Device, a system and a method for building stationary structures on a working surface

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11628558-B2
Application number	US-201716092120-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 7, 2017
Priority date	Apr 7, 2016
Publication date	Apr 18, 2023
Grant date	Apr 18, 2023

Abstract

An example device for building stationary structures on a work surface includes a scaffold, which is arranged around the work surface. In the example, a working head is provided, which, with the help of multiple control cables is held on the scaffold and arranged above the work surface, upper control cables are provided, which run above the working head from the scaffold, lower control cables are provided, which run below the working head from the scaffold, all control cables can be extended out of the scaffold and retracted to the scaffold, in order to change a position of the working head, and a control unit is provided, which is connected with actuators for the extending and retracting of the control cables, and is configured to actuate these actuators to change the position of the working head.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A device for building stationary structures on a work surface,
wherein the device comprises a scaffold, which is arranged around the work surface,
wherein a working head is provided, which, with help of multiple control cables, is held on the scaffold and is arranged above the work surface,
wherein upper control cables are provided, which run above the working head from the scaffold,
wherein lower control cables are provided, which run below the working head from the scaffold,
wherein all control cables are extendable out of the scaffold and retractable to the scaffold, in order to change a position of the working head,
wherein a control unit of the device is provided, which is connected with actuators for the extending and retracting of the upper control cables and the lower control cables, and is configured with control data received from an external computing unit to actuate the actuators to change the position of the working head, the working head holding a nozzle, wherein the nozzle is communicated with a concrete source via a line,
wherein one of the actuators is positioned at each corner point of the scaffold,
wherein the control data is modified based on a comparison of data received from a sensor monitoring construction progress to a Building Information Modelling (BIM) database, and
wherein the control data of the control unit is further used to control a crane that is communicatively coupled to the external computing unit, the crane being separate from the working head and the scaffold.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein a number of upper control cables corresponds to a number of lower control cables, wherein corresponding pairs of upper and lower control cables extend over one another, and/or wherein at least three upper control cables and/or at least three lower control cables and/or at least three pairs of control cables are provided, and/or wherein the control cables are fixedly anchored into the working head.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein each of the multiple control cables is assigned a distinct actuator, and/or wherein each actuator includes a drive motor and/or a guide wheel for each of the multiple control cables.

4. The device according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the control cables includes a power line and/or a data line, and wherein the actuators each include a drive motor.

5. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the scaffold continuously surrounds the work surface, or consists of scaffolding elements discontinuously distributed around the work surface, and/or wherein the scaffold is mounted or configured height-adjustably.

6. The device according to claim 1 , wherein concrete from the concrete source is a building material source.

7. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the working head includes a lifting device for prefabricated components, the lifting device including a gripping device and/or a suction device.

8. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit is configured to automatically or semi-automatically actuate the actuators via the control data to thereby change the position of the working head and output of a building material via the nozzle and/or a lifting device based on control information from a control file, wherein the control file includes a BIM file from the BIM database or CAD file, and wherein the sensor monitoring the construction progress is one of a plurality of sensors, and wherein the control data is modified based on the comparison of data received from the plurality of sensors, including the sensor.

9. A system comprising:
a device for building stationary structures on a work surface, the device comprising a scaffold, which is arranged around the work surface;
an external computing unit; and
a crane that is communicatively coupled to the external computing unit,
wherein a working head is held on the scaffold and is arranged above the work surface via multiple control cables, the multiple control cables including upper control cables and lower control cables,
wherein the upper control cables run above the working head from the scaffold,
wherein the lower control cables run below the working head from the scaffold,
wherein the upper control cables and the lower control cables are extendable out of the scaffold and retractable to the scaffold in order to change a position of the working head,
wherein a control unit of the device is connected with actuators for the extending and retracting of the upper control cables and the lower control cables, the control unit being configured with control data received from the external computing unit to actuate the actuators to change the position of the working head, the working head holding a nozzle, wherein the nozzle is communicated with a concrete source via a line,
wherein the actuators are positioned above the working head and below the working head,
wherein the control data is modified based on a comparison of data received from a sensor monitoring construction progress to a Building Information Modelling (BIM) database, and
wherein the control data of the control unit is further used to control the crane, the crane being separate from the working head and the scaffold.

10. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the sensor is communicatively coupled with the external computing unit, and wherein the device and the external computing unit and/or the detection unit and/or the crane each comprises a communications unit for a reciprocal or unilateral data transmission.

11. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the detection unit is configured to recognize structures on the work surface, and to transmit information about an appearance of the structures to the control unit or the external computing unit, wherein the detection unit includes the sensor monitoring construction progress, and wherein the control data is modified to compensate for a deviation from a target.

12. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the sensor is coupled to the crane.

13. The system according to claim 9 , wherein a number of upper control cables corresponds to a number of lower control cables, wherein pairs of upper and lower control cables extend over one another.

14. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the upper control cables and the lower control cables are fixedly anchored into the working head.

15. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the upper control cables include at least three upper control cables and/or wherein the lower control cables include at least three lower control cables.

16. A method for automated or semi-automated building of stationary structures on a work surface using a device, or a system, the method comprising:
spraying a sprayable building material via a line onto the work surface, or onto existing structures on the work surface out of a nozzle held or arranged on a working head; and
moving a magazine with prefabricated components via the working head,
wherein a movement of the working head is caused through a retracting or extending of control cables that are actuated by a control unit via control data,
wherein the control data is modified based on a comparison of data received from a sensor monitoring construction progress to a Building Information Modelling (BIM) database, and
wherein the sprayable building material that is sprayed is atomized shotcrete.

17. The method according to claim 16 , wherein the control data is modified responsive to detecting a deviation from a target based on the comparison, wherein the modification of the control data compens

Assignees

• Liebherr Werk Biberach Gmbh

Inventors

• Bramberger Robert

Classifications

• E04B1/3505

  characterised by the in situ moulding of large parts of a structure (E04B1/3511, E04B1/3516, E04B1/3522, E04B1/3533, E04B1/3544, E04B1/355 take precedence) · CPC title

• E04G21/0418

  with distribution hose · CPC title

• B33Y10/00

  Processes of additive manufacturing · CPC title

• B25J9/0078 Primary

  actuated by cables · CPC title

• B28B1/001

  Rapid manufacturing of 3D objects by additive depositing, agglomerating or laminating of material (selective deposition modelling of metallic powder B22F10/00; rapid manufacturing of 3D objects in general and in particular of plastics B29C64/00) · CPC title