purpose, the position sensor 26 generates the angle signal, which corresponds to the respective deflection of the control lever 20 around the pivot axis 24. The position relative to the mounting platform 16 can change, provided that the tracking device 14 has also changed position.

(11) The tracking device 14 also comprises a motor drive 38, which controls a rotor 42 via a gearbox 40. The motor drive 38 is preferably designed as a DC motor. The evaluation and processing unit 28 controls the motor drive 38 such that the rotor 42 rotates through an angle β with respect to the housing 34. The rotor 42 thus changes its angular position relative to the housing 34.

(12) The rotor 42 is controlled via a control unit 44. The angle β of the rotor 42 is referred to as the feedback angle, which is measured relative to the housing 34. The actuator 36 has a self-locking property so that the position of the rotor 42 cannot be changed by applying force to the control lever 18.

(13) The control lever 18 is connected to a sliding guide 46. The bottom of the sliding guide 46 in this diagram is formed with a deflection curve 47. The shape of the deflection curve 47, for example as shown in FIGS. 7a to 7d, has a significant influence on the restoring forces of the control lever 18. A thrust ball bearing 48 moves along this deflection curve 47 when the control lever 18 is operated. The thrust ball bearing 48 forms a sliding block 50 for the sliding guide 46. The sliding block 50 is attached to a lever 52. The spring elements 54 press or pull the sliding block 50 against the sliding guide 46. The sliding block follows the deflection curve 47 when the control lever 18 is operated (see also FIG. 2).

(14) FIG. 2 shows a schematic side view of the manual controller 12 according to FIG. 1. Wherever FIG. 2 corresponds to FIG. 1, the same reference signs will be used. The manual controller 12 comprises the housing 34 and the mounting platform 16. The control lever 18 is provided with the joint 22 in the assembly platform 16 to enable deflectability. Deflections of the control lever 18 are indicated with dashed lines 56 representing the control lever 18. The sliding guide 46 is provided on the bottom section 58 of the control lever 18. The thrust ball bearing 48 is arranged on the end 58 of the lever 52. The other end 60 of the lever 52 is flexibly attached to the assembly platform 16. The spring element 54 preloads the lever 52. This presses the sliding block 50 against the sliding guide 46. In FIG. 1 the control lever 18 is in the starting position 32. The spring element 54 keeps the control lever 18 under tension in this starting position 32.

(15) When the control lever 18 is deflected, the spring element 54 is compressed or expanded or released according to the sliding guide 46. This allows the forces acting on the control lever 18 when deflected to be defined based on the shape of the curve. The spring forces of the spring element 54 can also be designed depending on the degree of hardness that said spring forces influence the forces applied to the control lever 18 upon deflection.

(16) The position sensor 26 detects every deflection ω of the control lever 18 and generates an angle signal associated with the guide angle. The evaluation and processing unit 28 processes the signal of the position sensor 26. A machine is controlled through the guide angle co according to the deflection. The return mechanism 30 comprising here in particular the spring element 54, in interaction with the sliding block 50 and the sliding guide 46, always returns the control lever 18 without force to its starting position 32. The damping module 62 in the present embodiment comprises two damping elements 64. The control lever 18 is arranged between these damping elements 64. The shape of the curve of the sliding guide 46 supports the return process due to its shape since the spring elements 54 can be guided accordingly from a tensioned state to a released state.

(17) The tracking device 14 actively acts with the actuator 36 on the control shaft 20 as described in FIG. 1. As a result, a user immediately receives feedback on the status of the actual control state of the machine. For this purpose, the deflection of the control lever 18 is fed to the evaluation and processing unit 28. The machine is controlled corresponding to the deflection via the evaluation and processing unit 28. The machine in turn sends a control signal to the tracking device 14, which moves the control lever 18 with the tracking device 14 accordingly. The user thus always knows the state of the machine to be operated with the manual controller 10.

(18) FIG. 3 shows the manual controller 12 according to FIG. 2. In contrast to FIG. 2, though, the control lever 18 is shown in a deflected state. The spring element 54 is subject to high tension due to the sliding guide 46 and the sliding block 50. Whether the tension is due to expansive or compressive forces of the spring elements 54 is irrelevant to the actual technical situation. The spring forces of the spring element 54 in this deflected position have a particularly strong effect on the control lever 18, which is firmly connected to the sliding guide 46. As a result of this, the user of the manual controller 12 can determine how far control lever 18 is deflected based solely on the forces acting on it.

(19) FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the manual controller 12. The manual controller 12 is shown schematically without the tracking device 14. FIG. 4 shows a front view of the manual controller 12 shown in a basic diagram. This type of manual controller 12 also serves to control a machine. The manual controller 12 is arranged on the mounting platform 16 and comprises the housing 34. The control lever 18 is attached to the control shaft 20, whereby the control shaft 20 is rotatably mounted in the mounting platform 16, forming the joint 22.

(20) The position sensor leader 26 detects every deflection ω of the control lever 18 and generates an angle signal associated with the corresponding deflection. The evaluation and processing unit 28 processes the signal of the position sensor 26. A machine is controlled through the guide angle ω according to the deflection. The return mechanism 30 always returns the control lever 18 to its starting position 32 without applying any force. The control lever 18, as previously described in the embodiment, is firmly connected to the sliding guide 46.

(21) FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 show a side view of the embodiment in FIG. 4. Wherever the components in the figures correspond, the same reference signs are used here as well. FIG. 5 shows the manual controller 12, whereby the control lever 18 is in the starting position 32 or in a rest position. In FIG. 6 the control lever 18 of the manual controller 12 is shown after deflection through the guide angle ω. The sliding guide 46 has the shape of a curve with the concave side opening to the bottom. A parabola that opens to the bottom could also be provided here, for example. Basically, any curved shape that is technically feasible is conceivable here.

(22) Various curve shapes are therefore shown as examples in FIGS. 7a to 7d. The thrust ball bearing 48 moves along this curved form as the sliding block 50 for the sliding guide 46 when the control lever 18 is operated. The sliding block 50 is attached to the lever 52. The spring elements 54 press or pull the sliding block 50 against the sliding guide 46. The spring forces increase or decrease depending on the position of the sliding guide 46 with respect to the sliding block 50. This provides the user of the control lever 18 with a sense of its deflection. The stronger the deflection is, the greater the forces that need to be overcome to further deflect the control lever 18. The control lever 18 is arranged between the two damping elements 64 of the damping module 62. This helps to reduce the overshoot of the control lever 18 when returning to the starting position 32.

(23) The sliding guide 46 can be designed such that it helps to prevent the control lever 18 from overshooting when returning the control lever 18 to the starting position 32. Additional damping means can provide additional support to this function to prevent the control lever 18 from overshooting. The damping means, for example, can be designed as a magnetically, pneumatically, or hydraulically driven element or as a friction element.

(24) FIGS. 7a to 7d show sliding guides 46 with different curve profiles 65. The curve profiles 65 in particular have different curvatures. While the curve profile 65 in FIG. 7a is designed to be symmetric, the curve profiles 65 in FIGS. 7b to 7d are designed to be asymmetric. In addition to the sliding guide 46, a plot of the restoring forces against the guide angle ω of the control lever 18 is shown.

(25) The sliding guides 46 in FIGS. 7b to 7d have notches 66 or shoulders 68. The notches 66 serve as pivot points 70 for the control lever 18. In this case the shoulders 68 allow the most uniform force distribution possible in terms of restoring forces. The sliding block 50 snaps in place in the notches 66 of the curve profiles 65. These pivot points 70 can be seen immediately in the force curves on the right. In this case, a higher threshold force must be applied to move the control lever 18 out of the notch 66. The distribution of the restoring forces of the control lever 18 can thus be influenced by the curve profile 65 of the sliding guides 46 and adapted to obtain a desired haptic.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(26) 10 Basic diagram of the manual controller 12 Manual controller 14 Tracking device 16 Mounting platform 18 Control lever 20 Control shaft 22 Joint 24 Pivot axis 26 Position sensor ω Guide angle 28 Evaluation and processing unit 30 Return mechanism 32 Starting position 34 Housing 36 Actuator 38 Motor drive 40 Gearbox 42 Rotor 44 Control unit 46 Sliding guide 47 Deflection curve 48 Thrust ball bearing 50 Sliding block 52 Lever 54 Spring element 56 Dashed lines of the control lever 58 End of the lever with sliding block 60 End of the lever on the mounting platform 62 Damping module 64 Damping element 65 Cam profiles 66 Notch 68 Shoulder 70 Pivot point