JP2023166204A - Even-out method and automatic construction system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an even-out method and an automatic construction system capable of carrying out even-out work with quality even where large particle diameter rocks are included.SOLUTION: An even-out method using a construction machine, the construction machine allowed to automatically travel without any operation by an operator, comprises: a rock size detection process (step S3) of detecting a size of a rock included in a sediment mountain using a sensor part by moving the construction machine to the sediment mountain while an object is connected to the detectable sensor part; preferential work processes (steps S5, S6) of causing the construction machine to preferentially carry out work on a larger particle diameter rock when the larger particle diameter rock than a predetermined size rock is included; and an even-out process of causing the construction machine to carry out the even-out work on the sediment mountain.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4A

Description

The present invention relates to a leveling method and automated construction system using a construction machine that can run automatically.

There is a technique for leveling earth and sand by automatically driving a construction machine such as a bulldozer (for example, see Patent Document 1). In the technique described in Patent Document 1, a sensor is provided to detect the amount of dirt held by the blade, and when the dirt runs out, the bulldozer stops running.

JP 2019-190039 Publication

In the technology described in Patent Document 1, the soil to be leveled contains large-grain rocks (for example, rocks of several tens of centimeters or more, hereinafter referred to as "large-grain rocks"). Since the method does not take into account cases where large-grain rocks are included in the soil, there is a problem in that high-quality leveling cannot be achieved in situations where the soil contains large-grained rocks. For example, when rolling compaction is performed using a vibrating roller in the process after scattering with a bulldozer, the problem arises that the vibrating roller rides on large-grained rocks, resulting in a low heaping density. Here, the earth and sand containing large-grained rocks is, for example, dam embankment material that has been blasted and excavated from a rock pile.
From this point of view, the present invention provides a leveling method and automated construction system that can perform high-quality leveling even when large-grained rocks are included.

The leveling method according to the present invention is a leveling method using a construction machine, wherein the construction machine is capable of automatically traveling without operation by an operator, and is connected to a sensor unit capable of detecting an object. Ru. This leveling method includes a rock size detection step, a priority work step, and a leveling step. In the rock size detection step, the construction machine is moved to the earth and sand pile, and the sensor unit is used to detect the size of the rocks included in the earth and sand pile. In the priority work process, when a large-grain rock that is a rock larger than a preset size is included, the construction machine preferentially performs work on the large-grain rock. In the leveling step, the construction machine performs leveling work on the earth and sand pile.
In the leveling method according to the present invention, when large-grained rocks are included, work is performed preferentially on the large-grained rocks, and then the leveling work is performed, so high-quality leveling is achieved. It can be performed.
In the priority work process, when an oversized rock is detected, which is a rock that is larger than a first threshold value and smaller than a second threshold value, the construction machine is moved toward the oversized rock to remove the oversized rock from the earth and sand pile. It is best to push out the rock and remove it. For example, the removed oversized rock is preferentially dropped into a recess that is lower than the designed surface, making it difficult for the oversized rock to be exposed on the surface.
Further, in the priority work step, when an extremely large rock having a size equal to or larger than the second threshold value is detected, it is preferable to notify that the extremely large rock is included. Then, remove the large rock by some method (for example, workers use construction equipment such as a backhoe).

As a pre-process of the leveling step, the method may include a mound size detection step of detecting the size of the mound using the sensor section. In that case, in the leveling step, the leveling work is preferably performed in accordance with the leveling conditions determined based on the detection results in the earth and sand pile size detection step.
In this way, the leveling work is performed based on the detection result of the size of the earth and sand pile, so it is possible to improve the efficiency of the work.
In the leveling step, for example, the height difference between the field shape and the reference surface is determined using a grid map, and the travel distance of each lane is determined by determining the total value of the height differences of the squares included in the lane.
In this way, construction can be carried out based on the local topography, so that higher quality and more efficient leveling can be carried out.
Further, as a pre-process of the rock size detection step, the method may include a sand pile position detection step of detecting the position of the sand pile using the sensor section.

The automated construction system according to the present invention is an automated construction system that performs leveling. This automated construction system includes a construction machine that can run automatically without operation by an operator, a sensor unit that can detect an object, and a control device that controls construction by the construction machine.
The control device includes a rock size detection processing section, a priority work section, and a leveling control section. The rock size detection processing unit moves the construction machine to the earth and sand pile, and detects the size of rocks included in the earth and sand pile using the sensor unit. The priority work section causes the construction machine to preferentially perform work on the large-grain rock when the construction machine includes a large-grain rock that is larger than a preset size. The leveling control unit causes the construction machine to perform leveling work on the earth and sand pile.
In the automated construction system according to the present invention, since work is performed preferentially when large-grained rocks are included, high-quality leveling can be performed.

According to the present invention, high-quality leveling can be performed even when large-grained rocks are included.

1 is an overall diagram of an automated construction system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a side view of a bulldozer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram of a control device included in a bulldozer according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the process of the leveling method concerning the automated construction system concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process of the leveling method concerning the automated construction system concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is an image diagram of a rock size detection process and a priority work process. It is an image diagram of the sand pile size detection process. These figures are diagrams for explaining the case where the traveling distance (previous movement amount) of each lane is determined based on the information on the number of standing meters of the earth and sand pile, (a) is a plan view of the earth and sand pile, and (b) is a plan view of the earth and sand pile. It is a front view of a mountain. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a case where the travel distance (previous travel amount) of each lane is determined based on a grid map. This is an example of the position of the blade when demolishing an earth and sand pile. This is an example of the order in which the earth and sand piles are demolished. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the effect of the leveling method related to the automated construction system according to the embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) shows the state before leveling, and (b) shows the state after leveling is completed. Indicates the condition.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. The figures are only shown schematically to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated example. In each figure, common or similar components are designated by the same reference numerals, and their overlapping explanations will be omitted.

<<Configuration of automated construction system according to embodiment>>
FIG. 1 shows an overall diagram of an automated construction system 100 according to an embodiment. The automated construction system 100 shown in FIG. 1 is a next-generation automated construction system that runs the bulldozer 1 without being operated by an operator and automatically levels the ground. The automated construction system 100 mainly includes a bulldozer 1 that automatically travels around a construction site, and a management personal computer (PC: Personal Computer) 2 installed in a management room located away from the construction site. ing. Note that the bulldozer 1 is an example of a construction machine.
The bulldozer 1 and the management personal computer 2 can communicate using wireless communication. Further, the bulldozer 1 can receive radio waves (positioning signals) transmitted from the positioning satellite 3. Note that the configuration of the automated construction system 100 is not limited to that shown here; for example, the bulldozer 1 may have the function of the management computer 2 (that is, the bulldozer 1 including the management computer 2 may have the function of the management computer 2). ).

<Positioning satellite>
The positioning satellite 3 is a satellite used in the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and periodically transmits its own position information (orbital position information) and time information to the bulldozer 1. do. The positioning satellite 3 may be, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite, a GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System) satellite, a Galileo satellite, a quasi-zenith satellite, or the like. The information transmitted from the positioning satellite 3 is used, for example, to control the position (latitude, longitude, altitude) in the bulldozer 1.

<Management PC>
The management personal computer 2 is operated by a construction manager. The construction manager registers information necessary for controlling the bulldozer 1 in the management personal computer 2. For example, the construction manager may store construction area information regarding the construction area 100A (e.g., coordinates for specifying the boundaries of the construction area 100A) and construction condition information regarding the construction conditions (e.g., design aspects, etc.) on the management computer 2. Information such as finished thickness (layer thickness) etc. are registered in advance.
A local coordinate system xyz used to control the bulldozer 1 is set in the construction area 100A. The xy plane is, for example, parallel to the horizontal plane, and the z axis points in the vertical direction. Note that the bulldozer 1 may be controlled using the global coordinate system XYZ without using the local coordinate system xyz. In the global coordinate system XYZ, the X coordinate value is latitude, the Y coordinate value is longitude, and the Z coordinate value is altitude.

After registering construction area information and construction condition information in the management computer 2, the construction manager inputs an instruction to start construction. As a result, automated construction by the bulldozer 1 is started. During the period when automated construction is being performed, the management personal computer 2 periodically receives construction progress information and machine information of the bulldozer 1 from the bulldozer 1, and displays this information on the screen.
The construction manager can grasp the progress of construction and the status of the bulldozer 1 by checking the construction progress information and the machine information of the bulldozer 1 displayed on the management personal computer 2. It should be noted that, in principle, the construction manager does not give any instructions to the bulldozer 1 after giving the instruction to start construction.

<Bulldozer>
The configuration of the bulldozer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 2 (see FIG. 1 as appropriate). FIG. 2 is a side view of the bulldozer 1 according to the embodiment. The bulldozer 1 mainly includes a vehicle body 10, a traveling device 20, a blade 30, and a control device 40. Note that the configuration of the bulldozer 1 shown here is merely an example.
The traveling device 20 is a mechanism for causing the bulldozer 1 to travel, and is installed at the lower part of the vehicle body 10. The traveling device 20 here mainly includes a support frame 21 that is elongated in the front-rear direction, wheels 22, and crawler belts 23. The wheels 22 are pivotally supported by the front and rear ends of the support frame 21 . The wheels 22 are also called sprockets, idlers, etc. The sprocket is a gear-shaped wheel connected to the power shaft, and meshes with the crawler track 23 to transmit power. The idler is the wheel located at the opposite end of the sprocket. The crawler belt 23 has an annular shape (endless shape) and is wrapped around the wheel 22 . As the crawler belt 23 rotates, the bulldozer 1 moves forward or backward.

The blade 30 is for pushing earth and sand forward. The blade 30 is also called a soil removal plate. The structure of the front side of the blade 30 varies, but for example, it has a shape that is concave toward the rear, has a cutting edge at the lower end, and has enclosing pieces on both left and right edges. The blade 30 is connected to the tip of the swing arm 31 with a pin. The swinging arm 31 has a base end swingably attached to the middle part of the support frame 21, and a tip end attached to the lower part of the back side of the blade 30. Further, the blade 30 is connected to the tip of the rod of the tilt cylinder 32 with a pin at the upper part on the back side. The tilt cylinder 32 is swingably attached to the middle part of the swing arm 31 and is arranged diagonally upward. Further, the blade 30 is connected to the tip of the rod of the lift cylinder 33 with a pin at the upper part on the back side. The lift cylinder 33 is swingably attached to the front part of the vehicle body 10 and is arranged diagonally downward. The swing arm 31, the tilt cylinder 32, and the lift cylinder 33 are provided in pairs on the left and right sides. With this configuration, the blade 30 moves in the vertical direction by the expansion and contraction movement of the lift cylinder 33, and changes the inclination angle by the expansion and contraction movement of the tilt cylinder 32.

The control device 40 shown in FIG. 2 controls the overall operation of the bulldozer 1 (particularly the operation related to automatic travel). The control device 40 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like. The control device 40 may be built in the bulldozer 1 in advance, or may be attached later (for example, a PC). For example, the former assumes a bulldozer manufactured to be able to run automatically, and the latter assumes a bulldozer that can be piloted by a passenger and modified to be able to run automatically.

As shown in FIG. 2, the bulldozer 1 includes a communication antenna 11, positioning receivers 12 and 13, and a sensor section 14 in addition to the components described above.
The communication antenna 11 is for communicating with the management personal computer 2 (see FIG. 1). Specifically, the control device 40 of the bulldozer 1 receives information necessary for controlling the bulldozer 1 from the management personal computer 2 via the communication antenna 11. Further, the control device 40 transmits construction progress information and body information of the bulldozer 1 to the management computer 2 via the communication antenna 11.

The positioning receivers 12 and 13 receive radio waves (positioning signals) transmitted from the positioning satellite 3 (see FIG. 1). The positioning receivers 12 and 13 receive orbital position information, time information, etc. from the positioning satellite 3, for example, and calculate their own position using this information. The positioning receiver 12 is installed at a reference position of the bulldozer 1, and the position information calculated by the positioning receiver 12 is mainly used for controlling the position of the bulldozer 1 as a whole. The positioning receiver 13 is installed at a reference position of the blade 30, and the position information calculated by the positioning receiver 13 is mainly used to control the position of the blade 30. The position information calculated by the positioning receivers 12 and 13 is sent to the control device 40. In addition, in a place where the radio waves transmitted from the positioning satellite 3 cannot be received, the position information of the bulldozer 1 may be calculated by providing a prism on the bulldozer 1 and automatically tracking it with a total station.

The sensor unit 14 is a device that acquires information about the environment in which the bulldozer 1 is placed (for example, surrounding information). Information detected by the sensor unit 14 is used for controlling and monitoring automatic driving. The sensor unit 14 transmits detected information to the control device 40. The sensor unit 14 in this embodiment includes a stereo camera 15 and a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 16. Note that the configuration of the sensor unit 14 shown here is an example, and other types of sensors may be used instead of or in addition to the stereo camera 15 and LiDAR 16. Note that it is also possible to use only one of the stereo camera 15 and LiDAR 16. The sensor section 14 may be placed at the construction site (that is, the sensor section 14 does not need to be mounted on the bulldozer 1). If the sensor unit 14 is not mounted on the bulldozer 1, it can be installed at the construction site using some installation means (for example, legs), or it can be mounted on a flying object that can move in the air (for example, a drone). be. The sensor unit 14 transmits, for example, detected information to the control device 40 by wireless communication.

The stereo camera 15 includes a plurality of cameras (in this embodiment, two cameras are assumed to be arranged side by side on the left and right). The stereo camera 15 uses a plurality of cameras to simultaneously photograph an object from a plurality of different directions, similar to the principle by which humans view objects. Therefore, according to the stereo camera 15, it is possible to measure information in the depth direction from the captured image. The stereo camera 15 is installed at a position where it can photograph the front of the bulldozer 1.
LiDAR 16 is a device that detects the shape of surrounding objects using laser sensor (distance sensor) technology. The LiDAR 16 irradiates the surrounding area with a large number of laser beams and receives the laser beams that hit an object and are reflected. Thereby, the LiDAR 16 acquires the shape of the surface of the surrounding object as a set of coordinates of points (point cloud data) that completely cover the surface. LiDAR 16 is installed at a position where it can detect the front of bulldozer 1.

The main functions of the control device 40 will be explained with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control device 40 included in the bulldozer 1. The control device 40 includes a sand pile position detection processing section 41, a rock size detection processing section 42, a priority work control section 43, a sand pile size detection processing section 44, and a leveling control section 45. These functions are realized, for example, by executing a program.
Note that each function of the control device 40 shown in FIG. 3 is divided for convenience of explanation, and does not limit the present invention. Further, a configuration may be adopted in which a device other than the bulldozer 1 (for example, the management computer 2) has some of the functions of the control device 40. In that case, the management personal computer 2 acquires necessary information from the bulldozer 1 and performs calculations in real time. Then, the driving route and the like are transmitted to the bulldozer 1 via wireless communication. Only the outline of each function will be explained here, and the details of these functions will be explained later in "Leveling method according to automated construction system according to embodiment".

The earth and sand pile position detection processing section 41 uses the sensor section 14 to detect the position (for example, xyz coordinate values) of the earth and sand pile.
The rock size detection processing section 42 moves the bulldozer 1 to the sand pile detected by the sand pile position detection processing section 41. Further, the rock size detection processing section 42 uses the sensor section 14 to detect the size of rocks included in the earth and sand pile.
When a rock of a larger size than a preset size is included in the earth and sand pile, the priority work control unit 43 performs control so that work on the rock is performed preferentially.
The sand pile size detection processing unit 44 uses the sensor unit 14 to detect the size of the sand pile (for example, the height, left and right width, depth, estimated number of cubic meters, etc.) of the earth and sand pile.
The leveling control unit 45 controls leveling work for the earth and sand pile.

≪Leveling method related to automated construction system according to embodiment≫
A leveling method according to the automated construction system 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B (see FIGS. 1 to 3 as appropriate). 4A and 4B are flowcharts showing the steps of the leveling method according to the automated construction system 100.
(Soil pile position detection process)
First, the bulldozer 1 uses the sensor unit 14 to detect the position of the earth and sand pile from a distance (step S1). For example, the earth and sand pile position detection processing unit 41 causes the sensor unit 14 to perform a detection operation after moving the bulldozer 1 to a place where the entire construction area 100A can be seen, and detects the position of the earth and sand pile. It is desirable to use the LiDAR 16 of the sensor unit 14 because it allows detection of more distant earth and sand piles. For these reasons, it is desirable to use LiDAR 16 to detect the position of the earth and sand pile, but it is also possible to use other means such as the stereo camera 15 to detect the position of the earth and sand pile. The earth and sand pile position detection processing unit 41 calculates, for example, the position (coordinates) of the base and center of the earth and sand pile from the point group data acquired by the LiDAR 16.

(Rock size detection process)
Next, the bulldozer 1 moves in front of the sand pile detected in step S1 (step S2). For example, the rock size detection processing unit 42 changes the direction of the bulldozer 1 based on the position detected in step S1 (such as the position (coordinates) of the base or center of the earth and sand mountain), and causes the bulldozer 1 to approach the position. . As a result, the bulldozer 1 moves to a position where the sensor unit 14 can easily detect the details of the mound.
Subsequently, the bulldozer 1 uses the sensor unit 14 to detect large-grained rocks 8 (see FIG. 5) included in the earth and sand pile (step S3). Figure 5 shows an image of the rock size detection process. The large-grained rock 8 is a rock larger than a predetermined size (for example, diameter), and the size is determined, for example, in relation to the quality of the leveling. The large grain size rock 8 is, for example, a rock of several tens of centimeters or more. The purpose of detecting large-grained rocks 8 is to detect rocks that cannot be used or that require care for reasons of quality control or construction management.If this purpose can be achieved, it is possible to detect rocks other than size. Detection may be performed in consideration of an element (for example, shape). In this detection, the large-grained rock 8 exposed on the surface of the earth and sand pile is the detection target, and, for example, the coordinate values (xyz values) and maximum diameter of the large-grained rock 8 are detected.

It is preferable to use the stereo camera 15 of the sensor unit 14 because it allows accurate detection over a wide range (wide angle of view). When detecting a large-grained rock 8 using the stereo camera 15, the rock size detection processing unit 42 processes the image taken by the stereo camera 15 using image recognition technology, so as to detect a large-grained rock 8. The included large-grained rock 8 is detected. The shape of the large-grained rock 8 may be learned using artificial intelligence technology (for example, CNN (Convolutional Neural Network)), and the large-grained rock 8 may be detected by the learned model. Alternatively, the large-grained rock 8 may be detected using an edge extraction method using a Laplacian filter that combines the coordinate information of the LiDAR 16 and the RGB information (color information) of one side (that is, a monocular camera) of the stereo camera 15. Further, the large-grained rock 8 may be detected from the coordinate information of the LiDAR 16 by a feature detection method such as the Difference of Normal method, the Difference of Curvatures method, or the multi-scale method.

(Priority work process)
In the priority work process, when large-grained rocks 8 (see FIG. 5) are included, the bulldozer 1 is made to perform work on the large-grained rocks 8 preferentially. If large-grain rock 8 is not detected in step S3 (step S4a), the process proceeds to step S7 without performing the "priority work process". On the other hand, when a large-grain rock 8 is detected in step S3, the priority work to be performed differs depending on the size of the rock.
When an extra large rock 8A (see FIG. 5) is detected (step S4b), which is a rock with a size larger than the first threshold value and smaller than the second threshold value, the priority work control unit 43 The bulldozer 1 is controlled to move toward the oversized rock 8A, and the oversized rock 8A is pushed out and removed from the earth and sand pile (step S5). For example, the oversized rock 8A is preferentially dropped into a recess that is lower than the designed surface. The second threshold value is, for example, an upper limit value written in a design document or the like. The extra large rock 8A detected based on such criteria is a relatively large rock, although it is within the usable range specified in the design documents. The first threshold value is determined, for example, in relation to the quality of the leveling, and is several tens of centimeters. After the processing of all the oversized rocks 8A is completed, the processing proceeds to step S7.
If an extremely large rock (not shown), which is a rock with a size equal to or larger than the second threshold value, is detected (step S4c), the priority work control unit 43 temporarily suspends the work of the bulldozer 1, for example, and notifies the administrator of the error. It is notified that an extremely large rock is included (step S6). Extremely large rocks are rocks that exceed the upper limits written in design documents and cannot be used for heaping, so they must be removed by some method (for example, workers use construction equipment such as a backhoe). After processing of all the extremely large rocks is completed, the worker transmits a work restart command to the bulldozer 1, and the priority work control unit 43 advances the process to step S7.

(Soil pile size detection process)
Next, the bulldozer 1 detects information regarding the size of the earth and sand pile (for example, the height, left and right width, depth, estimated number of cubic meters, etc.) of the earth and sand pile (step S7). The sand pile size detection processing unit 44 detects, for example, the "center of gravity" indicated by the symbol A in FIG. 6, the "center" indicated by the symbol B, the apex (highest point) indicated by the symbol "C", and the "base" indicated by the symbol "D" The "center point", the "left end point of the base" indicated by the symbol "E", and the "right end point of the base" indicated by the symbol "F" are detected. FIG. 6 is an image diagram of the sand pile size detection process. Note that the size of the earth and sand pile may be detected at the timing of the rock size detection step.

(Leveling process)
Next, the bulldozer 1 performs leveling work on the earth and sand pile (step S8). For example, the leveling control unit 45 determines the number of times of leveling, the amount of lateral movement, the amount of forward movement, etc. based on the information regarding the size of the earth and sand pile detected in step S7, and performs dozing control according to the determined conditions. I do. For example, if the horizontal width of the dirt pile is large, the number of lanes may be increased, or if the number of cubic meters is large, the travel distance of the lanes (previous movement amount) may be increased.

With reference to FIG. 7, a case will be described in which the traveling distance (previous movement amount) of each lane L is determined based on information on the number of standing meters of earth and sand piles. FIG. 7(a) is a plan view of the earth and sand pile, and FIG. 7(b) is a front view of the earth and sand pile. The width of each lane L corresponds to the width of the bulldozer 1. In the earth and sand pile shown in FIG. 7, a first convex portion T1 forming the apex exists on the front side, and a second convex portion T2 lower than the apex exists on the right side. The second protrusion T2 has a longer distance in the front-rear direction than the first protrusion T1, and the number of cubic meters of the second protrusion T2 is larger than the number of cubic meters of the first protrusion T1. In this case, for example, the traveling distance (forward movement amount) of lane L4 is set to be the longest. When performing such control, the sensor unit 14 is preferably installed at a high position so that the earth and sand pile can be viewed from above.

In addition, as shown in Figure 8, the local topography is detected in the form of a grid map M (which expresses altitude in units of grid-like squares divided at equal intervals), and lanes are determined based on this grid map M. The number and travel distance (previous movement amount) of each lane may be determined. The finished thickness (layer thickness) is determined depending on the area. For example, assuming the layer thickness is "0.5 m", the square M1 with the roughest dots shown in Figure 8 is "0 m (design surface)" and there are no dots. Assume that the square M0 is "-0.5m", the square M2 with the second smallest dot is "+0.25m", and the square M3 with the smallest dot is "+0.5m". In this case, for example, in the leftmost lane L1, the bulldozer 1 is run to the farthest square, and in the other lanes L2 to L4, it is run a little farther than the farthest square, so that the dozing distance is determined. Variable control. In other words, by using the grid map M to find the height difference between the site shape and the design surface (reference surface) for each square, and then finding the total value of the height difference of the squares included in lane L, the travel distance of each lane L can be calculated. Determine. In this way, once the layer thickness and the size of one square are set, the number of lanes and dozing distance are automatically recognized based on that information, making it possible to spread the material appropriately.

Note that the earth and sand pile may be demolished based on the height information of the earth and sand pile. The landslide is performed, for example, when the height of the earth and sand pile is higher than a preset value. The load on the bulldozer 1 when pushing the earth increases depending on the height of the earth and sand pile, and therefore, a high earth and sand pile causes the occurrence of stuck (foot slip). A good guideline for the position of the blade 30 during rough breakage is, for example, such that the upper end of the blade 30 and the height of the earth and sand pile match (see FIG. 9). FIG. 9 shows an example of the position of the blade 30 when demolishing an earth and sand mountain. The earth and sand in the portion higher than the blade 30 may leak from the upper part of the blade 30 and enter between the blade 30 and the vehicle body 10, and may damage the engine room and other parts of the vehicle body 10. Further, the size of the bulldozer 1 (expressed as "xx ton class (xx is a natural number)") is rarely used if it deviates significantly from the scale of the construction work. Therefore, it is practical to use the height of the earth and sand pile as a guide for the position of the blade 30 during rough breakage. The position of the blade 30 can be detected by the positioning receiver 13. For example, when the positioning receiver 13 detects the position of the lower end of the blade 30, the height of the blade 30 is set to the position detected by the positioning receiver 13. By adding the dimensions, the position of the upper end of the blade 30 can be calculated.

Alternatively, layers may be set by cutting the earth and sand pile into rings in the height direction, and the earth may be crushed by pushing the earth in order from the highest layer (see FIG. 10). This control assumes a case where the earth and sand pile is relatively high (for example, when the earth and sand pile is higher than the height of the bulldozer 1). In the earth and sand pile shown in FIG. 10, for example, first the top layer N3 is tamped, then the layer N2 below it is tamped, and finally the bottom layer N1 is tamped.

(Leveling confirmation process)
As shown in FIG. 4B, the bulldozer 1 performs sensing of the earth and sand pile again in order to confirm the completion of leveling (step S9). When the completion of leveling is confirmed in step S9 (step S10a), the leveling control unit 45 completes the leveling work for the earth and sand pile, and advances the process to step S11. On the other hand, if it is confirmed that there is no leveling remaining in step S9 (step S10b), the leveling control unit 45 returns the process to step S8 and performs leveling work again.

(Next sediment mountain sensing process)
When the completion of leveling is confirmed (step S10a), the bulldozer 1 moves to the sensing start position of the next earth and sand mound (step S11), and detects the position of the new earth and sand mound to be next leveled from a distance. Detected (step S12). For example, the earth and sand pile position detection processing unit 41 moves the bulldozer 1 to a position diagonally backward by a preset amount (for example, one mountain in the lateral direction, and arbitrary in the rear direction), and detects the position after the movement. Detect the next sand pile. When the next pile of earth and sand is detected in step S12, the rock size detection processing unit 42 moves the bulldozer 1 in front of the next pile of earth and sand (step S2), and starts leveling the next pile of earth and sand. conduct. On the other hand, if the next pile of earth and sand is not detected in step S12, it is assumed that leveling of the set number of piles of earth and sand has been completed, and the work is completed (step S13).

As described above, in the automated construction system 100 according to the embodiment, when large-grained rocks 8 are included, work is performed preferentially on the large-grained rocks 8, and then the leveling work is performed. , high-quality leveling can be performed.
For example, as shown in Figure 11(a), by preferentially dropping extra large rock 8A into a recess that is lower than the design surface, rocks with small grain sizes and fine grains can be dropped as shown in Figure 11(b). The oversized rock 8A is now thrown out on top of the oversized rock 8A, making it difficult for the oversized rock 8A to be exposed on the surface, so that the finished surface can be made flat. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the effect of the leveling method according to the automated construction system 100 according to the embodiment, in which (a) shows the state before leveling, and (b) shows the leveling completed. Shows the later state.
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be implemented within the scope of the scope of the claims.

1 Bulldozer (construction equipment)
2 Management PC 3 Positioning satellite 8 Large grain rock 8A Extra large rock 10 Vehicle body 11 Communication antenna 12, 13 Positioning receiver 14 Sensor unit 15 Stereo camera 16 LiDAR
20 Travel device 30 Blade 40 Control device 41 Earth and sand pile position detection processing unit 42 Rock size detection processing unit 43 Priority work control unit 44 Earth and sand pile size detection processing unit 45 Leveling control unit 100 Automated construction system L1 to L5, L lane M grid map

Claims (7)

A leveling method using a construction machine,
The construction machine is capable of automatically traveling without operation by an operator, and is connected to a sensor unit capable of detecting a target object,
a rock size detection step of moving the construction machine to the earth and sand pile and detecting the size of rocks included in the earth and sand pile using the sensor unit;
a priority work process in which the construction machine preferentially performs work on the large-grained rock when a large-grained rock that is a rock with a size larger than a preset size is included;
a leveling step in which the construction machine performs leveling work on the earth and sand pile;
A leveling method characterized by: In the priority work process, when an oversized rock is detected, which is a rock that is larger than a first threshold value and smaller than a second threshold value, the construction machine is moved toward the oversized rock to remove the oversized rock from the earth and sand pile. push out and remove rocks,
The leveling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the priority work step, when an extremely large rock having a size equal to or larger than the second threshold is detected, it is notified that the extremely large rock is included.
The leveling method according to claim 2, characterized in that: As a pre-process of the leveling step, further comprising a sand pile size detection step of detecting the size of the sand pile using the sensor unit,
In the leveling step, leveling work is performed according to the leveling conditions determined based on the detection results in the soil pile size detection step.
The leveling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the leveling step, the height difference between the site shape and the reference surface is determined using a grid map, and the travel distance of each lane is determined by determining the total value of the height difference of the squares included in the lane.
The leveling method according to claim 4, characterized in that: As a pre-process of the rock size detection step, further comprising a sand pile position detection step of detecting the position of the sand pile using the sensor unit,
The leveling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: An automated construction system that performs leveling,
Construction machinery that can run automatically without operator control;
A sensor unit capable of detecting a target object,
A control device that controls construction by the construction machine,
The control device includes:
a rock size detection processing unit that moves the construction machine to the earth and sand pile and uses the sensor unit to detect the size of rocks included in the earth and sand pile;
a priority work unit that causes the construction machine to preferentially perform work on the large-grained rock when a large-grained rock that is larger than a preset size is included;
a leveling control unit that causes the construction machine to perform leveling work on the earth and sand pile;
An automated construction system characterized by:

Images