JP2003064725A - Unmanned mechanical earth work system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an unmanned mechanical earth work system capable of carrying out civil engineering work of high accuracy such as a ground leveling or the like by complete unmanned operation in a disaster site or the like. SOLUTION: The unmanned mechanical earth work system includes civil engineering machines 2 controlled by remote control, a remote control system 3 for controlling the civil engineering machines 2, television cameras 4 provided in the vicinity of the civil engineering machines 2 and the ground 1, a picture transmission system 5 for transmitting a picture from the television cameras 4, GPS antennae 6 respectively provided to the civil engineering machines 2 and the ground 1, a position information transmission system 7 from the GPS antennae 6, an inclinometer 8 for detecting the inclination of the civil engineering machines provided to the civil engineering machines 2 and an indicator 9 for indicating height, inclination and height of each of the civil engineering machines provided to an operator's side. Based on the position, the inclination, the height and the inclination obtained from the inclinometer 8, the civil engineering machines 2 are remotely controlled to carry out cutting or filling or the like to the ground 1 within a specific area.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an unmanned mechanical earthworking system, and more particularly to a system for operating a civil engineering machine by radio control.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, when a large-scale civil engineering disaster such as an eruption disaster or a landslide occurs, a civil engineering machine is operated from a remote location by radio control to perform various civil engineering works such as soil removal and leveling. The number of cases is increasing. In this case, a system is used in which a television camera and a GPS are mounted on a radio-engineering-compatible civil engineering machine so that an operator can operate while watching the television camera in a safe place.

This is a very dangerous place,
It is intended to prevent secondary disasters and has the merit of being able to work safely.

[0004]

However, even if a television camera and a GPS are provided, performing a work by remote control has a completely different feeling from that of actually riding and manipulating, and it is a fine task. It is difficult to carry out the work.

In particular, delicate work such as filling the ground by embankment or cutting cannot obtain the required accuracy even if sufficient surveying is performed in advance. Conventionally, after performing surveys using GPS etc. on site,
The construction was carried out by a manned civil engineering machine, and after the construction, the finished shape and the finished work were inspected again by using GPS or the like, but the accuracy of the GPS was not reflected in the accuracy of the ground leveling work.

When performing the work of the civil engineering machine by such a wireless operation, if the work can be performed according to this state while grasping the construction state in real time, it is possible to perform the construction comparable to the work by the manned civil engineering machine. Is.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide an unmanned mechanical earthworking system capable of performing highly accurate civil engineering work by completely unmanned operation. .

[0008]

The present invention is an unmanned mechanical earthworking system, which is configured as follows in order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

That is, a civil engineering machine 2 controlled by remote control in a system for performing unmanned civil engineering construction on a ground 1 in a specific range, a remote control system 3 for operating these civil engineering machines 2, and civil engineering. Television cameras 4 provided on the machine 2 and the ground 1, respectively, and these television cameras 4
An image transmission system 5 for transmitting an image from the vehicle, a GPS antenna 6 provided on each of the civil engineering machine 2 and the ground 1,
A position information transmission system 7 for transmitting position information from these GPS antennas 6, an inclinometer 8 for detecting the inclination of the civil engineering machine provided in the civil engineering machine 2, a position of the civil engineering machine provided on the operator side, A display device 9 for displaying the height and the inclination is provided.

Here, the civil engineering machine 2 can be exemplified by a bulldozer, an all-terrain vehicle, a shovel loader, etc., and a receiver for radio control and a servo motor are mounted. The remote control system 3 for operating the civil engineering machine 2 is
For example, a transmitter using a band of 429 MHz band and a console (a console on which a steering stick or the like that is directly operated by an operator is arranged) can be exemplified, but a UHF or a micro repeater can also be used together if necessary. .

That is, as a simple model, it is possible to directly receive the radio wave emitted from the transmitter to control the civil engineering machine as in the case of the operation of a general radio controlled model etc. Assuming you are at a distance,
If the distance becomes longer than that, it becomes difficult to secure the stability of the radio wave condition.

In such a case, it is desirable to insert a UHF or a micro repeater or a broadband repeater such as an optical fiber between the transmitter and the receiver to stabilize the operation. Strictly speaking, the part where the repeater is inserted is between the console and the transmitter, and the transmitter is installed in a high place near the site.

At least two (front and back) television cameras 4 are provided on the civil engineering machine 2, but a plurality of television cameras 4 are preferably installed in the traveling direction in order to secure a sense of perspective. Further, it is desirable that at least one is equipped with a pan-tilt pan (a camera base that freely operates). Furthermore, the TV cameras 4 are also provided at important points in the field, and it is desirable to install at least four TV cameras.
Although the image taken here is transmitted by the image transmission system 5, a UHF or a micro repeater may be interposed as in the case of the control system.

The GPS antenna 6 is also used in the television camera 4
Similar to the above, it is provided around the civil engineering machine 2 and the ground 1, but the minimum accuracy can be secured if at least two civil engineering machines 2 and one around the ground 1 are provided.

The reason for providing two GPS antennas on the civil engineering machine 2 is to detect the orientation of the civil engineering machine 2. GP
This is because the absolute position of the civil engineering machine 2 is known if the number of the S antenna 6 is one, but the direction thereof cannot be known.

Since the GPS antenna 6 fixed on the ground has only to function as a reference station, it does not necessarily have to be near the site. The position information transmission system 7 can also use a micro repeater.

The inclinometer 8 is provided on the civil engineering machine 2, and its mounting position is determined in relation to the mounting position of the GPS antenna 6.

That is, by providing at least two sets of GPS antennas 6 provided on the civil engineering machine at a predetermined distance, the position (coordinates) and height of the civil engineering machine at a predetermined resolution (the resolution increases as the distance between the two increases). Now, the inclination is calculated, but this inclination is only the inclination of the straight line connecting the GPS antennas 6 to each other. In other words, if the GPS antennas 6, 6 are attached to the left and right ends of the civil engineering machine, the inclination of the vehicle body in the pitching direction can be calculated, but the inclination about the straight line orthogonal to the straight line connecting the GPS antennas 6, that is, the rolling. No information is available on the inclination of the direction.

The inclinometer 8 supplements this, and is arranged so that the inclination centered on a straight line orthogonal to the straight line connecting the GPS antennas 6 can be detected. This tilt information is transmitted via the position information transmission system 7. However, when similar tilt information is obtained from both the GPS antenna 6 and the inclinometer 8, these can be selectively used.

The inclinometer 8 is not provided only for the operator to simply view the inclination of the vehicle body (display device 9), but also supplies data for calculating the detection error due to the inclination of the vehicle body. That is, the display device 9 includes the civil engineering machine 2
Based on the inclination information, the height information, and the azimuth information of, the difference between the absolute height of the ground 1 and the display height of the ground calculated by the above information, which occurs when the civil engineering machine 2 is tilted, is calculated, Correction means 10 is provided for correcting so that the absolute height of the ground is always displayed.

Further, the display device 9 has an original ground line 11 showing the ground height before the ground construction, a local ground line 12 showing the ground height during the ground construction, and a design showing the final ground height. The ground line 13 is displayed two-dimensionally or three-dimensionally, and has a function of calculating the necessary amount of earth and sand and the amount of cutting from the height difference between these lines and displaying it.

The original ground line 11 is an original landform that has not been subjected to any construction. First, the original ground line 11 that is the original landform is stored in the correction means 10, and similarly, the designed ground line 13 is stored. The display device 9 displays these lines (for example, assuming vertical and horizontal lines in a grid pattern).
To be displayed in. Then, the local board line 12 that changes with the actual construction is displayed in real time.

GPS is Global Posi
is an abbreviation for "Tioning System" and is also called Global Positioning System, which is operated by the US Department of Defense. The outline is an inclination of about 55 in Earth orbit.
A total of 24 satellites are arranged in 6 orbits each time, and the radio waves transmitted from here are received by the GPS antenna on the ground.
The latitude and longitude of the current position of the PS antenna can be calculated.

While each satellite transmits its own absolute position and time, at least four (three in two dimensions) satellite signals are received on the ground side, and the speed of the radio wave is constant. Is used to calculate the difference between the time and the arrival time of radio waves for a plurality of satellites to pinpoint the specific position on the ground.

However, since measurement errors generally remain due to errors due to satellite orbit errors, ionospheric radio wave errors, and tropospheric radio wave errors, in the present invention, these errors are removed to obtain a position and height accuracy of about ± 20 mm. ing.

As described above, the earthmoving machine 2 is remotely operated based on the position and height of the earthmoving machine 2 obtained from the GPS antenna 6 to perform cutting or embankment on the ground 1 in a specific range, and then to a predetermined range. Let's prepare the ground. The leveling accuracy is ± 20 mm, which is equivalent to GPS accuracy. Further, since the operator can work while looking at the ground line displayed on the display device 9, a high degree of skill is not required. In addition, since ground measurement, sediment loading, and construction can all be performed unattended, it is suitable for restoration work in extremely dangerous areas such as near the crater.

[0027]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The unmanned mechanical earthworking system of the present invention will be described below in more detail with reference to the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5.

FIG. 1 shows an overall block diagram. The outline is as follows.
Bring in. The civil engineering machine 2 includes a television camera 4 (shown separately from the vehicle body in the figure), an image transmission system 5 for transmitting images from the television camera 4, and a GPS.
Antenna 6 and is attached. The image transmission system 5 includes a camera controller 5a, a transceiver 5b, and various transmission systems thereafter (transceiver 5c, converter 5d, remote control system 3 (micro repeater), converter 5e), and a camera pan. Bidirectional communication such as tilting and tilting is possible.

Further, the GPS antennas 6 are provided at the front and rear ends of the roof portion of the civil engineering machine 2 as shown in FIG.
An inclinometer 8 for detecting the inclination of the civil engineering machine is provided between the GPS antennas 6. The signal from the GPS antenna 6 is transmitted to the transmitter 6a (2.4 GHz band), and the signal from the inclinometer 8 is transmitted to the receiver 22 by the transmitter 8a. The receiver 22 is installed outside the site.

On the other hand, a fixed TV camera 40 is provided at a relatively safe place on this site. These cameras are for photographing the state of the civil engineering machine 2 and the surroundings, and this signal is transmitted to the operation room 20. The operation room 20 is a place where an operator 21 operates the civil engineering machine 2 and is installed in a safe place. A fixed GPS antenna 6 is installed near the operation room 20.

The civil engineering machine 2 is controlled by remote control, but when the operator 21 operates a control device (not shown), the converter 23, the remote control system 3 (micro repeater), the converter 25, and the transmitter 25. Is transmitted to the receiver 26 provided in each civil engineering machine 2. The content of this operation is decoded, and based on this, various hydraulic devices and electric devices are controlled via the servo motor, so that the civil engineering machine 2 operates.

The position information from the GPS antenna 6 is transferred to the operation room 20 by the position information transmission system 7 (micro repeater).
Is sent out. It should be noted that converters 27 and 28 are inserted in the input / output section of the micro repeater.

A display device 9 is installed in the operation room 20. The display device 9 is adapted to be displayed by the computer (10). The displayed contents are the position, height, and inclination of the civil engineering machinery, and regarding the construction, the original ground line 1 showing the ground height before the ground construction.
1 and a local ground line 12 showing the ground height during ground construction,
The design ground line 13 that finally shows the target ground height is displayed in two dimensions or three dimensions.

Now, each board line will be described with reference to FIG. The original ground line 11 indicates the ground height before ground construction. In other words, the ground height is the lowest in the plan of leveling by filling the low ground.

The design ground line 13 is the final target ground height, that is, the ground height in the completed state. The local ground line 12 indicates the ground height during the ground construction, that is, the ground height in the construction process. These three types of ground lines are displayed on the display device 9, and the height is displayed in a grid pattern as shown in FIG. 2 (two-dimensional display). For example, the visibility is secured by displaying the original ground line 11 in green, the local ground line 12 in red, and the design ground line 13 in yellow.

The height (shape) of only the local board line 12 changes as the work progresses, but it is difficult to see the change in the two-dimensional display, so the work range is about 25 cm to 1 m. The height difference between the local ground line 12 and the design ground line 13 is displayed by color-coding each segment 30. That is, the place where the height difference is zero is green (31), the place where the height difference is negative (insufficient earth volume) is yellow (32), the place where the height difference is positive (excessive earth volume) is set to red (32), etc. ing. As a result, the operator can clearly understand the place to be filled and the place to be cut by just looking at the display device 9.

However, since the ground is uneven during the work, the civil engineering machine 2 moves forward and backward (pitching P) and left and right (rolling R).
(Fig. 4). When the vehicle body shakes in this manner, the GPS antenna 6 on the roof naturally tilts greatly from the horizontal. When the vehicle body leans like this, the actual local board line 1
2 cannot be displayed accurately. The reason is that the GPS antenna 6 has to be installed at a height of about several meters from the ground, and the GPS antenna 6 inevitably deviates in a tilted direction as the vehicle body tilts. Therefore, it is necessary to correct this deviation so that the accurate local board line 12 is displayed.

Specifically, the GPS antenna 6 calculates the pitching angle (R) of the vehicle body and the inclinometer 8
The rolling angle (P) is calculated by and the inclination state of the entire vehicle body is grasped. After that, the eccentricity that increases in proportion to the height of the GPS antenna 6 is added in the direction opposite to the tilt direction to match the center of the vehicle body with the center of the vehicle body displayed on the display device 9.

As a result, the absolute height of the ground is corrected so that it is always displayed. This correction is executed by the computer (10) which is the correction means 10.

All the information on the ground is input into the computer (10), and the image of the TV camera is aligned with the field line 12 and displayed on the display device 9. The operator 21 can switch the camera freely and work while always recognizing the height difference between the local ground line 12 and the design ground line 13 together with the actual shooting.

[0041]

As described above, according to the present invention, the earthmoving machine is remotely operated based on the position and height of the earthmoving machine obtained from the GPS antenna, thereby cutting or embankment the ground in a specific range. Since it is configured to perform a predetermined leveling, it is possible to obtain leveling accuracy equivalent to GPS accuracy even though it is a remote operation.

Further, the display device includes an original ground line indicating the ground height before the ground construction, a local ground line indicating the ground height during the ground construction, and a design ground line indicating the final target ground height. When the operator is looking at the ground line displayed on the display device, the two-dimensional or three-dimensional display is performed, and the necessary sediment amount and cutting amount are calculated and displayed from the height difference of each line. Since work can be performed, high precision can be obtained without requiring high skill.

Further, in the case where the inclination of the straight line which is orthogonal to the line connecting the GPS antennas is detected by the inclinometer, it is possible to correct the error of the on-site board line due to the change in the posture of the vehicle body, and the accuracy is further improved. Is obtained.

Since the ground measurement, loading of sand, and construction can all be performed unattended in this way, it is suitable for restoration work in extremely dangerous areas such as near the crater.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an unmanned mechanical earthwork system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a ground construction state by the unmanned mechanical earthwork system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing an original ground line indicating a ground height before ground construction, a local ground line indicating a ground height during ground construction, and a design ground line indicating a final target ground height. .

FIG. 4 is a rear view showing an inclined state of the civil engineering machine.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an inclined state of the civil engineering machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ground 2 Civil engineering machinery 3 Remote control system 4 TV camera 5 Image transmission system 6 GPS antenna 7 Position information transmission system 8 inclinometer 9 Display device 10 Correction means 11 original ground line 12 Local board line 13 Design ground line

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) G05D 1/08 G05D 1/08 Z (72) Inventor Nobuhide Ishida 2-10-10 Fujimi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Maeda Construction Industry Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shinji Kawamoto 2-10-10 Fujimi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Maeda Construction Industry Co., Ltd. (72) Kensuke Higuchi 2-10-26 Fujimi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Maeda Construction Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hideo Yamauchi 1-11-17 Higashishinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture Nishio Rent All Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Teruaki Arakawa 2-3-6 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo Komatsu Ltd. F-term (reference) 2D003 AA00 AA01 AA02 BA04 BB04 CA02 DA02 DA04 DB04 DB05 DB07 FA02 5H301 AA03 AA10 BB02 CC04 CC07 CC08 DD06 DD17 EE31 FF11 G G01 HH20 KK03 KK07 KK08 KK10 5J062 AA01 BB08 CC07 EE01 EE02 GG02

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A system for performing unmanned civil engineering construction on a specific range of ground, a civil engineering machine controlled by remote control, a remote control system for controlling these civil engineering machines, a civil engineering machine and the above-mentioned. Television cameras provided in the vicinity of the ground, an image transmission system for transmitting images from these television cameras, GPS (Global Pos) provided on the civil engineering machine and the ground, respectively.
a positioning system (hereinafter referred to as GPS) antenna, a position information transmission system for transmitting position information from the GPS antenna, an inclinometer provided in the civil engineering machine for detecting the inclination of the civil engineering machine, and an operator provided on the operator side. A display device for displaying the position, height, and inclination of the civil engineering machine, and remotely controlling the civil engineering machine based on the position and the height of the civil engineering machine obtained from at least a GPS antenna to provide a specific range of ground. An unmanned mechanical earthworking system characterized by cutting or embankment for a specified level. 2. The display device includes an original ground line indicating a ground height before ground construction, a local ground line indicating a ground height during ground construction, and a design ground line indicating a final target ground height. Is displayed two-dimensionally or three-dimensionally, and is configured so as to calculate and display a necessary amount of sediment and a cutting amount from the height difference of each of these lines, and display the unmanned person. Chemical machinery earthwork system. 3. At least two GPS antennas attached to a civil engineering machine are provided at a predetermined distance, and the inclinometer is installed to detect an inclination with respect to a direction orthogonal to a straight line connecting the GPS antennas. The antenna detects the position, azimuth, height of the civil engineering machine and the inclination of the straight line connecting the GPS antennas, and the inclinometer detects the inclination of the straight line orthogonal to the line connecting the GPS antennas. 3. The information according to claim 1 is displayed on a display device.
Unmanned mechanical earthwork system described in. 4. The inclination information of the civil engineering machine is displayed on the display device,
Based on the height information and azimuth information, the difference between the absolute height of the ground that occurs when the civil engineering machine is tilted and the display height of the ground calculated by the above information is calculated, and the absolute height of the ground is always calculated. The unmanned mechanical earthworking system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a correcting unit that corrects the displayed image.