Patent Grant
11214468
Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to control systems for cranes.
The shipping industry has welcomed a number of higher capacity ships. For example, in the last few years, new container ships having capacities greater than 20,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) have been launched. These larger ships have greatly decreased operating costs per container when compared to smaller container ships. For example, a 20,000 TEU ship may provide a 50% operational cost savings with half the CO2 emissions and fuel consumption of an average 14,000 TEU container ship. Unfortunately, port infrastructure has not kept pace with the development of increased ship sizes. In particular, the United States lacks the port infrastructure to handle these 20,000+ TEU container ships.
With the increased size of container ships, the unloading and loading process has become increasingly burdensome. Ships tend to be loaded without thought given to the unloading process. Ships are generally unloaded into a shipyard where the containers are stored until they can be loaded onto waiting trucks or trains. Unloading the ships often requires lots of room to temporarily store the various containers. Each port usually has surge capacity for the temporary storage of containers that have been unloaded. The surge capacity is often on par with the total capacity of a ship being unloaded. Thus, conventional ports will need to further scale their size to accommodate larger ships.
The above information is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of embodiments of the present disclosure, and therefore may contain information that does not form the prior art.
Aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are directed toward a system and method for a crane system.
According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a crane system includes: an elevated track spanning a first location and elevated above a second location, at least one spreader configured to move along the elevated track using a tram assembly unit, and to move a shipping container from a first storage area to a second storage area, and a controller configured to identify the shipping container and automatically control a movement of the shipping container using at least one spreader.
According to some example embodiments, the elevated track includes an oval-shaped track.
According to some example embodiments, the first location corresponds to a ship and the second location corresponds to a container surge area.
According to some example embodiments, the first storage area includes a ship.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes a train.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes the container surge area.
According to some example embodiments, the controller is configured to identify the shipping container using at least one sensor and automatically place the shipping container on a train or in a container surge area.
According to some example embodiments, the at least one spreader assembly includes: a tram assembly unit including: a drive unit; at least one drive wheel; and at least one idler; a hoist unit; and a spreader.
According to some example embodiments, the tram assembly unit further includes two drive wheels and four idlers.
According to some example embodiments, the hoist unit further includes a hoist motor; a hoist cable; and a control cable.
According to some example embodiments, the system further includes a swivel configured to connect the tram assembly unit to the hoist unit.
According to some example embodiments of the present disclosure, the crane system includes: elevated track spanning a first location to a second location; at least one spreader assembly configured to move along the elevated track using a tram assembly unit, and to move a shipping container between a first storage area and a second storage area, wherein the first storage area and the second storage area are between the first location and the second location, wherein each of the at least one spreader assembly includes: a tram assembly unit including: a drive unit; at least one drive wheel; and at least one idler; a hoist unit; a swivel configured to connect the tram assembly unit to the hoist unit; a spreader connected to the hoist unit by at least one cable; and a controller configured to identify the shipping container and control a movement of the shipping container using the at least one spreader.
According to some example embodiments, the first storage area includes a ship.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes a train.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes a container surge area.
According to some example embodiments, the at least one drive wheel is in contact with a bottom of an I-beam of the track.
According to some example embodiments, the idlers are in contact with the center of the I-beam of the track.
According to some example embodiments of the present disclosure, in a method for loading and unloading a shipping container in a crane system, the method includes: identifying, by a controller, a location of the shipping container at a first storage area; retrieving, by the controller using a spreader assembly configured to travel along an elevated track, the shipping container at the first storage area; moving, by the controller using the spreader assembly, the shipping container from the first storage area to a second storage area; and storing, by the controller, the location of the shipping container at the second storage area.
According to some example embodiments, the elevated track includes an oval-shaped track.
According to some example embodiments, the first storage area includes a ship.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes a train.
According to some example embodiments, the second storage area includes a container surge area.
Some embodiments can be understood in more detail from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Features of the inventive concept and methods of accomplishing the same may be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of embodiments and the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numbers refer to like elements throughout. The present disclosure, however, may be embodied in various different forms, and should not be construed as being limited to only the illustrated embodiments herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided as examples so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the aspects and features of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, processes, elements, and techniques that are not necessary to those having ordinary skill in the art for a complete understanding of the aspects and features of the present disclosure may not be described. Unless otherwise noted, like reference numerals denote like elements throughout the attached drawings and the written description, and thus, descriptions thereof will not be repeated. The drawings are not necessarily to scale and the relative sizes of elements, layers, and regions shown may be exaggerated for clarity.
Embodiments of the present disclosure include a system and method for loading and unloading shipping containers. In particular, the system includes one or more cranes configured with spreaders designed to pick up and move shipping containers between large container ships and vehicles. For example, the crane may include one or more spreaders designed to securely hold and move various sizes of shipping containers. In various embodiments, the vehicles may include trains and the cranes may be configured to span a plurality of train tracks to facilitate the unloading and loading of containers on/from the trains. In various embodiments the cranes may also be configured to set the shipping containers in temporary holding areas such as a container surge area.
In various embodiments, a crane control system is configured to automatically identify containers to move and autonomously pick up the container from a ship and place it on an appropriate train. For example, in various embodiments, the loading and the unloading of a ship may be completely automated. The crane control system may log the locations of each shipping container when the container is loaded onto the ship. Then during unloading, the control system may plan and execute the unloading according to the trains located at the port based on the destination of the train. For example, the control system may be configured to unload the train to substantially minimize the use of a container surge area.
In various embodiments, the crane may be configured to span one or more rail lines. For example, in various embodiments, the crane may include a plurality of legs. In some embodiments, the legs may be configured to operate on rails similar to traditional train rails and are of a height to facilitate the loading and unloading of a container ship. In some embodiments, the legs operation on the rails allows for efficiently moving to different locations. A structure may connect the legs and span the one or more rail lines between the legs.
Referring to
Referring to
Furthermore, in various embodiments, the crane 200 may have an oval-shaped track 220. Additionally, the spreader assemblies 210 may be configured to operate on the oval-shaped track 220. For example, the spreader assemblies 210 may operate using a tram assembly unit to travel along the oval-shaped track 220 to and from the space above the ship 280 to locations over the trains and the container surge area 260. For example, the spreader assemblies 210 may operate in a clockwise or counter clockwise direction. Because crane 200 may have multiple spreader assemblies 210, each spreader assembly 210 is capable of operating in a clockwise or counter clockwise direction. In various embodiments, the track 220 may be part of a high-speed hoist system. Each of the spreader assemblies 210 may travel independently along the track and are each controlled by the crane control system. The track 220 may be unidirectional (e.g., the spreaders may only travel in one direction) or bidirectional.
In various embodiments, the crane 200 may be configured to operate on two bays of containers on a ship. Thus, a series of five cranes 200 are able to operate on 10 bays of a 20,000 TEU ship's 22 container bays.
Referring to
Furthermore, in various embodiments, the crane 300 may have an oval-shaped track 320. Additionally, the spreader assemblies 310 may be configured to operate on the oval-shaped track 320. For example, the spreader assemblies 310 may operate using a tram assembly unit to travel along the oval-shaped track 320 to and from the space above the ship 380 to locations over the trains and locations over the container surge area. For example, the spreader assemblies 310 may operate in a clockwise or counter clockwise direction. In various embodiments, the track 320 may be part of a high-speed hoist system. Each of the spreader assemblies 310 may travel independently along the track 320 and are each controlled by the crane control system. The track 320 may be unidirectional (e.g., the spreader assemblies 310 may only travel in one direction) or bidirectional.
In various embodiments, some of the bays may not be accessible using the oval-shaped track 320. In order to provide additional access to the inaccessible bays, the track 320 may be expanded to include additional tracks over the ship 380. For example, in various embodiments, the track 320 may include track switches 322, 324 that allow for a crane to have access to additional bays on the ship 380 using additional tracks. For example, outside of the leg 340, the track 320 may be expanded to include two additional tracks. Thus, the crane 300 may be capable of accessing four bays on the ship 380. Control of the track switches 322, 324 is handled by the controller, which identifies containers 330 to be unloaded, identifies the location of the desired containers 330, and controls the movement of the spreader assemblies 310 and the operation of the track switches 322, 324. In some embodiments, the track 320 may include more track switches to access more bays on the ship 380.
Referring to
In some embodiments, the oval track 420 has an I-beam configuration. The drive wheels 465 rest on the bottom of the I-beam flange of the oval track 420 and are configured to generate the force that moves the spreader assembly 400 along the track 420. The idlers 485 may be positioned above the drive wheels 465 and can be used to steer each set of drive wheels 465 (i.e., to keep the drive wheels 465 on the track). The drive unit 475 is positioned below the drive wheels 465. In various embodiments, the drive unit 475 controls the drive wheels 465 that move the spreader assembly 400 along the oval track 420.
In various embodiments, each of the drive wheels 525 may be mechanically steered by idlers 515 mounted in front of and behind the drive wheels 525. The steering system allows each drive wheel 525 assembly to stay aligned with the I-beam of the oval track 510 even when the track 510 is curved. The idlers 515 may be configured to steer each set of drive wheels 525 continuously.
Referring to
Referring to
In various embodiments, the crane control system 700 may control one or more spreader assemblies 710. The crane control system 700 may control the spreader assemblies 710 according to one or more sensors 720. The sensors 720 may be configured to identify the location of the spreader assemblies 710 or the containers 730. In some embodiments, the sensors 720 may be configured to identify the contents of a container. For example, the sensors 720 may be visual sensors that can identify the markings on the side of a container. In another example, the sensors 720 may be electronic sensors that can receive electronic communications to identify the container. In various embodiments, the sensors 720 may be located on the spreader assemblies 710 or may be located on other components of the crane system.
In the example disclosed in
In various embodiments, the controller is further configured to control the operation of each of the spreader assemblies. For example, the controller may control the tram assembly units for each spreader assembly, the hoist system, or the spreader's ability to attach to a shipping container.
In various embodiments, once the spreader assemblies have identified a container 830 and the desired location, the spreader assemblies may work in conjunction with each other to unload the ship. For example, when trains 1-4 are currently within reach of the crane, the system may prioritize unloading the containers 830 associated with those trains (e.g., bound for a destination along the planned route of the train) and, when necessary, put containers 830 not associated with the currently available trains (e.g., trains 5 and 6) into the surge holding area. For example, in the depicted example, several of the “5” containers 830 are blocking containers 830 for trains 1-4 and therefore need to be unloaded.
In the preceding description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments. It is apparent, however, that various embodiments may be practiced without these specific details or with one or more equivalent arrangements. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring various embodiments.
It will be understood that when an element, layer, region, or component is referred to as being “on,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element, layer, region, or component, it can be directly on, connected to, or coupled to the other element, layer, region, or component, or one or more intervening elements, layers, regions, or components may be present. However, “directly connected/directly coupled” refers to one component directly connecting or coupling another component without an intermediate component. Meanwhile, other expressions describing relationships between components such as “between,” “immediately between” or “adjacent to” and “directly adjacent to” may be construed similarly. In addition, it will also be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “between” two elements or layers, it can be the only element or layer between the two elements or layers, or one or more intervening elements or layers may also be present.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms “a” and “an” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “have,” “having,” “includes,” and “including,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of the stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
As used herein, the term “substantially,” “about,” “approximately,” and similar terms are used as terms of approximation and not as terms of degree, and are intended to account for the inherent deviations in measured or calculated values that would be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art. “About” or “approximately,” as used herein, is inclusive of the stated value and means within an acceptable range of deviation for the particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, considering the measurement in question and the error associated with measurement of the particular quantity (i.e., the limitations of the measurement system). For example, “about” may mean within one or more standard deviations, or within ±30%, 20%, 10%, 5% of the stated value. Further, the use of “may” when describing embodiments of the present disclosure refers to “one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.” As used herein, the terms “use,” “using,” and “used” may be considered synonymous with the terms “utilize,” “utilizing,” and “utilized,” respectively. Also, the term “exemplary” is intended to refer to an example or illustration.
Various embodiments are described herein with reference to sectional illustrations that are schematic illustrations of embodiments and/or intermediate structures. As such, variations from the shapes of the illustrations as a result, for example, of manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances, are to be expected. Further, specific structural or functional descriptions disclosed herein are merely illustrative for the purpose of describing embodiments according to the concept of the present disclosure. Thus, embodiments disclosed herein should not be construed as limited to the particular illustrated shapes of regions, but are to include deviations in shapes that result from, for instance, manufacturing. For example, an implanted region illustrated as a rectangle will, typically, have rounded or curved features and/or a gradient of implant concentration at its edges rather than a binary change from implanted to non-implanted region. Likewise, a buried region formed by implantation may result in some implantation in the region between the buried region and the surface through which the implantation takes place. Thus, the regions illustrated in the drawings are schematic in nature and their shapes are not intended to illustrate the actual shape of a region of a device and are not intended to be limiting. Moreover, the drawings are not necessarily to scale.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and/or the present specification, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense, unless expressly so defined herein.
The foregoing is illustrative of example embodiments, and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although a few example embodiments have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the example embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of example embodiments. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of example embodiments as defined in the claims. In the claims, means-plus-function clauses are intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Therefore, it is to be understood that the foregoing is illustrative of example embodiments and is not to be construed as limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and that modifications to the disclosed example embodiments, as well as other example embodiments, are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. The inventive concept is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.
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