Patent Application
20240209577
The present application claims priority to German Patent Application Ser. No. DE 10 2022 134 454.1 filed Dec. 22, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The disclosure relates to a self-propelled construction machine, as well as to a method for producing pavements by stabilizing soils of insufficient load-bearing capacity or by recycling road surfaces.
Self-propelled construction machines for producing pavements by stabilizing soils of insufficient load-bearing capacity or by recycling road surfaces are known, which comprise a machine frame supported by travelling devices. A working device mounted to pivot relative to the machine frame, in particular milling/mixing drum, is furthermore provided for working the ground. A driving device, in particular a drive engine, is provided for driving the working device. At least one first hydraulic operating device and at least one second hydraulic operating device are provided, which are each connected to the working device and the machine frame, wherein the working device is pivotable relative to the machine frame by adjusting the operating devices.
Such a machine is known, for example, from DE 10 2018 126672 (U.S. Pat. No. 10,309,067).
In the current state of the art, there is the problem that the working device is always aligned parallel to the machine frame and the construction machine must therefore always have the same transverse inclination as the inclination of the working device, and in the rarest of cases, however, the working device must be aligned horizontally. The working device must normally be aligned parallel to the ground and, in most cases, therefore exhibits a certain inclination from the horizontal line. This, in turn, means that the entire construction machine must exhibit an inclination relative to the horizontal line.
However, this has some disadvantages. On the one hand, the driver is also in the inclined position, as he is positioned in the driver's cabin on the machines. Furthermore, tanks are frequently provided on the machine frame, for example, for water or fuels. A displacement of the liquid results in a shift of the machine's centre of gravity, which in turn leads to an uneven load on the travelling devices. In addition, with larger transverse inclinations, there is the risk of the machine tipping over, since such machines have a relatively narrow track width, and such construction machines frequently have a very high centre of gravity. Furthermore, with the self-propelled construction machines, binding agents are added for recycling or stabilizing when working the soil. A transverse inclination may cause the problem that the binding agents are not distributed evenly across the width of the construction machine.
It is therefore the object of the present disclosure to create a self-propelled construction machine in which the adjustment of the working device relative to the machine frame is improved.
The disclosure advantageously specifies that a controller is provided, which is designed to control the adjustment travels of the operating devices in such a manner that the adjustment travels of the first operating device and the second operating device exhibit a defined difference to each other. The first and second operating devices may be referred to as first and second actuators.
This enables precise positioning of the working device in relation to the machine frame.
The at least one first and/or second operating device may preferably be hydraulic operating devices.
Alternatively, the at least one first and/or second operating device may be operating devices adjustable by means of linear motors or spindle drives.
The working device may be supported in pivoting arms and, with the pivoting arms, may be pivotable about a pivoting axis relative to the machine frame. The working device may be pivoted about the pivoting axis by means of the operating devices.
The operating devices may each be connected directly or indirectly to the working device and directly or indirectly to the machine frame.
The construction machine may furthermore comprise four travelling devices. Also, all existing travelling devices may be steerable. In addition, all travelling devices may be driven. The working device may be arranged between the front and the rear travelling devices. The front travelling devices may form a front axle. The rear travelling devices may form a rear axle. The driving device, in particular the drive engine, may be installed in transverse direction.
According to the present disclosure, at least one each sensor device may be provided on or in the respective hydraulic operating devices, which is designed to detect the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating device and to transmit the detected values to the controller.
In this way, it is possible to precisely control the respective adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices.
According to the present disclosure, at least one mechanical power transmission device may be provided, which transmits the driving power from a drive shaft of the driving device to the working device.
The mechanical power transmission device may comprise at least one belt drive.
The mechanical power transmission device may be pivotable, with the working device mounted between pivoting arms, about a pivoting axis.
The mechanical power transmission device may thus be pivoted, together with the working device, in relation to the machine frame.
The pivoting axis may preferably be arranged coaxially or parallel to the drive shaft of the driving device.
As an alternative to the mechanical power transmission device, the drum may also be hydraulically driven.
The travelling devices may be connected to the machine frame via lifting devices, so that the machine frame may be adjustable in height in relation to the travelling device by operating the lifting device. The lifting devices may be operatable in such a manner that the transverse and/or longitudinal inclination of the machine frame is adjustable by means of the lifting devices.
The lifting devices may be operatable individually, for example, in order to adjust the transverse and longitudinal inclination of the machine frame by means of the lifting device. Alternatively, the lifting devices may also be operatable in pairs, for example, in order to adjust the transverse or longitudinal inclination of the machine frame by means of the lifting device.
The controller may be designed to control the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices in such a manner that the difference in the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating device is, essentially, zero.
The controller may be designed to control the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices in such a manner that the hydraulic operating devices are, essentially, adjustable synchronously.
The advantage of synchronous adjustability is that the difference in the adjustment travels remains, essentially, constant on a permanent basis. In the event that the difference is adjusted to zero and the operating devices are adjusted synchronously, one advantage is that the working device hardly ever jams. As a result, the elements in which the working device is supported have a significantly longer service life.
The present disclosure has the advantage that the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices can be matched to one another.
Both the first and the second operating device may each comprise at least one first part, which is adjustable in relation to the respective second part, wherein the respective first part is connected to the working device, and the respective second part is connected to the machine frame, wherein the respective first parts of the first and second operating device are connected to one another solely via the working device.
Also, the pivoting arms mounted to pivot on the machine frame are not coupled to one another, so that the first and second operating devices are connected to one another solely via the working device.
There is no additional coupling, in particular no additional mechanical coupling, between the first and second operating device that would enable the synchronization of the adjustment travels. The synchronization is effected solely by means of the controller.
Mechanical couplings of the first and second operating device, or couplings of the first and second operating device via double-rod cylinders or flow dividers, are known in the state of the art. However, according to the present disclosure, coupling can be effected solely by means of the controller.
According to the present disclosure, a method for producing pavements by stabilizing soils of insufficient load-bearing capacity or by recycling road surfaces by means of a self-propelled construction machine may be specified, which comprises the following steps:
According to the present disclosure, it is provided that the adjustment travels of the operating device are controlled by means of a controller in such a manner that the adjustment travels of the first operating device and the second operating device exhibit a defined difference to each other.
The at least one first and/or second operating device may preferably be hydraulic operating devices.
The adjustment travels of the operating device may each be detected by means of at least one sensor device, and the detected values may be transmitted to the controller. The sensor device may also be referred to as a sensor.
The controller may control the adjustment of the adjustment travels of the respective operating device as a function of the detected values of the respective adjustment travels and the predetermined difference in the adjustment travels.
The adjustment travels of the operating devices may be controlled by means of the controller in such a manner that the difference in the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices is, essentially, zero.
The adjustment travels of the operating devices may be controlled by means of the controller in such a manner that the operating devices are adjusted synchronously.
The driving power may be transmitted to the working device by a driven shaft of the driving device via at least one mechanical power transmission device.
The mechanical power transmission device may be pivoted, with the working device mounted in pivoting arms, about a pivoting axis.
The present disclosure has the advantage that no additional coupling elements, such as mechanical coupling elements between the two operating devices and/or between the pivoting arms, are required to match the adjustment travels to one another. Installation space can thus be saved, since no installation space has to be used for said coupling elements within the machine frame. This means that neither the machine frame nor parts within the machine frame, such as the tank, need to be adapted in order to establish a coupling between the two operating devices.
A controller within the meaning of the present disclosure may comprise a processor, a computer-readable medium, a data base and an input/output module or a control panel with a display, or may be assigned to the same. Also, the controller may comprise an input/output device, such as a keyboard, a joystick or other user interface, or these may be assigned to the controller, so that the human operator may enter instructions into the controller. It is understood that the controller described herein may be a single controller, which comprises the entire functionality described, or that it may contain a plurality of controllers, wherein the functionality described may be distributed to the plurality of controllers.
Different operations, steps or algorithms, which a controller may execute within the meaning of the present disclosure, may be directly embodied, for example, in hardware, in a computer program such as in a software module executed by the processor, or in a combination of both. The computer program may be located, for example, in a RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, register, a hard disk, a removable medium or any other form of computer-readable medium that is known in the state of the art. An example of a computer-readable medium may, for example, be coupled to the processor in such a manner that the processor may read information from the memory/storage medium and may write information on the same. Alternatively, the medium may also be integrated into the processor. The processor and the medium may be located, for example, in an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The ASIC may be located in a user terminal device. Alternatively, the processor and the medium may be located in a user terminal device as discrete components.
The term “processor”, as used herein, may at least refer to all-purpose or special-purpose processing devices and/or logic, as the person skilled in the art may understand, including, but not limited to, a micro processor, a micro controller, a finite state machine and the like. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computer devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a micro processor, a plurality of micro processors, one or a plurality of micro processors in combination with a DSP core, or other such configuration.
At least one sensor device may be provided on or in the respective operating devices, which is designed to detect the adjustment travels of the operating device and to transmit the detected values to the controller.
The controller may be designed or programmed in such a manner that it receives the detected values from the at least one sensor device and may transmit control signals to the operating devices in order to control the extension of the operating devices.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the disclosure are illustrated in more detail with reference to the drawings.
The following is shown:
The construction machine 1 further comprises a working device 8 mounted to pivot relative to the machine frame 6. The working device 8 May in particular be a milling and/or mixing rotor, which is used to work the ground. The working device 8 is preferably enclosed by a housing 24. The space enclosed by the housing 24 is termed mixing chamber 23. The working device 8 in the design of a milling/mixing rotor may be used to mill soils of insufficient load-bearing capacity or also road pavements.
The construction machine 1 may further comprise lifting devices 12, as shown in the embodiment depicted, by means of which the travelling devices 2 or 4, respectively, are adjustable in height relative to the machine frame 6, and the machine frame 6 is thus adjustable in height relative to the ground 14. The lifting devices 12 are shown as lifting columns 12.
The construction machine 1 may further comprise four travelling devices 2, 4 as shown in the embodiment depicted. Also, all existing travelling devices 2, 4 may be steerable. In addition, all travelling devices 2, 4 may be driven. The working device 8 may be arranged between the front and the rear travelling devices 2, 4 as depicted. The front travelling devices 2 may form a front axle. The rear travelling devices 4 may form a rear axle. The driving device 8, in particular the drive engine, may be installed in transverse direction.
According to the present disclosure, at least one first hydraulic operating device 10 and one second hydraulic operating device 11 are provided, which are each connected directly or indirectly to the working device 8 on the one hand and to the machine frame 6 on the other hand.
The working device 8 may be mounted between pivoting arms 30, 31. As is depicted in the Figs., a mechanical power transmission device 20 may furthermore be provided on at least one side of the construction machine 1. The mechanical power transmission device 20 is covered by a housing 21. The mechanical power transmission may be, for example, a belt drive. In this design, the driving power is transmitted to the working device 8 by the driven shaft 25 of the driving device 26. The working device 8 has an axis 28, on which the belt drive runs. In the present case, the pivoting arm 30 is formed by the housing 21. The pivoting arm 31 is arranged on the opposite side of the construction machine and likewise pivots about a pivoting axis, which is arranged coaxially to the pivoting axis 52.
A gearbox may preferably be provided between the mechanical power transmission device 20 and the working device 8. Said gearbox may, for example, be a planetary gearbox. The mechanical power transmission device 20 may pivot, with the working device 8 mounted between pivoting arms 30, 31, about the pivoting axis 52. In the present case, the pivoting axis 52 is arranged coaxially to the driven shaft 25 of the driving device 26. Alternatively, it would also be possible for the pivoting axis 52 to be arranged parallel to the driven shaft 25 of the driving device 26.
In
A controller 50 is furthermore arranged on the self-propelled construction machine 1, which is designed to control the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices in such a manner that the adjustment travels of the first hydraulic operating device 10 and the second hydraulic operating device 11 exhibit a defined difference to each other.
A mechanical power transmission device 20 for driving the working device 8 is arranged between the clutch 62 and the working device 8. The mechanical power transmission device 20 may, for example, be a belt drive. A gearbox, in particular a planetary gearbox, may additionally be arranged between the power transmission device 20 and the working device 8.
The different sides of the construction machine, and therefore the different adjustment travels L1 and L2, respectively, of the first hydraulic operating device 10 and the second hydraulic operating device 11, are depicted in
The controller 50 may therefore be designed to control the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices 10, 11 in such a manner that the difference in the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices 10, 11 is, essentially, zero.
Furthermore, the controller 50 may be designed to control the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices 10, 11 in such a manner that the hydraulic operating devices 10, 11 are adjustable synchronously.
It can be seen in
The operating device 10 can be seen in
According to the present disclosure, a sensor device 60 may be provided as depicted in the Figs., which is provided in the respective hydraulic operating device 10, 11, which is designed to detect the adjustment travels of the hydraulic operating devices 10, 11, and to transmit the detected values to the controller 50, 202. The sensor devices 60 may also be referred to as sensors 60. The sensors 60 associated with the first and second actuators 10 and 11, respectively, may be described as first and second sensors 60, respectively. The first and second sensors 60 are configured to detect the adjustment travel of the first and second actuators 10 and 11, respectively, and to generate first and second adjustment travel signals, respectively, to be transmitted to controller 202 as indicated in
The controller 50 may be a controller 202, as it is depicted by way of example in
Different operations, steps or algorithms, which a controller 202 may execute within the meaning of the present disclosure, may be directly embodied, for example, in hardware, in a computer program 216 such as in a software module executed by the processor 204, or in a combination of both. The computer program 216 may be located, for example, in a RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, register, a hard disk, a removable medium or any other form of computer-readable medium 206 that is known in the state of the art. An example of a computer-readable medium 206 may, for example, be coupled to the processor 204 in such a manner that the processor may read information from the memory/storage medium and may write information on the same. Alternatively, the medium may also be integrated into the processor. The processor and the medium may be located, for example, in an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The ASIC may be located in a user terminal device. Alternatively, the processor and the medium may be located in a user terminal device as discrete components.
The term “processor”, as used herein, may at least refer to all-purpose or special-purpose processing devices and/or logic, as the person skilled in the art may understand, including, but not limited to, a micro processor, a micro controller, a finite state machine and the like. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computer devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a micro processor, a plurality of micro processors, one or a plurality of micro processors in combination with a DSP core, or other such configuration.
At least one sensor device 60 may be provided on or in the respective operating devices 10, 11, which is designed to detect the adjustment travels of the operating device 10, 11 and to transmit the detected values to the controller 202.
The controller 50, 202 may be programmed in such a manner that it receives the detected values from the at least one sensor device 60 and may transmit control signals to the operating devices in order to control the extension of the operating devices 10, 11 and thus the adjustment travels of the operating device.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2022 134 454.1 | Dec 2022 | DE | national |
