Remote control device for a large manipulator having a control lever

Abstract

A device includes a remote control apparatus with a control lever that is pivotably mounted to the remote control apparatus. The control lever is pivotable within an inner zero-position range, an outer travel range, and an oscillation damping range located between the inner zero-position range and the outer travel range. The remote control apparatus is configured to cause movement of a large manipulator, which has an active oscillation damping mode, switch on the active oscillation damping mode and cause movement of the large manipulator when the control lever is within the outer travel range, switch off the active oscillation damping mode when the control lever is located in the zero-position range, and switch on the active oscillation damping mode without causing movement of the large manipulator when the control lever is located within the oscillation damping range.

Claims

1. A device comprising: a remote control apparatus including a control lever that is pivotably mounted to the remote control apparatus, the control lever being pivotable within an inner zero-position range, an outer travel range, and an oscillation damping range located between the inner zero-position range and the outer travel range, the remote control apparatus is configured to: cause movement of a large manipulator, which has an active oscillation damping mode, switch on the active oscillation damping mode and cause movement of the large manipulator when the control lever is within the outer travel range, switch off the active oscillation damping mode when the control lever is located in the zero-position range, and switch on the active oscillation damping mode without causing movement of the large manipulator when the control lever is located within the oscillation damping range.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the control lever is mounted to be pivotable about at least two pivot axes that are orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the control lever.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein a restoring force is applied against the control lever such that the restoring force must be overcome to transition the control lever from the oscillation damping range to the outer travel range.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein control level includes a push button, wherein the remote control apparatus is configured to switch on the active oscillation damping mode in response to activation of the push button.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the remote control apparatus includes a travel mode and a stationary mode, wherein an activation of the control lever in the stationary mode switches on the active oscillation damping.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the control level includes a push button, wherein activation of the push button in the stationary mode switches on the active oscillation damping.

Description

(1) An exemplary embodiment of the invention will be explained in more detail hereunder by means of drawings in which:

(2) FIG. 1: schematically shows a plan view of a remote control apparatus according to the invention;

(3) FIG. 2: shows a detailed view of the region A from FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 3: schematically shows the movement of the control lever from FIG. 1 in a lateral view;

(5) FIG. 4: schematically shows the rotatability of the control lever from FIG. 1 about the longitudinal axis of said control lever in a lateral view;

(6) FIG. 5: schematically shows the remote control apparatus from FIG. 1 in a second operating mode; and

(7) FIG. 6: shows a schematic view of a control lever in a second exemplary embodiment.

(8) A remote control apparatus according to the invention in its entirety is identified by the reference sign 1 in the drawings.

(9) The remote control apparatus 1 for a truck-mounted concrete pump is shown in a schematic plan view in FIG. 1. Two control levers 2 by way of which a distributor boom of the truck-mounted concrete pump can be moved are attached to the remote control apparatus 1. The remote control apparatus 1 furthermore has a display 3 by way of which mainly status displays are displayed. A selector switch 4 by way of which three operating modes, that is to say two travel modes, the “rapid movement mode” (symbolized by a hare), the “slow movement mode” (symbolized by a snail), and a “stationary mode” (symbolized by a crossed-out distributor boom) can be selected is furthermore provided on the remote control apparatus 1. The operating mode set here is the “rapid movement mode”.

(10) The control lever 2 by way of various measures is specified for switching on the active oscillation damping of the large manipulator without causing any movement of the large manipulator. These measures will be explained in more detail hereunder.

(11) The two control levers 2 on the remote control apparatus 1 are mounted so as to be pivotable counter to a restoring force about two pivot axes X, Y that run so as to be orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of said control levers 2, and have a zero-position range 5, an oscillation damping range 6, and a travel range 7.

(12) The three ranges in FIG. 2 are illustrated in an enlarged manner in the detailed view of the region A from FIG. 1. If the control lever 2 is located in the zero-position range 5 thereof, the active oscillation damping of the large manipulator is not switched on. The zero-position range 5 is small compared to the other two ranges, such that a very small pivot angle is already sufficient for moving the control lever 2 from the zero-position range 5 to the oscillation damping range 6. When the control lever 2 by the machine operator is now moved from the zero-position range 5 to the oscillation damping range 6, the active oscillation damping of the truck-mounted concrete pump is switched on. The distributor boom of the truck-mounted concrete pump is however not yet repositioned. When the machine operator moves the control lever 2 further to the travel range 7, the distributor boom is repositioned depending on the respective selected operating mode. When the machine operator lets go of the control lever 2, the latter on account of the restoring mechanism thereof automatically returns to the zero-position range 5.

(13) The force of the restoring mechanism is purposefully abruptly increased at the transitions of the individual ranges, or the transitions have a haptic threshold that is noticeable to the machine operator, respectively, without the restoring force in the travel range 7 and in the oscillation damping range 6 necessarily being dissimilar. It is additionally displayed by way of the display 3 in which range the control lever 2 is in each case located. When the distributor boom has reached the target position thereof, the machine operator moves the control lever 2 from the travel range 7 to the oscillation damping range 6, the distributor boom is stopped, and the active oscillation damping simultaneously remains switched on without the machine operator having to change his/her grip in any manner. The ease of operation is thus very simple.

(14) FIG. 3 schematically shows such a motion sequence. The control lever 2 there is pivoted from the initial position thereof about the pivot axis Y.

(15) The control lever 2 in this exemplary embodiment is mounted so as to be additionally rotatable about the longitudinal axis Z of said control lever 2. This is schematically illustrated in FIG. 4. In a manner analogous to the pivot axes X, Y that run so as to be orthogonal to the longitudinal axis Z, the control lever 2 in the case of a rotation about the longitudinal axis Z thereof, depending on the rotation angle, also has a zero-position range, an oscillation damping range, and a travel range.

(16) The remote control apparatus 1 illustrated in FIG. 5 by way of the selector switch 4 is set to the operating mode “stationary mode”. The control levers 2 here likewise have the zero-position range 5, the oscillation damping range 6, and the travel range 7. However, the movement function of the distributor boom of the truck-mounted concrete pump in this operating mode is not switched on by way of the control levers 2. The active oscillation damping however remains switched on also in the travel range 7. This operating mode is particularly well suited to comparatively long concreting procedures in which the distributor boom does not have to be moved for a comparatively long time, but oscillation nevertheless arises on the distributor boom on account of pumping procedures. Each pivoting or rotating movement of the control lever 2 can thus be used by the machine operator for switching on the oscillation damping without causing any travel movement of the boom.

(17) FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the control lever 2. The control lever 2 here has an additional push button 8 having a dead-man function by way of which the active oscillation damping remains active. If the additional push button 8 is activated, the active oscillation damping remains switched on also in the zero-position range 5 without the machine operator having to change his/her grip in any manner. The ease of operation is thus very simple.

(18) The functionality of the push button in mechanical terms can also be achieved such that the entire control lever is depressed from above in the direction of the remote control unit and on account thereof a switching mechanism below the control lever is triggered, said switching mechanism activating the oscillation damping.

(19) The functionality of the push button in the stationary mode here too can be used for switching on the oscillation damping.

(20) When the large manipulator as an additional operating mode has a so-called Cartesian in control of the boom tip, a movement for the boom tip or the end hose attached thereto can directly be predefined in Cartesian coordinates (or polar coordinates) by way of the control lever or control levers 2, said coordinates from the control being converted mathematically to movement of velocities of the individual articulations. The movement of the boom can thus be operated by way of a single control lever 2, as long as the latter has at least three degrees of freedom or adjustment directions, respectively. However, a second control lever 2, usually present, remains unused in this mode, that is to say that any deflection of said second control lever does not lead to any movement of the boom. In this operating mode of the Cartesian control, which in an analogous manner means a stationary mode for the second control lever 2, the active oscillation damping is switched on by the deflection of the second control lever 2 in one of the adjustment directions present thereof. A further possibility for switching on and off the active oscillation damping in the operating mode of the Cartesian control is available to the operator on account of this solution. The ease of operation of the overall system is enhanced on account thereof, without an additional dead-man function that is separate from the control levers 2 being required to this end.