EP1178153B1 - Guiding process and apparatus for inserting elements in the ground - Google Patents

Abstract

Topographical reference points (8) are established and used as sites for laser measuring stations (3) which use reflectors (7) on an installation vehicle (1). Distance and angle data are transmitted (9) from the measuring station to a receiver (30) on the installation vehicle and used by a computer (31) to control the orientation in three orthogonal axes of installation arms (5) which insert saddles (2) in fresh concrete (10) Independent claims are made for equipment which uses the installation method

Description

The invention relates to a method of guiding a device for inserting elements in the ground for the realization of a work and in particular to a method of guiding a saddle insertion device for the realization of a pathway of the type described in patent application EP 0 803 609, allowing to obtain the insertion of saddles in concrete, at a given position with a precision less than one millimeter. The invention also relates to a element insertion device in the soil implementing such a method of guide.

Document EP 0 803 609 discloses a device for inserting saddles into concrete allowing to quickly realize a railway way at reduced cost. Such stool insertion device however, in order to be effective, it is necessary to precisely place the insertion device in order to obtain an accurate position of each saddle. So far, with this insertion device, rails of site guidance, previously installed along the route of the railway by relative to fixed references determined by means of topographical serve as a reference to the positioning of the saddle insertion device.

However, the preliminary installation of the construction guide rails along the route of the railway has the disadvantage to be long and tedious and thus considerably slow down the realization of the railway. Moreover, to obtain a good precision in the positioning of the insertion device, it is necessary that the ground supporting the construction guide rails is perfectly stabilized to prevent any movement of these, under the pressure of the support points of the insertion device ensuring referencing the stool insertion device. In addition, the work commonly carried out on building sites are likely to move accidentally guide rails.

From DE-A-19808812 is known a method of guiding a device for inserting elements into the ground for the realization of a work, according to which the device is guided by geodesy.

The object of the present invention is therefore to remedy these disadvantages by proposing a guiding method allowing the precise and rapid positioning of a element insertion device in the ground and that is simple and economical to put implemented.

• établissement de points topographiques et relevé des coordonnées de ces points dans un référentiel X,Y,Z ;
• mise en place d'une station de mesure à proximité de l'ouvrage et détermination de la position en X,Y,Z de la station de mesure en se référençant par rapport à un ou plusieurs points topographiques ;
• détermination, à l'aide de la station de mesure, de la distance et de l'angle séparant le dispositif d'insertion des éléments dans le sol de la station de mesure ;
• calcul de la position du dispositif d'insertion à l'aide de la distance et de l'angle mesurés et de la position connue de la station de mesure ;
• le déplacement du dispositif d'insertion est commandé par un automate embarqué relié à un ordinateur embarqué, en fonction des données de distance et d'orientation communiquées à l'ordinateur à chaque instant par la station de mesure, de manière à amener les éléments supportés par le dispositif d'insertion sensiblement en regard, et dans l'axe d'insertion, de positions données dont les coordonnées sont stockées dans une mémoire de l'ordinateur.

To this end, the subject of the invention is a method for guiding a device intended to insert elements into the ground for the production of a structure, characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

• establishment of topographical points and recording of the coordinates of these points in an X, Y, Z repository;
• setting up a measuring station near the structure and determining the position in X, Y, Z of the measuring station by referring to one or more topographic points;
• determining, using the measuring station, the distance and angle between the insertion device and the elements in the soil of the measuring station;
• calculating the position of the insertion device using the measured distance and angle and the known position of the measuring station;
• the displacement of the insertion device is controlled by an onboard computer connected to an on-board computer, according to the distance and orientation data communicated to the computer at each moment by the measuring station, so as to bring the supported elements by the insertion device substantially facing, and in the insertion axis, given positions whose coordinates are stored in a memory of the computer.

• la station de mesure comporte un procédé de mesure optique par laser coopérant avec des réflecteurs portés par le dispositif d'insertion ;
• on effectue des relevés topographiques au niveau de différents points de référence répartis le long de l'ouvrage et, au fur et à mesure de l'avancement du dispositif d'insertion, on déplace la station de mesure sur le point de relevé topographique permettant d'obtenir la plus grande précision de calcul à l'aide de la station de mesure ;
• la distance séparant deux points de relevé topographique successifs est comprise entre 50 m et 100 m de manière à obtenir une précision sur la mesure de la position des éléments insérés dans le sol inférieure à 1 mm ;
• le dispositif d'insertion comporte un bras supportant les éléments, le bras étant motorisé en translation et en rotation suivant trois axes orthogonaux entre eux, le mouvement du bras étant commandé par ordinateur de manière à amener précisément les éléments en regard et dans l'axe d'insertion des positions données ;
• l'ouvrage est une voie de chemin de fer et les éléments sont des selles destinées à supporter un rail de chemin de fer, les selles étant insérées dans une dalle de béton non encore durci.

According to particular embodiments, the guiding method according to the invention may comprise one or more of the following characteristics taken separately or in any technically possible combination:

• the measuring station comprises an optical laser measurement method cooperating with reflectors carried by the insertion device;
• topographic surveys are carried out at different reference points distributed along the structure and, as the insertion device advances, the measurement station is moved to the topographic survey point allowing obtain the highest calculation accuracy using the measuring station;
• the distance separating two successive topographic survey points is between 50 m and 100 m so as to obtain a precision on the measurement of the position of the elements inserted into the ground less than 1 mm;
• the insertion device comprises an arm supporting the elements, the arm being motorized in translation and in rotation along three axes orthogonal to each other, the movement of the arm being controlled by a computer so as to bring the elements facing each other exactly in line with each other; insertion of the given positions;
• the structure is a railroad track and the elements are saddles intended to support a railroad rail, the saddles being inserted into a concrete slab which has not yet been hardened.

The invention also relates to a device for inserting at least one element into the soil implementing the guidance method described above, having at least one reflector for reflecting a transmission sent by a measuring station and making it possible to accurately determine the distance and the angle separating the reflector from the measuring station, and a motorized arm in translation and rotation following three orthogonal axes between them, the arm supporting the elements intended to be inserted in the ground and with reflectors to know, using the measuring station, the location in the arm space and elements to be inserted in the ground.

• le dispositif comporte des roues motrices et/ou directrices ou des chenilles pour constituer un véhicule autonome dans ses déplacements, le châssis du véhicule étant lui même équipé d'un réflecteur ;
• le véhicule comporte un ordinateur recevant les données de la station de mesure et calculant la position du véhicule et du bras, l'ordinateur envoyant des signaux à l'automate pour commander le déplacement du véhicule et du bras afin d'assurer l'insertion des éléments dans le sol aux endroits prédéterminés ;
• lesdits éléments sont des selles destinées à supporter un rail de chemin de fer, lesdites selles étant insérées dans une dalle de béton non encore durci.

According to particular embodiments, the device for inserting elements into the ground according to the invention may comprise one or more of the following characteristics taken separately or in any technically possible combination:

• the device comprises driving and / or steered wheels or caterpillars for constituting a self-driving vehicle in its movements, the chassis of the vehicle being itself equipped with a reflector;
• the vehicle comprises a computer receiving the data from the measuring station and calculating the position of the vehicle and the arm, the computer sending signals to the automaton to control the movement of the vehicle and the arm so as to ensure the insertion of the elements in the soil at predetermined places;
• said elements are saddles for supporting a railway rail, said saddles being inserted in a concrete slab not yet hardened.

• La figure 1 est une vue schématique, en coupe, d'un dispositif d'insertion de selles destinées au support d'un rail de chemin de fer utilisant un procédé de guidage selon l'art antérieur ;
• La figure 2 est une vue en perspective d'un dispositif d'insertion de selles utilisant un procédé de guidage selon un mode particulier de réalisation de l'invention ;
• La figure 3 est une vue schématique de dessus du dispositif d'insertion de selles de la figure 2 dans une courbe ;
• La figure 4 est une vue de détail du bras articulé du dispositif d'insertion de selles de la figure 2 ;
• La figure 5 représente un exemple de selle pouvant être utilisé pour réaliser une voie de chemin de fer.

The aims, aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the following description of an embodiment of the invention, presented by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawings. wherein :

• Figure 1 is a schematic sectional view of a saddle insertion device for the support of a railway rail using a guide method according to the prior art;
• Figure 2 is a perspective view of a saddle insertion device using a guide method according to a particular embodiment of the invention;
• Figure 3 is a schematic top view of the stool insertion device of Figure 2 in a curve;
• Figure 4 is a detail view of the articulated arm of the stool insertion device of Figure 2;
• FIG. 5 represents an example of saddle that can be used to make a railroad track.

To facilitate the reading of the drawing, only the elements necessary for understanding of the invention have been shown.

FIG. 1 shows a vehicle 11 for transporting a saddle insertion device guided in position according to the prior art, above a slab 10 of the front track hardening of the concrete. According to Figure 1, the guidance of the vehicle 11 stool insertion along the route of the railway is carried out by means of two construction guide rails 12 arranged on either side of the concrete slab 10 and serving as a reference for positioning the vehicle 11. The vehicle 11 stool insertion is equipped with a roller 13 holding the vehicle 11 on the rail 12 bearing on the upper face of one of the guide rails 12 and serving as reference along the insertion axis Z and two support rollers 13 taking support laterally on either side of the second guide rail 12 for reference the vehicle 11 in the plane X, Y perpendicular to the insertion axis Z.

Such a guiding method has the disadvantage of requiring the prior installation of construction guide rails during a long and careful operation that slowed down considerably the speed of progress in the realization of the railway.

Figures 2 and 3 show a device 1 for inserting stool 2 guided along the route of the railway see by a particular embodiment of the method of guidance according to the invention.

According to FIG. 2, the saddle insertion device 2 consists of a vehicle 1 mounted on four wheels, two of which are steered and the other two are drive, to ensure autonomous movement of the vehicle 1 following a direction given. The vehicle 1 has a rear face equipped with an arm 5 motorized in translation and in rotation along the three orthogonal axes X, Y, Z equipped with a mechanism allowing movements of a very high precision.

The arm 5, shown alone in FIG. 4, has a general shape in H and supports on its lower part two jacks 6 at the end of which are fixed the two saddles 2 intended to be inserted into a freshly poured concrete slab 10, the two saddles 2 being held by the arm 5, at a distance from one another corresponding to the gauge of the track to be installed. The arm 5 is equipped with a double inclinometer, not shown, continuously measuring the orientation of the arm 5 by relative to the X and Y axes.

The saddles 2, one of which is shown alone in FIG. 5, are of conventional type and comprise a plate 21 of rigid material, such as cast iron, and two anchors 22 each having a threaded rod for fixing a rail on the saddle 2 by nuts. The saddle 2 also comprises two sealing rods 23 having a general shape cylindrical ensuring the retention in the slab 10 of concrete once it has hardened.

According to FIG. 4, the arm 5 has on its rear face three reflectors 7 intended to cooperate with a measuring station 3 installed along the path of railway to install. A reflector 7 'is also mounted on the roof of the vehicle 1.

Measuring station 3 located along the path of the railway is installed on a tripod at the vertical of a terminal 8 survey. The station measure 3 comprises a laser distance measuring device equipped with an optical transmitter and a receiver optics allowing to know with a very large accuracy the distance and angle between the measuring station and all reflectors 7 carried by the arm 5 and the vehicle 1. The laser measuring device used is for example the device marketed under the reference TC / TCA 2003 by the LEICA company.

The measurement station 3 also comprises a radio transmitter 9 sending the results of the measurements made at each moment by the laser measuring device in direction of a receiver 30 carried by the vehicle 1. The receiver 30 of the vehicle 1 is connected to a computer 31 on board the vehicle 1, the computer 31 providing the calculation of the exact position of the arm 5 in space from the information sent by the measuring station 3 and the known position of the topographic survey terminal 8. The computer 31 is connected to a PLC, not shown, which controls the movement of the arm 5 and the jacks 6 as well as the motors making it possible to orient and to move the vehicle 1.

The method of guiding the stool insertion device will now be described.

According to FIG. 3, prior to the stool insertion step 2, several topographic survey points are made successively along the railway tracks with intervals of the order of 50 m to 100 m and marked by terminals 8.

On the day of insertion of the stool 2, the insertion vehicle 1 is brought up of a portion of track where the concrete slab 10 has been freshly poured and is not not yet hardened. From this starting position of the vehicle 1, the station of 3 is advantageously arranged on the nearest terminal 8 allowing a direct view on the rear face of the vehicle 1 and in particular on the reflectors (7, 7 ') of the arm 5 and the vehicle 1. The positioning of the measuring station 3 on the terminal 8 is carried out in a very precise way, by putting the measuring station 3 in line with the terminal 8, and the coordinates of the measuring station 3 in X, Y, Z are determined in measuring the vertical distance between measuring station 3 and terminal 8 using of a cane. In an alternative embodiment of the method according to the invention, the station 3 can also be arranged at any point near the track with a direct sight on the reflectors (7, 7 '), the X, Y, Z coordinates of the measuring station 3 then being determined by aiming at different points topographical data 8 known from the measuring station 3 and determining from angles and distances measured the exact position of the measuring station 3.

Once the position of the measuring station 3 is known, the laser measuring device of distance is oriented towards the rear face of the vehicle 1 so that it can measure the distance and the angle separating it from each of the reflectors (7, 7 ') and in particular the reflector 7 disposed on the roof of the vehicle 1.

The result of these measurements is sent immediately by radio waves of the transmitter 9 to the computer 31 disposed on board the vehicle 1 which then calculates the exact position of the vehicle 1 in space from the data sent by the measuring station 3 and the known position of the measuring station 3.

The exact coordinates of the points at which the stool 2 must be inserted before being stored in a memory of the computer 31, the computer 31 calculates from these points and the position of the vehicle 1 measured by the station 3, the gap separating the arm 5, then in a rest position from which a movement of a few centimeters following the six degrees of freedom is possible, from the position at which the next saddles 2 are to be inserted. From this gap, the computer 1 sends signals to the PLC which controls the driving and steering wheels in order to move the vehicle 1 along the axis of the track to bring the articulated arm 5, immobile in position of rest, substantially at the height of the theoretical insertion points of the saddle 2. Good heard, given the existing games in the transmission of the vehicle 1, the positioning of the vehicle 1 on the track is then not very precise, of the order of centimeter.

Once the vehicle 1 stopped in this position, the computer 31 checks the position 5 in space, from the data transmitted by the measurement station 3, and sends signals to the automaton to then control the movement of the articulated arm 5 following the six axes of freedom so as to bring, with very great precision, the saddles 2 carried by the arm 5 opposite the theoretical stool insertion points 2. The cylinders 6 are then actuated to insert the saddles 2 in the concrete 10 no further cured according to a process described in patent application EP 0803 609.

Once the two saddles 2 inserted, the arm 5 is returned to the rest position and the computer 31 looks for the coordinates of the following points at which new saddles 2 must be inserted. The guiding method for bringing the vehicle 1 next to these new points is similar to that described previously.

In order to maintain sufficient precision in the guidance of the insertion vehicle 1 saddles 2 to obtain stool positioning with lower accuracy millimeter, the measuring station 3 is regularly moved to the terminal of topographic survey 8 closest to the vehicle 1 allowing a direct view on the set of reflectors 7.

Such a guiding method has the advantage of being very quickly operational and inexpensive to implement, requiring only the installation of topographic survey every 50 m to 100 m and the establishment of the station of measures the day of the stool insertion operation. In addition, such a method of guidance has the advantage of not using direct contact between the device stool insertion and the repository used, thus removing the constraints that can be generated by the stool insertion device on the repository.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described and illustrated which has been given only as an example.

Thus, the example describes a saddle insertion device in a concrete slab but the guiding method according to the invention can equally well be used for the guiding a device for insertion into the ground of any element necessary for the realization of a work.

Thus, in alternative embodiments not shown, the insertion device may be fitted with tracks instead of wheels or any other means allowing the displacement of the insertion device.

Claims (10)

1. A guide method for guiding a device (1) that is designed to insert elements (2) into the ground in order to make a structure, the method being characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

   · establishing topographical points (8) and determining the coordinates of these points (8) in an X, Y, Z frame of reference;

   . putting a measuring station (3) in place in the vicinity of the structure and determining the X, Y, Z position of said measuring station (3) with reference to one or more of said topographical points (8);

   · determining, by means of said measuring station (3), the distance and the angle between said insertion device (1) and the measuring station (3);

   . calculating the position of the device (1) by means of the measured distance and the known position of the measuring station (3); and

   . displacing the insertion device (1) under the control of an on-board controller connected to an on-board computer (31), as a function of distance and orientation data communicated to the computer (31) at each instant by the measuring station (3), so as to bring said elements (2) supported by the insertion device (1) substantially into register on the insertion axis with given positions whose coordinates are stored in a memory of the computer (31).
2. A guide method according to claim 1 for guiding an insertion device (1), the method being characterized in that said measuring station (3) includes an optical-measuring method by means of a laser cooperating with reflectors (7) carried by the insertion device (1) of the elements (2).
3. A guide method according to claim 1 or 2 for guiding an insertion device (1), the method being characterized in that surveys are performed at various reference points (8) distributed along the structure, and in that, as the insertion device (1) advances, the measuring station (3) is displaced over the survey point (8) maximizing the calculation accuracy that can be obtained by means of the measuring station (3).
4. A guide method according to claim 3 for guiding an insertion device (1), the method being characterized in that the distance between two successive survey points (8) lies in the range 50 meters (m) to 100 m so as to obtain accuracy to within less than 1 mm in measuring the positions of the elements (2).
5. A guide method according to claim 4 for guiding an insertion device (1), the method being characterized in that said insertion device (1) includes an arm (5) supporting said elements (2), said arm (5) being driven in translation and in rotation along three axes that are mutually orthogonal, the movement of said arm (5) being controlled by the computer (31) so as to bring the elements (2) accurately into register on the insertion axis with the given positions.
6. A guide method according to any one of claims 1 to 5 for guiding an insertion device (1), the method being characterized in that said structure is a railway track, and in that said elements (2) are baseplates designed to support a rail, said baseplates (2) being inserted into a concrete slab (10) before it sets.
7. An insertion device (1) for inserting at least one element (2) into the ground, the device implementing a guide method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, said device including at least one reflector (7') designed to reflect an emission from a measuring station (3) and enabling the distance and the angle between said reflector at said measuring station to be determined accurately and an arm (5) driven in translation and in rotation on three axes that are mutually orthogonal, said arm (5) supporting the elements (2) intended to be inserted into the ground and including reflectors (7) enabling the positions in three dimensions of said arm (5) and of said elements (2) to be known by means of a measuring station (3).
8. An insertion device (1) according to claim 7, characterized in that it includes driving and/or steerable wheels or crawler tracks to constitute a vehicle (1) that can move autonomously, the chassis of said vehicle (1) itself being fitted with a reflector (7').
9. An insertion device (1) according to claims 7 and 8, characterized in that it includes a computer (31) receiving data from the measuring station (3) and calculating the position of the vehicle (1) and of said arm (5), said computer (31) sending signals to the controller in order to control displacement of said vehicle (1) and of the arm (5) so that said elements (2) are inserted into the ground at predetermined locations.
10. An insertion device (1) according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that said elements (2) are baseplates designed to support a rail, said baseplates (2) being inserted into a concrete slab (10) before it sets.

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