CRANE

Abstract

The present invention relates to a crane, for example in the form of a tower crane, telescopic boom crane or port crane, comprising a load holding means which is hinged to a hoist rope and by means of which rope can be lifted and lowered, the load holding means having a rotary drive for rotating a load coupling part with respect to a rope hinge part hinged to said hoist rope about an upright load holding axis of rotation. According to the invention, the rotary drive is designed as an inertia drive and has a flywheel which is mounted on the load hook or load coupling part so as to be rotatable about the upright load holding axis of rotation and can be rotationally driven by a drive motor.

Claims

1. A tower crane comprising: a load holder hinged to a hoist rope, wherein the load longer is configured to be lifted and lowered by the hoist rope, wherein the load holder comprises a rotary drive for rotating a load coupling part with respect to a rope hinge part hinged to the hoist rope about an upright hinge axis of rotation, wherein the rotary drive is configured to be an inertia drive and comprises a flywheel mounted on the load coupling part so as to be rotatable about the upright hinge axis of rotation and configured to be rotationally driven by a drive motor.

2. The crane of claim 1, wherein the load coupling part is freely rotatably hinged to the rope hinge part by pivot bearing when the rotary drive is active.

3. The crane of claim 1, wherein the drive motor of the rotary drive is attached to the load coupling part is configured to rotate together with the load coupling part.

4. The crane of claim 1, wherein the drive motor is coaxial to the flywheel and is anchored in a rotationally fixed manner to the load coupling part by a motor housing.

5. The crane of claim 1, wherein the flywheel has a moment of inertia with respect to the hinge axis of rotation which is greater by at least a power of ten than the moment of inertia of the rotating assembly of the drive motor including a drive train reaching as far as the flywheel, including a transmission between the drive motor and the flywheel.

6. The crane of claim 1, wherein the flywheel has a diameter which is at least 150% of the diameter of the drive motor and/or at least 50% of the diameter of a deflection pulley of the rope hinge part with a thickness of at least 150% of the thickness of said rope deflection pulley.

7. The crane of claim 1, wherein the flywheel has at least 30% of the weight of the rope hinge part and the load coupling part.

8. The crane of claim 1, wherein the rotary drive comprises an energy storage detachably attached to an outside of the rope hinge part.

9. The crane of claim 1, wherein the rope hinge part has at least one deflection pulley for the hoist rope, which is drivingly connected to an energy generator, wherein the crane is configured such that the energy generated by the energy generator during hoist rope movements is stored in the energy storage for supplying energy to the drive motor.

10. The crane of claim 1, wherein the load coupling part comprises a quick-coupler for coupling an end tool comprising a concrete bucket and/or load gripper in a rotationally fixed manner.

11. The crane of claim 10, wherein the quick-coupler comprises a form-fitting detachable locker for detachably locking the end tool to the load coupling part in a form-fitting manner.

12. The crane of claim 11, wherein the quick-coupler has an energy line coupling device and/or signal line coupling device for coupling an energy line and/or a signal line of the end tool to be coupled respectively for supplying energy to the end tool from the load holder and/or exchanging signals and/or information between the load holder and a respectively coupled end tool.

13. The crane of claim 1, further comprising a control apparatus for controlling the rotary drive in dependence on at least one sensor signal which reflects at least one operating and/or environmental parameter of the crane and/or of a load attached to the load holder.

14. The crane of claim 13, further comprising a wind sensor for detecting a wind force and/or a wind direction, and wherein the control apparatus is configured to control the rotary drive in dependence on the detected wind force and/or wind direction in such a way that the rotary drive provides a counter-torque balancing a wind torque.

15. The crane of claim 14, further comprising a movement sensor and/or position sensor comprising a gyroscope sensor for providing rotation rate signals, wherein the position sensor is configured to detect a movement, and wherein the position sensor is configured to detect a position, wherein the control apparatus is configured to control the rotary drive in dependence on the detected movement and/or position of the end tool coupled to the load coupling part.

16. The crane of claim 1, wherein the control apparatus is configured to receive target posture information obtained from a construction data model (BIM) communicatively connected to the crane and, in dependence on the received target posture information, to control the rotary drive in such a way that the load coupling part and/or the end tool coupled thereto is moved into a position corresponding to a rotary position information.

17. The crane of claim 1, wherein the control apparatus comprises a manually actuable inputter for inputting a target position of rotation and is configured to control the rotary drive in dependence on a manually input target position of rotation.

18. The crane of claim 1, wherein the control apparatus comprises an electronic control module mounted on the rope hinge part and/or on the load coupling part for controlling the rotary drive.

19. The crane of claim 1, wherein the load coupling part has a quick-coupler for coupling various end tools in a rotationally fixed manner, wherein the end tools comprise such concrete buckets and/or load grippers.

20. The crane of claim 1, further comprising at least one inputter for manually inputting control commands and/or at least one sensor for sensory detection of manual control movements and/or control forces on the end tool coupled to the load coupling part, wherein a control apparatus of the crane is configured to control the rotary drive in dependence on the control commands input on the end tool and/or in dependence on the detected control movements and/or control forces.

21. The crane of claim 1, wherein an end tool comprising a load gripper is locked in a rotationally fixed manner to the load coupling part and is configured to be torsion-resistant with respect to the hinge axis of rotation, wherein the load gripper has a detachable holder for holding a load in a torsion-resistant manner, and wherein the load comprises a prefabricated wall part.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0044] The invention will be explained in more detail in the following with respect to preferred embodiments and to associated drawings. The drawings show:

[0045] FIG. 1: a side view of a crane in the form of a tower crane according to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, to the load holding means of which an end tool in the form of a concrete bucket is coupled,

[0046] FIG. 2: a partially cut-away side view of the load holding means hinged to the hoist rope of the crane of FIG. 1, showing the rope hinge part in the form of a lower block and the load coupling part rotatable with respect thereto, wherein the rotary drive for rotating the load coupling part comprises a flywheel arranged rotatably on the load coupling part and a drive motor,

[0047] FIG. 3: a side view of the load holding means from FIG. 2 with an end tool in the form of a concrete bucket coupled to it,

[0048] FIG. 4: a side view of the load holding means of FIG. 2 with a load gripper coupled thereto for gripping a load in the form of a prefabricated element, and

[0049] FIG. 5: a side view of a load attached to a load hook via slinging means such as chains, which is maneuvered via a guide rope according to the prior art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] As shown in FIG. 1, the crane 1 can be configured to be a tower crane and have a jib 3 from which the hoist rope 7 extends, to which a load holding means 4 is hinged in order to be raised or lowered by retracting or lowering the hoist rope 7. Said load holding means 4 could classically be a load hook, but in an advantageous embodiment it is a quick-coupler, as will be explained in more detail. In order to be able to couple an end tool 9 such as a concrete bucket in a rotationally fixed manner, see FIG. 1 and FIG. 3.

[0051] Said hoist rope 7 can extend from a trolley 5, which can be moved along the jib 3 by means of a trolley drive in order to be able to move the load holding means 4 to the desired location.

[0052] Said jib 3 can be supported by a tower 2 and can be rotated opposite or together with the tower 2 about an upright axis of rotation by a slewing gear in order to be able to move the load holding means 4 to the desired location.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 2, the load holding means 4 comprises a rope hinge part 6, which is hinged to the hoist rope 7, and a load coupling part 8, to which the respective load to be coupled can be coupled, for example in the form of the said concrete bucket 9.

[0054] The rope hinge part 6 can form a lower block with one or more deflection pulleys 10, on which the hoist rope 7 is reeved one or more times, wherein said deflection pulleys 10 are mounted rotatably about a horizontal pulley rotation axis 11 on a deflection or lower block support 12.

[0055] The load coupling part 8 can be arranged suspended below said rope hinge part 6 and rotatably mounted thereon about an upright hinge axis of rotation 13. For example, the load coupling part 8 can have a bearing bolt projecting upwards or also a hollow cylindrical bearing stub, which can, for example, be mounted on the rope hinge part by a rolling and/or plain bearing so that it can rotate about said upright axis.

[0056] The connection between the rope hinge part 6 and the load coupling part 8 can be configured to rotationally move freely, so that the load coupling part 8 can also rotate freely relative to the rope hinge part 6 when the rotary drive is active, or only the friction needs to be overcome. As described at the beginning, a brake can also be provided between the two parts of the load holding means in order to be able to brake rotational movements.

[0057] The rotary drive 14 for rotating the load coupling part 8 relative to the rope hinge part 6 about said upright hinge axis of rotation 13 advantageously operates according to the principle of inertia and applies a torque or a rotary pulse, which is generated according to the principle of inertia, to the rotatably mounted load coupling part 8 and the end tool 9 attached thereto.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 2, the rotary drive 14 comprises a flywheel 15, which is mounted on the load coupling part 8 so as to rotate about an upright flywheel axis, which can extend coaxially to the hinge axis of rotation 13. Said flywheel 15 can be housed inside a frame or a housing of the load coupling part 6, see FIG. 2.

[0059] Said flywheel 15 is driven by a drive motor 16, which may be configured to be an electric motor. Irrespective thereof, said drive motor 16 can be positioned with its motor output shaft coaxial to the flywheel 15 and can be directly or indirectly, i.e. possibly via a gear stage, drive-connected to the flywheel 15 in order to be able to rotationally accelerate said flywheel 15. Advantageously, the drive motor 16 can not only accelerate the flywheel 15 positively in the sense of increasing the rotational speed, but also accelerate it negatively in the sense of decelerating or reducing the rotational speed. Irrespective thereof, the rotary drive 14 can advantageously be actuated in opposite directions in order to be able to generate torques in different directions.

[0060] The drive motor 16 can advantageously be mounted in a rotationally fixed manner, in particular rigidly on the load coupling part 8, preferably mounted inside a frame and/or housing part.

[0061] For example, the drive motor 16 can be attached to the axle journal or the hollow cylinder journal, which is rotatably mounted on the rope hinge part 6 and suspends the load coupling part 8 from the rope hinge part 6.

[0062] The drive motor 16 can be supplied with energy from an energy storage device 17, which can, for example, comprise one or more rechargeable batteries and/or one or more capacitors in order to be able to store electric power. Advantageously, said energy storage 17 can be detachably attached to an outside of the rope hinge part, for example by form-fitting, detachable locking means, so that it can be easily replaced. Simultaneously, the energy storage 17 weighs down the lower block so that its usual weighting can be eliminated or reduced.

[0063] Advantageously, an energy generator 18 can be provided on the rope hinge part 6, in particular in the form of a generator, which can be drive-connected to one of the said deflection pulleys 10, so that each time the hoist rope 7 is actuated and rotates around the said deflection pulley 10, the energy generator is set in motion and generates energy, which can be stored in the energy storage 17.

[0064] In order to be able to control the rotary drive 14 as required, the crane 1 comprises a preferably electronic control apparatus 19, which can have a control module provided on the load holding means 4 for controlling the drive motor 16.

[0065] The control apparatus 19 can take into account sensor signals from one or more sensors 20, which detect one or more operating and/or environmental parameters and provide a corresponding sensor signal, which is then processed by the control apparatus 19 and converted into a control command for the drive motor 16.

[0066] Alternatively or additionally, input means can be provided for the manual input of control commands by a machine operator, which can then be processed in a corresponding manner by the control apparatus 19 and converted into control commands to the drive motor.

[0067] Alternatively or additionally, the control apparatus 19 can also be configured to take into account information from a BIM 20 in order to control the rotary drive 14 and ensure a desired rotational position of the load picked up.

[0068] In particular, the control apparatus 19 can provide the following control strategies for the rotary drive 14 and possibly also other crane drives:

[0069] Requests for slewing movement can be input via manual systems such as the crane's control stand or radio remote control.

[0070] Signals from automatic systems such as construction site logistics management systems can be input with enrichment from environment detection systems of the crane or construction site.

[0071] The control system can be coupled with various sensors and control the rotary drive of the load holding means and/or other crane drives such as slewing gear, trolley drive and/or hoist rope drive using the sensor signals.

[0072] Such sensors can include motion sensors such as gyro sensors to identify rotational movements and/or anemometers to record the wind situation on the hook.

[0073] The control system can send signals to the drive unit based on the detected parameters until a suitable rotation is achieved.

[0074] The control system can control and regulate the drives so that a predetermined position is maintained.

[0075] The control unit can be located in the rotating unit or lower block.

[0076] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, various end tools 9 can be coupled to the load coupling part 8 of the load holding means 4. In this respect, the load coupling part 8 can preferably comprise a quick-coupler 21 in order to hold or lock the end tool 9 to be coupled in a rotationally fixed manner, in particular rigidly, on the load coupling part 8. The interface of the quick-coupler 21 can be adapted to the contour of the end tools 9 to be coupled, as already explained in more detail at the beginning. Preferably, the quick-coupler 21 can have movable locking elements, for example in the form of swivel levers and/or sliders and/or claws, which, depending on the position, are in locking engagement with suitable mating contours on the end tool 9 or can be released therefrom.

[0077] The quick-coupler 21 is configured to hold the coupled end tool 9 in a rotationally fixed manner in order to be able to transmit rotary movements of the rotary drive 14 to the end tool 9.

[0078] In addition, the load holding means 4, in particular its load coupling part 8, preferably also has energy and/or signal line couplings 22 in order to supply the coupled end tool 9 with energy and/or to be able to exchange signals and/or information between the coupled end tool 9 and the crane 1. This allows the respective functions of the coupled end tool 9 to be supported by the crane 1.

[0079] If, as shown in FIG. 3, a concrete bucket is coupled as end tool 9, the following functionalities can be supported, for example: [0080] In order to open or close the concrete bucket in response to control signals from the crane operator, the corresponding concrete bucket has the necessary geometric interface to transmit the forces and signals. [0081] At the control signal from the crane operator, the concrete bucket opens its discharge opening so that the fresh concrete pouring process can begin. This process also stops again at the push of a button by the crane operator. [0082] Alternatively, the concrete bucket can be moved in a desired direction by external force, for example by site personnel. In order to implement this function, the concrete bucket has sensors that detect the force applied and transmit this to the crane control system via the control lines described above. The crane operator must hand over the crane control to the operating personnel. The ground personnel use it to control the load, which steers the crane.

[0083] The turning device, which is integrated in the new lower block, is also available for the automatic concrete bucket. Further functionalities are conceivable.

[0084] If, as shown in FIG. 4, a load gripper is coupled as end tool 9, the following functions can be performed or supported, for example: [0085] To enable automated picking up/releasing of prefabricated elements of all kinds (concrete, wood, glass, . . . ), the actuator for prefabricated elements has the necessary geometric interface to transmit the forces and signals. [0086] The gripper elements facilitate component handling by quickly coupling with the load (finished elements). The gripping elements have predefined pick-up positions that can be set manually or automatically. The gripping elements move a few centimeters into the opening provided on the prefabricated element and create a force-fit connection. There exists the possibility of feedback to the crane operator as to whether the frictional connection has been established. [0087] To control the load at close range, the gripping device for prefabricated parts can be equipped with sensors detecting an external force and transmitting it to the crane control system via the control lines described above. The crane driver must hand over or have handed over the crane control to the operating personnel. The ground personnel use it to control the load, which steers the crane. [0088] Likewise, the gripping elements have the rotating function of the lower block described above to also simplify load handling under difficult environmental conditions. The rotation function can also simplify the positioning of the prefabricated elements. [0089] After the prefabricated elements have been set down in their final position, the force-fit connection can be released again by deliberately releasing the frictional connection and/or by opening a locking unit.