Vehicle travel system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10048692-B2
Application number	US-201314917411-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 12, 2013
Priority date	Dec 12, 2013
Publication date	Aug 14, 2018
Grant date	Aug 14, 2018

Abstract

Disclosed are a vehicle travel system and vehicle travel control method for guiding a haulage vehicle to a loading point without interference with obstacles. The vehicle travel system is provided with a direction input device (102), travel route calculating unit (1507) and vehicle control unit (205). Through the direction input device, an operator of a loading machine (10) inputs the direction of a body of a haulage vehicle (20-1) at a loading point (LP-L or LP-R). The travel route calculating unit calculates a travel route on which the haulage vehicle (20-1) is to be stopped in the inputted direction at the loading point (LP-L or LP-R). The vehicle control unit performs vehicle control to allow the haulage vehicle (20-1) to travel along and stop on the travel route.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicle travel system for guiding a haulage vehicle, which hauls a payload by unmanned operation from a loading machine that performs loading work on the payload, to a loading point for the payload, the loading machine including a front working device which is provided with a boom, an arm attached to a free end of the boom, and a bucket attached to a free end of the arm, the vehicle travel system comprising:
a stop posture setting unit which includes a controller and input and output devices respectively connected to the controller,
wherein:
the input devices include a button and a ring member, and the output device includes a display device,
the controller is configured to control the display device to display a setting screen including a haulage vehicle image which indicates a direction of a body of the haulage vehicle at the loading point,
the controller is further configured to receive a position of the bucket that indicates the loading point to the haulage vehicle which is input via the button,
the controller is further configured to receive the direction of the body of the haulage vehicle at the loading point and receive an angle of turning movement to change a direction of the haulage vehicle image which are each input via the ring member,
the controller is further configured to:
turn and move the haulage vehicle image in the displayed setting screen in accordance with the angle of turning movement about a two-dimensional loading point that indicates the loading point,
calculate a travel route to stop the haulage vehicle in the inputted direction at the loading point,
display the travel route in superimposition on the setting screen, and
perform vehicle control to allow the haulage vehicle to travel along and stop on the travel route.

2. The vehicle travel system according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is further programmed to:
with reference to positional information on an obstacle located around the loading point or the travel route, produce a warning when an interference with the obstacle is expected as the haulage vehicle travels along the travel route displayed in superimposition on the setting screen or when an interference with the obstacle is expected when the haulage vehicle stops at the loading point and along the direction of the haulage vehicle image displayed in superimposition on the setting screen.

3. The vehicle travel system according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a camera mounted on the haulage vehicle and connected to the controller, and
wherein the controller is further programmed to:
change a view point of a camera image, obtained by shooting a periphery of the loading machine with the camera, to an upper view point to synthesize a monitoring image,
generate a wide area image including a queuing position for the haulage vehicle and the loading point, generate a composite image with the monitoring image superimposed on a partial area, which corresponds to a shooting range of the monitoring image, in the wide area image, and display the travel route in superimposition on the composite image on the display device.

4. The vehicle travel system according to claim 1 , wherein the loading machine includes:
control levers for operating the front working device, and wherein the ring member is provided on one of the control levers and is turnable about a direction of an axis of the one of the control levers.

Assignees

• Hitachi Construction Mach Co

Inventors

• Hamada Tomoyuki
• Sugawara Kazuhiro
• Tanaka Katsuaki

Classifications

• E02F9/2004

  Control mechanisms, e.g. control levers (control levers per se G05G) · CPC title

• E02F9/26

  Indicating devices {(E02F5/145 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• E02F9/2054

  Fleet management · CPC title

• E02F9/205 Primary

  Remotely operated machines, e.g. unmanned vehicles (E02F3/8866 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G05D1/0212 Primary

  with means for defining a desired trajectory (involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287) · CPC title