AU2014289638A1

AU2014289638A1 - Loading system and method for loading a freight car with bulk material

Info

Publication number: AU2014289638A1
Application number: AU2014289638A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Peter Groll; Ralph Muller; Viktor RAIS
Original assignee: Schenck Process GmbH
Current assignee: Sandvik Rock Processing Australia Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2013-07-11
Filing date: 2014-06-27
Publication date: 2016-01-21
Anticipated expiration: 2034-06-27
Also published as: BR112015028406A2; ZA201507883B; AU2014289638B2; WO2015003776A1; BR112015028406B1; CN105264345B; DE102013011606B4; DE102013011606A1; CN105264345A

Abstract

The invention relates to a loading system for loading at least one freight car (1) of a train with bulk material, comprising a closable outlet opening (51) for metering the bulk material, which outlet opening is arranged on a dispensing device (5) of a bulk material reservoir, wherein the freight car (5) can be moved under the outlet opening (51) on rails (6) and at least one measuring device (2) having an evaluating device (3) is arranged in order to detect wheel loads, axle loads, bogie loads, and/or the total weight of the freight car (1). According to the invention, the measuring device (2) comprises, per rail (6), at least two measuring segments (21, 22, 21a, 22a) arranged one after the other in a direction of travel of the train, wherein at least one of the measuring segments (21, 21a) lies below the outlet opening (51) or in the action region of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening (51).

Description

WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 Loading System and Method for Loading a Freight Car with Bulk Material The present invention concerns a loading system for loading freight cars of a train with bulk material according to the preamble of claim 1, and a method for loading freight cars of a train with bulk material. Loading systems for loading vehicles, and specifically cars of freight trains, with bulk material are known from the prior art. Typically, the train with the freight cars travels below the outlet opening of a bulk material container or below the outlet opening of a dispensing device or a loading chute. There, the flap or slide for opening or closing the outlet opening is opened by the operating personnel, and the bulk material falls into the cargo space of the freight car due to gravity. During the loading process, the permissible total weight of a freight car or the permissible axle load should not be exceeded on the one hand, but on the other hand the load capacity of the freight car should be fully utilized. Nonetheless, freight cars often are unevenly loaded or fall below or above the permissible total weight. An arrangement of sensors for determining the forces exerted by an object on a rail is known from EP 1 607 726 B1, wherein the sensors form a measurement zone from which two virtual subsections or measurement subsections can in turn be constructed by means of an analysis device. In this design, the signals of the virtual measurement subsections are combined with the aid of the analysis device in such a manner that the force exerted by the object moving on the rail can be represented. In addition, a loading system for freight cars is known from EP 0 367 570 A2 in which a weighing device for the empty freight cars is provided ahead of a first loading device, and a weighing device for the partially loaded freight cars is provided after the first loading device. After a partially loaded freight car has been weighed, a computing unit determines the difference between the empty and partially loaded freight car, and then, - 1 - WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 based on a stored control value, determines the bulk material quantity that must still be added for optimal filling of the freight car. Next, using this information, the bulk material quantity that is lacking is additionally dispensed through a weighing hopper and a second loading device. Because of the infrastructure required for this loading system, the system is correspondingly resource-intensive, and also requires that the loading process must be carried out in two stages. Consequently, the object of the present invention is to improve a loading system for bulk material. The aim of the loading system according to the invention is to optimally utilize the capacity of each individual freight car, and to reduce the time of the loading process to a minimum. This object is attained by a loading system with the features of claim 1, and by a method for optimal loading of a freight car with the features of claim 10. Advantageous enhancements are the subject matter of the dependent claims and are included in the description. The invention provides a loading system for optimized loading of at least one freight car of a train with bulk material. The bulk material is taken from a dispensing device of a bulk material reservoir, preferably a bulk material container or hopper, that has at its outlet a closable and adjustable outlet opening for dispensing the bulk material. Typically, a flap or slide that can be operated manually by operating personnel or by means of an electric actuator is provided for closing and adjusting the outlet opening. Located below the outlet opening are rails on which the freight car can be moved so that the bulk material falling from the outlet opening arrives in the loading opening of the freight car. To determine wheel loads, axle loads, or truck loads, and/or the total weight of the freight car, at least one measurement device having an analysis device is provided, which includes at least two measuring sections arranged one behind the other in the train's direction of travel for each rail. At least one of these measuring sections is located below the outlet opening or in the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening. In advantageous fashion, the measuring sections have a -2- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 defined distance from one another. To achieve an optimal loading process, at the end of which the actual total weight of the freight car corresponds to the desired values or the maximum permissible values, it is unimportant in the loading system according to the invention whether the freight car travels at a uniform speed during the loading process, whether it temporarily comes to a stop during the loading process, or even whether it rolls back in the opposite direction. These influences can be sensed by means of the measuring sections and processed by the analysis unit. A wide variety of design embodiments can be used for the measuring sections here. Firstly, it is possible to use classical railroad track scales or weighbridges that comprise a platform supported on weight sensors and to which the rails are in turn fastened. For precise sensing of the force acting on the railroad track scale and to avoid force shunting, rail breaks are typically provided before and after the measuring section defined by the railroad track scale in this design. In this context, weight sensors are fundamentally understood to mean all sensors, force transducers, and pressure transducers in which an analysis of the electrical (voltage) signals permits determination of the force acting on the sensor. For determining compressive, tensile, and/or shear forces, different requirements must be placed on the type and installation of the weight sensors depending on the direction of force. Accordingly, an arrangement of multiple weighing sleepers in combination with one rail break each or with one transverse force sensor each to define the beginning and end of a measuring section, such as are described in EP 121573B1, to which reference is made here, are also possible as a measurement device or measuring section. In contrast to the implementation of the measuring section using weighing sleepers, in which the sensors are located underneath the rail or in the sleeper body, measuring sections are also possible in which the sensors are located directly on the rail or in the rail web. Furthermore, weighbeams, weighbeams in rail form, and special weighbeams or measuring rails, such as are disclosed in W02012045422A1, to which reference is -3- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 likewise made here, also come into consideration as another embodiment for a measuring section. The enumeration of possible embodiments is not exhaustive, however. Nonetheless, what is important for achieving an optimal loading process is that the measuring sections, and thus the output signals received from the measuring sections, can be analyzed independently of one another. In this way an accurate determination of the loads of the freight car at the relevant position and an accurate assignment of the detected loads to the individual wheels or axles of the freight car can take place. The idea behind this is to determine the present loading state at each position of the freight car to be loaded - whether it is measured directly by means of a "virtual measuring section that travels with the vehicle" or is predicted/interpolated/extrapolated from individual measuring sections. A curve of position (x-axis) and loading (y-axis) is produced in this way. One advantageous embodiment of the loading system according to the invention additionally provides that the at least two measuring sections are subsections of a virtual measuring section. For these measuring sections, only embodiments in which the beginning and end of the measuring section or subsections are defined by sensors come into consideration. In this context, the arrangement of the sensors in the virtual measuring section permits a simulation of multiple measuring sections separated from one another, and consequently an analysis of the rail section located between each pair of sensors without effects from force shunts / distorting influences from loads of the wheels of adjacent freight cars. Based on the premise that information is stored in the analysis unit about every individual freight car of a train regarding its freight car type, truck spacing and axle spacing, and also its tare weight and permissible total weight, a comparison between the applicable target value and the actual value determined at the relevant position can be created using the actual values obtained with the aid of the output signals from the sensors of the measuring section for the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total -4- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 weight of a freight car at the positions in the loading system defined by the measuring sections. When the target value and actual value for the total weight are compared, it becomes clear to a possible operator of the outlet opening whether the outlet opening must be opened because the current volume flow is insufficient to achieve an optimal loading, or whether the reverse is true. This information can be made clear to the operator by a comparison of the target and actual values or else through simple visual or audible signals. One advantageous embodiment of the loading system according to the invention provides for the first measuring section of the two measuring sections to be located ahead of the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening. The tare weight of the freight car can be ascertained therewith. If the tare weight should be greater than the stored, theoretical tare weight on account of deposit build-ups or the like, this circumstance can be taken into account during the loading process. According to another embodiment of the loading system, an additional measuring section for the measurement device can be located after the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening. This ensures that the total weight can be precisely determined after the conclusion of the loading process. An enhancement of the loading system according to the invention provides that a control unit for controlling or adjusting the closable outlet opening is additionally arranged. Accordingly, the output signals of the analysis device serve as input signals for the control unit. By means of the control unit, therefore, controlled variables are derived as a function of the target/actual comparison for the loading, and the control mechanism of the flap or the slide is set in motion to open or close the outlet opening. If different car types are used in one train, it is also advantageous for a device for detecting and identifying railroad car types to be located ahead of the measuring sections in the loading system. Included among the systems that can be used here are railroad car identification systems (so-called tag readers), light barriers, cameras, axle -5- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 counting systems, and a railroad track scale by which means the axle spacings of a freight car can be determined in addition to the tare weight. In order to attain the aforementioned object, a method for optimized loading of at least one freight car of a train with bulk material is also provided, wherein the bulk material is delivered to the freight car from a bulk material reservoir through a closable outlet opening. In this method, the freight car is first moved into the region of a measurement device that comprises an analysis device and at least two measuring sections arranged one behind the other in the train's direction of travel. The measuring sections of the measurement device are arranged here such that at least one of these measuring sections is located below the outlet opening or in the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening. Then, the analysis of the output signals of the measuring sections is carried out by means of the analysis device in order to determine the exerted wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, or the total weight of a freight car, during a loading process. Next, an actual value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car is determined at least at one position x1 of the measurement device or at least at one time t1 of the loading process. This process can be repeated at any desired positions or at any desired times. By means of a subsequent comparison of a target value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car with the actual value determined, it is then possible to ascertain whether the loading process must be modified or whether it can be continued with the given size of the outlet opening. Lastly, the display or output of a signal for adjustment of the outlet opening takes place as a function of the target/actual comparison. With the display, a possible operator of the outlet opening is thus given the opportunity during the loading process to influence the process currently taking place. Advantageously, however, the adjustment of the outlet opening is controlled automatically as a function of the target/actual comparison of the wheel load, axle load, -6- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 truck load, or total freight car weight. Closed-loop control of the loading process is made possible in this way. An enhancement of the method according to the invention for optimized loading of a freight car with bulk material additionally provides that a projection or a prediction of a total weight to be expected and/or of a mass distribution to be expected in the freight car for the end of the loading process can be determined at least at one arbitrary position x1 of the freight car on the measurement device or at least at one arbitrary time t1 of the loading process, and can be displayed or output. The following substantial advantages over prior art systems are among those achieved with the loading system according to the invention and the method according to the invention: By means of the actual values determined of the loads exerted on the measurement device, a modification of the size of the outlet opening, and hence a modification at the material being loaded, can be undertaken even while the loading process is taking place in order to achieve an optimum total weight of the freight car being loaded. The loading method and the loading process can thus be optimized. The invention can even be employed in the case of fluctuating bulk material densities, or for different bulk materials in the same loading system, with no need to make any adjustment to the method or the device. The invention is described in detail below on the basis of exemplary embodiments. Fig. 1 accordingly shows a schematic representation of a loading system according to the invention Fig. 2 shows another loading system according to the invention with modified measuring sections, likewise in a schematic representation -7- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 Fig. 3 shows a line chart to illustrate a loading process in which a curve of the actual value of the total weight is compared to an optimum curve of the total weight of a freight car. The loading system according to the invention shown schematically in Fig. 1 comprises a dispensing device 5 of a reservoir of bulk material, for example coal or iron ore, by which means the bulk material can be conveyed continuously into open freight cars 1 of a train. For the purpose of illustration, however, only two freight cars 1 of a train, without the associated locomotive, are shown in Fig. 1. The direction of travel of the train or of the freight cars 1 is indicated by an arrow at the level of the cars. Customary freight cars for transporting bulk material are open, unroofed freight cars. Accordingly, loading or filling with bulk material preferably takes place from above. The freight cars 1 shown have running gears with four axles 11, 12, 13, 14, wherein two axles 11, 12 are located on a front truck and two axles 13, 14 are located on a rear truck in each case. The number of axles or trucks of a freight car is of no consequence for the invention, however, since all wheels, axles, and trucks can be taken into account. The freight cars 1 can travel on rails 6 into the region of the dispensing device 5. Oftentimes the bulk material is stored in a bulk material container or hopper that has a loading chute at its outlet or lower end. The bulk material container is customarily located on a platform or substructure (not shown), which is suitable for the passage of a train on account of its clear height. The dispensing device 5, the bulk material container, or the loading chute through which the bulk material falls downward due to gravity, has a closable outlet opening 51 for volumetrically dispensing the bulk material. In order to close the outlet opening 51, a flap or a slide may be provided that can be moved mechanically so that the size of the outlet opening 51 is modifiable and adjustable. Accordingly, the closable outlet opening 51 is opened during the loading process for a freight car 1, and is closed upon conclusion of the loading, when a change of freight cars takes place beneath the outlet opening 51. -8- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 1, a measurement device 2 is arranged at the height of the rails 6 for sensing the wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, or the total weight of a freight car 1. Conventional, standard sleepers, to which the rails 6 are attached, are accordingly provided as the support points 7 for the rails 6. For each stretch of track, the measurement device 2 shown includes four measuring sections 23, 22, 21, 24 in succession that are arranged a distance y apart from one another. In the present case, the distance between the measuring sections 23, 22, 21, 24 is selected such that it corresponds to the axle spacing of two wheel axles 11, 12 of a truck. The measuring sections 23, 22, 21, 24 shown can be composed of standard rails, for example, with prefabricated sensors attached in or to the rail web thereof at the start and at the end of the measuring section. Preferably, sensors are used here that are inserted, in screw or dowel form or in the form of so-called measuring eyes, into a provided bore in the neutral fiber of the rail web, transversely to the longitudinal direction of the rails, and are secured. The measurement signals that result from the loads from individual wheels acting on the measuring sections 23, 22, 21, 24 can be analyzed very exactly without interfering effects from adjacent wheels on the same rail 6. By means of an analysis device 3, the wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, or the total weight of the freight car 1 are then determined at multiple defined positions on the measurement device 2 from the measurement signals. If the train is traveling in the specified direction of travel, the wheel axle 11 of the unladen freight car 1 can first be sensed by the measuring section 23. During continued travel in the unladen state, the wheel axle 11 then reaches the measuring section 22, while the wheel axle 12 is simultaneously located on the measuring section 23, etc. This means that the tare weight of the freight car 1 as well as the partially loaded states and the total weight of the freight car 1 after conclusion of the loading process can be determined by means of the measurement device 2, regardless of whether the car is traveling, rolling backward, or standing still during the loading process. -9- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 In the present example, a control unit is additionally provided for controlling the closable outlet opening 51. The control unit is connected to the analysis device 3 in such a way that the output signals of the analysis device 3 serve as input signals for the control unit 4. As is evident from Fig. 3, the signals determined through the measurement device 2 and the analysis device 3 can be represented in graphical form as a curve. The positions a and b of the loading system are plotted on the x-axis 8 of the graph, and the mass of the freight car is plotted in [t] on the y-axis 9. Accordingly, the actual value 101 of the total weight of the freight car 1 is shown at specific positions of the loading system or at a specific point in time of the loading process. In the representation of all values determined for a freight car 1, a steadily rising value for the total weight typically results with an opened outlet opening. Since a value for the optimal total weight 100 and values for an optimal loading process of each freight car type are likewise stored in the analysis device 3, the difference 102 between the two values can be determined and displayed for each position. From the comparison of the two values, a corresponding signal can therefore be sent to the control unit 4 for each position. Depending on whether the actual value 101 of the total weight at the relevant position is above or below the optimal total weight 100, the quantity of the closable outlet opening 51 is either reduced or increased. It is evident from Fig. 3, for example, that a deviation of the actual value 101 from the optimal total weight 100 was already present at loading position b, and this deviation continued to the end of the loading process. With the use of a loading system according to the invention in one of the exemplary embodiments, the closable outlet opening 51 would automatically have been operated in the case of such a curve in order to increase the loading quantity as early as at position b. Fig. 2 shows another embodiment of a loading system according to the invention. In contrast to the first exemplary embodiment from Fig. 1, measuring sections 23a, 22a, -10- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 21a, 24a, which make use of weighbridges, are employed here. They include a platform or concrete plate supported on weight sensors, to which the rails 6 are in turn fastened. The use and analysis of the signals obtained through these measuring sections 23a, 22a, 21 a, 24a take place in the same way as in the previously described variants, however. - 11 - WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 List of reference numbers 1 freight car 11, 12, 13, 14 freight car axle 2 measurement device 21, 21a measuring section 22, 22a measuring section 23, 23a measuring section 24, 24a measuring section 3 analysis device 4 control unit 5 dispensing device of a bulk material reservoir 51 closable outlet opening 6 rail 7 support point, sleeper 8 x axis: freight car position on measurement device of loading system 9 y axis: mass in [t] 100 optimal total freight car weight 101 actual value of total freight car weight 102 difference between optimal value and actual value of total freight car weight -12-

Claims

1. Loading system for loading at least one freight car (1) of a train with bulk material, - having, located at a dispensing device (5) of a bulk material reservoir, a closable outlet opening (51) for dispensing the bulk material, - wherein the freight car (1) can be moved on rails (6) below the outlet opening (51), and - in order to determine wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, and/or the total weight of the freight car (1), at least one measurement device (2) having an analysis device (3) is provided, characterized in that - the measurement device (2) includes at least two measuring sections (21, 22, 21a, 22a) arranged one behind the other in the train's direction of travel for each rail (6), - wherein at least one of the measuring sections (21, 21 a) is located below the outlet opening (51) or in the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening (51).

2. Loading system according to claim 1, characterized in that the measuring sections (21, 22, 21 a, 22a) can be analyzed independently of one another by the analysis device (3).

3. Loading system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the measuring sections (21 a, 22a) are subsections of a virtual measuring section.

4. Loading system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first (22, 22a) of the two measuring sections of the measurement device (2) is located ahead - in the direction of travel - of the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening (51). -13- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768

5. Loading system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an additional measuring section (24, 24a) for the measurement device (2) is located after the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening (51).

6. Loading system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a control unit (4) for controlling or adjusting the closable outlet opening (51) is provided.

7. Loading system according to claim 6, characterized in that the output signals of the analysis device (3) are provided as input signals for the control unit (4).

8. Loading system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a device for detecting and identifying railroad car types is located ahead of the measuring sections (21, 22, 23, 24, 21a, 22a, 23a, 24a).

9. Loading system according to claim 8, characterized in that a railroad car identification system, a light barrier, a camera, an axle counting system, or a railroad track scale by which means the axle spacings of a freight car are determined in addition to the tare weight, is provided for the purpose of detecting railroad car types.

10. Method for loading at least one freight car (1) of a train with bulk material, wherein the bulk material is delivered to the freight car (1) from a bulk material reservoir through a closable outlet opening (51), having the steps: - moving the freight car (1) into the region of a measurement device (2) having an analysis device (3) and at least two measuring sections (21, 22, 21 a, 22a) arranged one behind the other in the train's direction of travel, wherein at least one of the measuring sections (21, 21a) is located below the outlet opening (51) or in the region of action of the bulk material falling through the outlet opening (51), -14- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 - analyzing the output signals of the measuring sections (21, 22, 21 a, 22a) in order to determine the exerted wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, or the total weight of the freight car at least at one position x1 or at least at one time t1 of a loading process, - determining an actual value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car at the position x1 or at the time t1, - comparing a target value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car with the actual value determined, - displaying or outputting a signal for adjustment of the outlet opening (51) as a function of the target/actual comparison.

11. Method according to claim 10, wherein the adjustment of the outlet opening (51) is controlled automatically as a function of the target/actual comparison of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total freight car weight.

12. Method according to one of claims 10 or 11, characterized in that the steps - analyzing the output signals of the measuring sections (21, 22, 21 a, 22a) in order to determine the exerted wheel loads, axle loads, truck loads, or the total weight of the freight car, - determining an actual value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car, - comparing a target value of the wheel load, axle load, truck load, or total weight of the freight car with the actual value determined, - displaying or outputting a signal for adjustment of the outlet opening (51) as a function of the target/actual comparison, are repeated at as many positions xn as desired or at as many points in time tn as desired of a loading process.

13. Method according to one of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that a total weight to be expected and/or a total weight distribution to be expected in the freight car (1) for the end of the loading process is determined at the position x1, xn of the -15- WO 2015/003776 PCT/EP2014/001768 measurement device (2) or at the time t1, tn of the loading process, and is displayed or output. -16-