Construction Equipment Cross Slope Transitions

Abstract

A mobile construction equipment includes: a blade that is movable with respect to the mobile construction equipment, the blade imparting at least one cross slope on a surface on which the mobile construction equipment is operating; and a controller for receiving at least a first target cross slope, a second target cross slope, and at least one input, and, based on the at least one input, transitioning the blade from a first blade position to impart the first target cross slope on the surface to a second blade position to impart the second target cross slope on the surface.

Claims

1. A mobile construction equipment, comprising: a blade that is movable with respect to the mobile construction equipment, the blade being configured to impart at least one cross slope on a surface on which the mobile construction equipment is operating; and a controller configured to receive at least a first target cross slope, a second target cross slope, and at least one input, and, based on the at least one input, transition the blade from a first blade position to impart the first target cross slope on the surface to a second blade position to impart the second target cross slope on the surface.

2. The mobile construction equipment of claim 1, further comprising: a satellite positioning unit of a global navigation satellite system, the satellite positioning unit being configured to output location of the mobile construction equipment, wherein the at least one input comprises the location of the mobile construction equipment.

3. The mobile construction equipment of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to transition the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position as the mobile construction equipment moves from a first location to a second location.

4. The mobile construction equipment of claim 3, further comprising: a machine speed sensor configured to provide a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment, wherein the at least one input comprises the machine speed of the mobile construction equipment.

5. The mobile construction equipment of claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to determine, based at least in part on the machine speed, a cross slope transition rate for transitioning the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position, and move the blade at the cross slope transition rate while the mobile construction equipment moves from the first location to the second location.

6. The mobile construction equipment of claim 1, further comprising: a transition mode switch movable between an on position and an off position, wherein, when the transition mode switch is in the on position, the controller is configured to transition the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position at a cross slope transition rate.

7. The mobile construction equipment of claim 6, wherein the cross slope transition rate is adjustable by an operator of the mobile construction equipment.

8. The mobile construction equipment of claim 6, further comprising: a machine speed sensor configured to provide a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment, wherein the controller is configured to determine the cross slope transition rate based at least in part on the machine speed.

9. A method for imparting at least one cross slope on a surface using a mobile construction equipment, the method comprising: receiving at least a first target cross slope for the surface, a second target cross slope for the surface, and at least one input; and based on the at least one input, transitioning a blade of the mobile construction equipment from a first blade position to impart the first target cross slope on the surface to a second blade position to impart the second target cross slope on the surface.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving the at least one input comprises receiving a location of the mobile construction equipment.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the blade is transitioned from the first blade position to the second blade position as the mobile construction equipment moves from a first location to a second location.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the at least one input comprises receiving a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the blade is transitioned from the first blade position to the second blade position at a cross slope transition rate, the cross slope transition rate being determined at least in part based on the machine speed.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising, before transitioning the blade of the mobile construction equipment from the first blade position to impart the first target cross slope on the surface to the second blade position to impart the second target cross slope on the surface: placing the mobile construction equipment in a transition mode; and determining a cross slope transition rate for transitioning the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the cross slope transition rate is adjustable by an operator of the mobile construction equipment.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein receiving at least one input comprises receiving a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment, and wherein the cross slope transition rate is based at least in part on the machine speed.

17. A controller for a mobile construction equipment having a blade that is movable with respect to the mobile construction equipment to impart at least one cross slope on a surface on which the mobile construction equipment is operating, the controller being configured to: receive a first target cross slope for the surface; receive a second target cross slope for the surface; receive at least one input; and based on the at least one input, transition the blade from a first blade position to impart the first target cross slope on the surface to a second blade position to impart the second target cross slope on the surface.

18. The controller of claim 17, wherein the controller is configured to receive a location of the mobile construction equipment, the at least one input comprising the location, and wherein the controller is configured to transition the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position as the mobile construction equipment moves from a first location to a second location.

19. The controller of claim 18, wherein the controller is configured to receive a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment, the at least one input comprising the machine speed, and wherein the controller is configured to determine, based at least in part on the machine speed, a cross slope transition rate for transitioning the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position, and move the blade at the cross slope transition rate while the mobile construction equipment moves from the first location to the second location.

20. The controller of claim 17, wherein, when the mobile construction equipment is in a transition mode, the controller is configured to determine a cross slope transition rate for transitioning the blade from the first blade position to the second blade position, the cross slope transition rate being adjustable by an operator of the mobile construction equipment or based at least in part on a machine speed of the mobile construction equipment.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] FIG. 1 shows a cross section of a road;

[0027] FIGS. 2A-2C show aerial views of various intersections of two roads;

[0028] FIG. 3 is a side view of a conventional motor grader;

[0029] FIG. 4 is a top view of the motor grader of FIG. 3;

[0030] FIG. 5 is a detail view showing the blade assembly of the motor grader of FIGS. 3-4;

[0031] FIG. 6 shows a controller of the present disclosure for the motor grader of FIGS. 3-5; and

[0032] FIGS. 7A-7B show a blade of a motor grader transitioning between different positions in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The present application describes mobile construction equipment, methods, and controllers used to establish cross slope of a surface, such as a road, in ways that avoid the shortcomings of an operator of the mobile construction equipment attempting to manually establish the cross slope using the mobile construction equipment. In general, the mobile construction equipment may be a motor grader, such as motor grader 10. Motor grader 10 includes blade 30, which is movable with respect to motor grader 10 such that blade 30 can be used to impart or establish at least one cross slope 108 on a surface on which the mobile construction equipment is operating, such as road 100. The mobile construction equipment, methods, and controllers of the present application are particularly useful for establishing cross slope 108 near intersections, such as intersections 116A-116C, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2C.

[0034] FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of a control system 94 for motor grader 10. Control system 94 generally includes a controller, or electronic control module, 96 configured to receive a plurality of instructions from various sensors and/or operator commands, and to responsively provide instructions to control various actuators of motor grader 10 and/or communicate with the operator of motor grader 10. Controller 96 may include various components for executing software instructions designed to regulate various subsystems of motor grader 10. For example, controller 96 may include a central processing unit (CPU), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), input/output elements, etc. Controller 96 may execute machine readable instructions stored in controller 96 on a mass storage device, RAM, ROM, local memory, and/or on a removable storage medium, such as a CD, DVD, and/or flash memory device.

[0035] Control system 94 may incorporate a number of inputs, such as inputs from mainfall sensor 80, rotation sensor 82, blade slope sensor 84, satellite positioning unit 88, machine speed sensor 90, a settings module 98, and a user interface 99, among others. Settings module 98 may store setting information relating to local conditions and the surroundings of motor grader 10, which vary. Exemplary setting information includes, for example, information related to the configuration of motor grader 10, such as tire size.

[0036] User interface 99 may be disposed within operator station 26 of motor grader 10 so that the operator of motor grader 10 can input information into controller 96. Alternatively, user interface 99 could be located remote from motor grader 10 (e.g., if motor grader 10 is being operated autonomously). Exemplary information that may be inputted via user interface 99 can include one or more target cross slopes T.sub.CS. A target cross slope T.sub.CS is a desired cross slope 108 at a particular portion of road 100. Different target cross slopes T.sub.CS may be associated with different locations L on road 100. For example, a first target cross slope T.sub.CS1 may be associated with a first location L.sub.1 on road 100, while a second target cross slope T.sub.CS2 may be associated with a second location L.sub.2 on road 100, second location L.sub.2 being different than first location L.sub.1.

[0037] Under ideal conditions, a given target cross slope T.sub.CS would be exactly the same as cross slope 108 actually established by motor grader 10 on road 100. However, in real-world conditions, a target cross slope T.sub.CS, is, as its name suggests, a target for cross slope 108, understanding that motor grader 10 may not be able to obtain an exact one-to-one correspondence between target cross slope T.sub.CS and cross slope 108 actually established by motor grader 10 on road 100. Nevertheless, target cross slope T.sub.CS and cross slope 108 established by motor grader 10 on road 100, can, in practice, be considered equal.

[0038] Based at least in part on target cross slope T.sub.CS information that is received (e.g., from user interface 99), controller 96 can issue various instructions to control blade position P.sub.B of blade 30 with respect to motor grader 10 in order to impart particular target cross slopes T.sub.CS at particular locations L on road 100. Specifically, controller 96 can issue instructions to actuate one or more of right lift cylinder 36, left lift cylinder 38, center shift cylinder 40, circle drive 46, blade tip cylinder 52, and/or any other actuators for moving blade 30 to transition blade position P.sub.B of blade 30 to a position consistent with a particular target cross slope T.sub.CS on road 100. For example, as shown in FIGS. 7A-7B, controller 96 can control blade 30 (by way of, for example, one or more of right lift cylinder 36, left lift cylinder 38, center shift cylinder 40, circle drive 46, and blade tip cylinder 52) so as to move blade 30 from a first blade position P.sub.B1 (as shown in FIG. 7A) to impart a first target cross slope T.sub.CS1 at a first location L.sub.1 on road 100, to a second blade position P.sub.B2 (as shown in FIG. 7B) to impart a second target cross slope T.sub.CS2 at a second location L.sub.2 on road 100.

[0039] In addition to target cross slope T.sub.CS, controller 96 can also control blade position P.sub.B of blade 30 with respect to motor grader 10 based on other inputs, in that there may be at least one input into controller 96 in addition to one or more target cross slopes T.sub.CS, as shown in FIG. 6. For example, satellite positioning unit 88 may input one more locations L of motor grader 10 (e.g., a first location L.sub.1 and a second location L.sub.2). These locations L may correspond to particular points of interest in the context of road 100 and cross slope 108, such as an intersection (e.g., intersections 116A-116C), bridge, rail crossing, cattle guard, etc. Machine speed sensor 90 may input a machine speed V of motor grader 10 into controller 96. Machine speed V can either be constant or variable. For example, at first location L.sub.1, motor grader 10 could have a first machine speed V.sub.1, while at second location L.sub.2, motor grader 10 could have a second machine speed V.sub.2 that is either higher, lower, or the same as V.sub.1. Controller 96 could also receive inputs from one or more of mainfall sensor 80, rotation sensor 82, and blade slope sensor 84 so as to determine a difference between a current blade position P.sub.B and a desired blade position (e.g., first blade position P.sub.B1 and/or second blade position P.sub.B2) and whether further movement of blade 30 is needed to achieve a desired cross slope 108. Settings information, such as a tire size of motor grader 10, could also be received via settings module 98.

[0040] Based on information received from one or more of mainfall sensor 80, rotation sensor 82, blade slope sensor 84, satellite positioning unit 88 (e.g., location L), machine speed sensor 90 (e.g., machine speed V), settings module 98, and user interface 99 (e.g., target cross slope T.sub.CS), controller 96 can determine a cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST. Cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST is the rate at which blade 30 transitions from first blade position P.sub.B1 to second blade position P.sub.B2. For example, if the change from a first target cross slope T.sub.CS1 to a second target cross slope T.sub.CS2 is aggressive (e.g., a significant cross slope 108 change over a short distance of road 100), then cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST may be higher. If, however, the change from first target cross slope T.sub.CS1 to second target cross slope T.sub.CS2 is minor (e.g., a small cross slope 108 change over a long distance of road 100), then cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST may be lower. Cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST may also be manually input (e.g., by way of user interface 99) into controller 96, as shown in FIG. 6, in the event the operator of motor grader 10 desires a specific cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST for a specific section of road 100. Cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST is therefore adjustable.

[0041] Once a particular cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST is determined or input, controller 96 can, if desired, transition blade 30 from first blade position P.sub.B1 to second blade position P.sub.B2 (e.g., while moving from a first location L.sub.1 to a second location L.sub.2) at the particular cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST. In this manner, blade 30 transitions, at cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST, from first blade position P.sub.B1 to impart a first target cross slope T.sub.CS1 on road 100, to second blade position P.sub.B2 to impart a second target cross slope T.sub.CS2 on road 100. This transition may occur while moving from a first location L.sub.1 to a second location L.sub.2, for example.

[0042] Control system 94 also includes transition mode switch 92, as shown in FIG. 6. Transition mode switch 92 is movable between an on position, in which motor grader 10 is placed in a transition mode, and an off position, in which motor grade is taken out of the transition mode. Transition mode switch 92 may be physically actuated by a local operator of motor grader 10 or remotely actuated by a remote operator of motor grader 10 (e.g., if motor grader 10 is autonomous). The output of transition mode 92 may be an additional input into controller 96. When transition mode switch 92 is placed in the on position, controller 96 can transition blade 30 between desired positions (e.g., from a first blade position P.sub.B1 to a second blade position P.sub.B2) at a desired cross slope transition rate Rest, which may be a cross slope transition rate R.sub.CST received from user interface 99 or determined by controller 96. In this manner, actuation of transition mode switch 92 places motor grader 10 in the transition mode, which initiates the transitioning of blade 30 between desired blade positions P.sub.B.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

[0043] In general, the mobile construction equipment, methods, and controllers of the present application are applicable for use in automatically establishing a desired cross slope on a surface, such as a road. When approaching certain features of a road, such as an intersection, bridge, rail crossing, cattle guard, etc., it is desirable to have a smooth cross slope transition at the feature. Rather than relying on an operator of a motor grader to manually implement the desired cross slope at the feature using the mobile construction equipment, the mobile construction equipment, methods, and controllers of the present application allow the motor grader to use a first target cross slope, a second target cross slope, and at least one input to automate the establishment of the cross slope transition on the road. The at least one input may come from one or more of a mainfall sensor, rotation sensor, blade slope sensor, satellite positioning unit, machine speed sensor, transition mode switch, settings module, and user interface associated with the motor grader. By automating the establishment of a desired cross slope transition in this manner, the transition is smoother in comparison to the prior art, resulting in multiple improvements associated with the road (e.g., improved road surface, proper water flow, longer road life, lower operating costs, etc.).

[0044] While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those of ordinary skill within the scope of the following claims. In particular, the present invention covers further embodiments with any combination of features from different embodiments described above and below. Additionally, statements made herein characterizing the invention refer to an embodiment of the invention and not necessarily all embodiments.

[0045] The terms used in the claims should be construed to have the broadest reasonable interpretation consistent with the foregoing description. For example, the use of the article a or the in introducing an element should not be interpreted as being exclusive of a plurality of elements. Likewise, the recitation of or should be interpreted as being inclusive, such that the recitation of A or B is not exclusive of A and B, unless it is clear from the context or the foregoing description that only one of A and B is intended. Further, the recitation of at least one of A, B and C should be interpreted as one or more of a group of elements consisting of A, B and C, and should not be interpreted as requiring at least one of each of the listed elements A, B and C, regardless of whether A, B and C are related as categories or otherwise. Moreover, the recitation of A, B and/or C or at least one of A, B or C should be interpreted as including any singular entity from the listed elements, e.g., A, any subset from the listed elements, e.g., A and B, or the entire list of elements A, B and C.

[0046] The present disclosure includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the disclosure unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.