Mining machine management system and management method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10228701-B2
Application number	US-201315107185-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 27, 2013
Priority date	Dec 27, 2013
Publication date	Mar 12, 2019
Grant date	Mar 12, 2019

Abstract

A mining machine management system includes a detection unit mounted on a mining machine that travels in a mine in which a plurality of landmarks is installed, and which detects a position of the landmark with respect to the mining machine in a non-contact manner, and a traveling control unit which corrects a current position of the mining machine based on a position of the landmark, the position having been obtained in advance, and the position of the landmark obtained by the detection unit and causes the mining machine to travel by dead reckoning navigation, and which does not use at least the position of the landmark detected by the detection unit in causing the mining machine to travel by the dead reckoning navigation, when a vehicle traveling in the mine exists around the position of the landmark detected by the detection unit.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A mining machine management system comprising:
a detection unit
mounted on a mining machine operable to travel in an unmanned manner in a mine having at least one landmark installed therein, and
configured to detect positions of a landmark and an object, each relative to the mining machine in the mine by non-contact detection; and

a traveling control unit configured
to correct a current position of the mining machine based on a previously obtained position of the landmark and the detected position of the landmark,
to cause the mining machine to travel in the mine by dead reckoning navigation; and
to determine that the object is a landmark, when a distance between the detected position of the object and a previously obtained position of the landmark is smaller than a threshold value,

wherein the traveling control unit causes the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation without the use of the detected position of the landmark, when the traveling control unit determines that there is an object other than the landmark within a predetermined range around the detected position of the landmark.

2. The mining machine management system according to claim 1 , further comprising:
an own position detection device mounted on the mining machine, and configured to obtain an own position of the mining machine, wherein
the traveling control unit is configured
to cause the mining machine to travel in the mine based on the own position detected by the own position detection device when the own position detection device is able to normally detect the own position, and
to cause the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation when the own position detection device becomes unable to detect the own position.

3. The mining machine management system according to claim 1 , wherein
the detection unit includes a radar device configured to detect an object around the mining machine, for monitoring the surroundings of the mining machine, and
reflectance of the landmark relative to the radio wave is higher than that of the object other than the landmark.

4. The mining machine management system according to claim 1 , wherein
the detection unit is further configured to detect a position of an object relative to the mining machine in the mine by non-contact detection; and
the traveling control unit is further configured to determine that the object is not the landmark, when the traveling control unit determines that the object does not remain still.

5. A mining machine management system comprising:
a detection unit
mounted on a mining machine operable to travel in an unmanned manner in a mine having at least one landmark installed therein, and
configured to detect a position of a landmark relative to the mining machine in the mine by non-contact detection; and

a traveling control unit configured
to correct a current position of the mining machine based on a previously obtained position of the landmark and the detected position of the landmark, and
to cause the mining machine to travel in the mine by dead reckoning navigation,

wherein
the traveling control unit causes the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation without the use of the detected position of the landmark, when the traveling control unit determines that there is an object other than the landmark within a predetermined range around the detected position of the landmark,
the detection unit is further configured to detect a position of an object relative to the mining machine in the mine by non-contact detection; and
the traveling control unit is configured
to determine that the object is a landmark, when a distance between the detected position of the object and a previously obtained position of the landmark is smaller than a threshold value, and
to lower the threshold value, when the traveling control unit determines that there is a further object other than the landmark within the predetermined range around the detected position of the landmark, wherein

when the distance is not smaller than the lowered threshold value, the traveling control unit causes the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation without the use of the detected position of the landmark, and
when the distance is smaller than the lowered threshold value, the traveling control unit causes the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation with the use of the detected position of the landmark.

6. The mining machine management system according to claim 5 , wherein,
the traveling control unit determines that the object is not the landmark, when the distance between the detected position of the object and the previously obtained position of the landmark is larger than the lowered threshold value.

7. The mining machine management system according to claim 5 , further comprising:
an own position detection device mounted on the mining machine, and configured to obtain an own position of the mining machine, wherein
the traveling control unit is configured
to cause the mining machine to travel based on the own position detected by the own position detection device, and
to cause the mining machine to travel in the mine by the dead reckoning navigation when the own position detection device becomes unable to detect the own position.

8. The mining machine management system according to claim 5 , wherein
the detection unit includes a radar device configured to detect an object around the mining machine, for monitoring the surroundings of the mining machine, and
reflectance of the landmark relative to the radio wave is higher than that of the object other than the landmark.

9. The mining machine management system according to claim 5 , wherein
the detection unit is further configured to detect a position of an object relative to the mining machine in the mine by non-contact detection; and
the traveling control unit is further configured to determine that the object is not the landmark, when the traveling control unit determines that the object does not remain still.

Assignees

• Komatsu Mfg Co Ltd

Inventors

• Tojima Masanori
• Ryuman Mitsuhiro

Classifications

• G01S13/876

  Combination of several spaced transponders or reflectors of known location for determining the position of a receiver (G01S13/874 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01S13/06

  Systems determining position data of a target · CPC title

• E21C41/26

  Methods of surface mining (machines for obtaining, or the removal of, materials in open-pit mines E21C47/00); Layouts therefor · CPC title

• G01S13/42

  Simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates (indirect measurement G01S13/46) · CPC title

• E21F13/00

  Transport specially adapted to underground conditions (mine cars B61D; transport in general, loading {unless specially adapted to underground conditions} B65G) · CPC title