JP2025001074A - Work machine, and work support system for work machine - Google Patents

Abstract

To allow a flight position of a flying body to be easily set.SOLUTION: A work machine performing communication with a flying body comprises: a display control section for displaying a setting screen specifying a flight position of the flying body relative to a work machine; and a communication control section for transmitting setting information including the flight position specified on the setting screen and position information showing a present position of the work machine.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

This disclosure relates to a work machine and a work support system for the work machine.

Conventionally, there is known an excavator that receives and displays images captured by an autonomous flying object equipped with a camera, allowing the operator to visually check the conditions in the space that cannot be captured by the camera attached to the upper rotating body.

International Publication No. 2017/131194

The above-mentioned conventional technology describes how the flying object flies by following the shovel, but does not disclose how to set the flying position of the flying object.

In view of the above, the present disclosure aims to make it easier to set the flight position of an aircraft.

A work machine according to an embodiment of the present invention is a work machine that communicates with an air vehicle, and has a display control unit that displays on a display device a setting screen that allows the user to specify the flight position of the air vehicle relative to the work machine, and a communication control unit that transmits to the air vehicle setting information including position information indicating the flight position specified on the setting screen, and position information indicating the current position of the work machine.

This makes it easy to set the flight position of the aircraft.

1 is a diagram showing a work site where a work support system is used. 1 is a system configuration diagram (hardware configuration) of a work support system. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a controller of the shovel. 11 is a first flowchart showing the processing of a control device of an aircraft. 2 is a front view of a remote control; FIG. 13 is a front view of another example of the remote control. 10 is a flowchart showing a process flow in a shovel. 11 is a second flowchart showing the processing of the control device of the aircraft. FIG. 11 is a first diagram showing an example of a setting screen. FIG. 13 is a second diagram showing an example of a setting screen. FIG. 11 is a third diagram showing an example of a setting screen. FIG. 4 is a fourth diagram showing an example of a setting screen.

First, referring to FIG. 1, a work support system SYS including a shovel (excavator) 100 and an aircraft 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram of a work site where the work support system is used.

The work support system SYS is mainly composed of a shovel 100, an aircraft 200, and a remote control 300. Note that the remote control 300 does not necessarily have to be included in the work support system SYS.

The work support system SYS may include one or more excavators 100. The example in FIG. 1 includes two excavators 100A and 100B.

The flying object 200 is an autonomous flying object that can be flown by remote control or automatic piloting, and includes, for example, a multicopter or an airship. In this embodiment, it is a quadcopter equipped with a camera. The remote control 300 is a remote controller (terminal device) for remotely controlling the flying object 200.

An upper rotating body 3 is rotatably mounted on a lower running body 1 of the excavator 100 via a rotating mechanism 2. A boom 4 is attached to the upper rotating body 3. An arm 5 is attached to the tip of the boom 4, and a bucket 6 is attached to the tip of the arm 5. The boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6 as working elements constitute an excavation attachment, which is an example of an attachment. The boom 4, arm 5, and bucket 6 are hydraulically driven by a boom cylinder 7, arm cylinder 8, and bucket cylinder 9, respectively. A cabin 10 is provided on the upper rotating body 3, and a power source such as an engine 11 is mounted on it.

The upper rotating body 3 is fitted with a transmitter S1, a receiver S2, a positioning device S3, an attitude detector S4, an orientation detector S5, a display device 40, etc.

Transmitting device S1 transmits information to the outside of the shovel 100. For example, transmitting device S1 repeatedly transmits information that can be received by at least one of the flying object 200 and the remote control 300 at a predetermined cycle. In this embodiment, transmitting device S1 repeatedly transmits information that can be received by the flying object 200 at a predetermined cycle. Transmitting device S1 may transmit information to the flying object 200 only when it has received information transmitted by the flying object 200.

The receiving device S2 receives information from outside the shovel 100. For example, the receiving device S2 receives information transmitted by at least one of the flying object 200 and the remote control 300. In this embodiment, the receiving device S2 receives information transmitted by the flying object 200.

The positioning device S3 acquires information about the position of the shovel 100. In this embodiment, the positioning device S3 is a GNSS (GPS) receiver, and measures the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the location of the shovel 100.

The posture detection device S4 detects the posture of the shovel. The posture of the shovel is, for example, the posture of the excavation attachment. In this embodiment, the posture detection device S4 includes a boom angle sensor, an arm angle sensor, a bucket angle sensor, and a machine body inclination sensor. The boom angle sensor is a sensor that acquires the boom angle, and includes, for example, a rotation angle sensor that detects the rotation angle of the boom foot pin, a stroke sensor that detects the stroke amount of the boom cylinder 7, and a tilt (acceleration) sensor that detects the tilt angle of the boom 4. The same applies to the arm angle sensor and the bucket angle sensor. The machine body inclination sensor is a sensor that acquires the machine body inclination angle, and detects, for example, the inclination angle of the upper rotating body 3 relative to the horizontal plane. In this embodiment, the machine body inclination sensor is a two-axis acceleration sensor that detects the inclination angle around the front-rear axis and the left-right axis of the upper rotating body 3. Note that, for example, the front-rear axis and the left-right axis of the upper rotating body 3 are mutually perpendicular and pass through the shovel center point, which is a point on the rotation axis of the shovel 100. The machine body inclination sensor may be a three-axis acceleration sensor.

The orientation detection device S5 detects the orientation of the shovel 100. The orientation detection device S5 is composed of a geomagnetic sensor, a resolver or encoder related to the rotation axis of the rotation mechanism 2, a gyro sensor, etc. The orientation detection device S5 may be composed of a GNSS compass including two GNSS receivers. In this embodiment, the orientation detection device S5 is composed of a combination of a three-axis geomagnetic sensor and a gyro sensor.

The display device 40 is a device that displays various information and is located near the driver's seat inside the cabin 10. In this embodiment, the display device 40 is capable of displaying images captured by the flying object 200.

In addition, the display device 40 of this embodiment may include a touch panel disposed on a liquid crystal display. In addition, a sound collection device (microphone) that collects sound and a sound output device (speaker) that outputs sound may be provided near the display device 40 inside the cabin 10. In addition, the sound collection device and the sound output device may be provided in the display device 40 as part of the display device 40.

Next, the configuration of the work support system SYS will be described with reference to Figure 2. Figure 2 is a system configuration diagram (hardware configuration) of the work support system.

The excavator 100 is composed of an engine 11, a main pump 14, a pilot pump 15, a control valve 17, an operating device 26, a controller 30, an engine control device 74, etc.

The engine 11 is the driving source of the excavator 100, and is, for example, a diesel engine that operates to maintain a predetermined rotation speed. The output shaft of the engine 11 is connected to the input shafts of the main pump 14 and the pilot pump 15.

The main pump 14 is a swash plate type variable displacement hydraulic pump that supplies hydraulic oil to a control valve 17 via a high pressure hydraulic line 16. The discharge flow rate of the main pump 14 changes per rotation in response to changes in the swash plate tilt angle. The swash plate tilt angle is controlled by a regulator 14a. The regulator 14a changes the swash plate tilt angle in response to changes in the control current from the controller 30.

The pilot pump 15 is a fixed displacement hydraulic pump that supplies hydraulic oil to various hydraulic control devices such as the operating device 26 via the pilot line 25.

The control valve 17 is a set of flow control valves that control the flow of hydraulic oil to the hydraulic actuators. The control valve 17 selectively supplies hydraulic oil received from the main pump 14 through the high-pressure hydraulic line 16 to one or more hydraulic actuators in response to changes in pilot pressure corresponding to the operation direction and amount of operation of the operating device 26. The hydraulic actuators include, for example, a boom cylinder 7, an arm cylinder 8, a bucket cylinder 9, a left traveling hydraulic motor 1A, a right traveling hydraulic motor 1B, a swing hydraulic motor 2A, etc.

The operating device 26 is a device used by the operator of the excavator 100 to operate the hydraulic actuator. The operating device 26 receives hydraulic oil from the pilot pump 15 via the pilot line 25 to generate pilot pressure. The pilot pressure is then applied to the pilot port of the corresponding flow control valve through the pilot line 25a. The pilot pressure changes depending on the operation direction and amount of the operating device 26. The pilot pressure sensor 15a detects the pilot pressure and outputs the detected value to the controller 30.

The controller 30 is a control device for controlling the excavator 100. In this embodiment, the controller 30 is configured as a computer equipped with a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. The CPU of the controller 30 reads out programs corresponding to various functions from the ROM, loads them into the RAM, and executes them to realize the functions of each functional unit described below.

Specifically, the controller 30 displays a setting screen for configuring settings related to the flight of the flying object 200, and generates setting information for the flying object 200 using information input on the setting screen. The controller 30 then calculates the target flight position of the flying object 200 based on the setting information, the position information of the shovel 100, and the position information of the flying object 200. The functional configuration of the controller 30 will be described in detail later.

The engine control device 74 is a device that controls the engine 11. The engine control device 74 controls, for example, the fuel injection amount so as to achieve the engine speed set via the input device.

The transmitting device S1, the receiving device S2, the positioning device S3, the attitude detection device S4, and the orientation detection device S5 are each connected to the controller 30. The controller 30 executes various calculations based on the information output by the receiving device S2, the positioning device S3, the attitude detection device S4, and the orientation detection device S5, and transmits information generated based on the calculation results from the transmitting device S1 to the outside.

The flying object 200 is composed of a control device 201, a transmitting device 202, a receiving device 203, an autonomous navigation device 204, a camera 205, etc.

The control device 201 is a device for controlling the flying object 200. In this embodiment, the control device 201 is configured as a computer equipped with a RAM, a ROM, etc. The CPU of the control device 201 reads out programs corresponding to various functions from the ROM, loads them into the RAM, and executes them to realize the functions corresponding to each of those programs.

The transmitting device 202 transmits information to the outside of the flying object 200. The transmitting device 202 repeatedly transmits, for example, information that can be received by at least one of the shovel 100 and the remote control 300 at a predetermined cycle. In this embodiment, the transmitting device 202 repeatedly transmits information that can be received by the shovel 100 and the remote control 300 at a predetermined cycle. The information that can be received by the shovel 100 and the remote control 300 includes, for example, image data indicating an image captured by the camera 205.

The receiving device 203 receives information from outside the flying object 200. For example, the receiving device 203 receives information transmitted by the shovel 100 and the remote control 300.

The autonomous navigation device 204 is a device for realizing autonomous navigation of the flying object 200. In this embodiment, the autonomous navigation device 204 includes a flight control device, an electric motor, and a battery. The flying object 200 may also be equipped with a GNSS receiver to independently determine the position of the flying object 200. The flying object 200 may also be equipped with multiple GNSS receivers to independently determine the position and orientation of the flying object 200. In addition, when using an external power source on the ground via a wired connection instead of a battery, a converter for voltage conversion may also be equipped.

The flying object 200 may also be equipped with a solar panel. The flight control device includes various sensors such as a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, a geomagnetic sensor (direction sensor), an air pressure sensor, a positioning sensor, and an ultrasonic sensor, and realizes an attitude maintenance function, an altitude maintenance function, and the like. The electric motor receives power from a battery and rotates the propellers. For example, when the autonomous navigation device 204 receives information on a target flight position from the control device 201, the autonomous navigation device 204 controls the rotation speed of the four propellers separately, and moves the flying object 200 to the target flight position while maintaining the attitude and altitude of the flying object 200. The information on the target flight position is, for example, the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the target flight position. The control device 201 acquires information on the target flight position from the outside, for example, through the receiving device 203. The autonomous navigation device 204 may change the orientation of the flying object 200 by receiving information on the target orientation from the control device 201.

The camera 205 is an object detection device for acquiring images as object detection information. In this embodiment, the camera 205 is attached to the flying object 200 so as to be able to capture images of the area vertically below the flying object 200. The captured image captured by the camera 205 includes information on the imaging position, which is the flying position of the flying object 200, for example, and is used to generate three-dimensional topographical data. In addition, a laser range finder, an ultrasonic sensor, a millimeter wave sensor, etc. may also be used as the object detection device.

The remote control 300 is composed of a control device 301, a transmitting device 302, a receiving device 303, a display device 304, an operation input device 305, etc.

The control device 301 is a device for controlling the remote control 300. In this embodiment, the control device 301 is configured as a computer equipped with a RAM, a ROM, etc. The CPU of the control device 301 reads out programs corresponding to various functions from the ROM, loads them into the RAM, and executes them to realize the functions corresponding to each of those programs.

The transmitting device 302 transmits information to the outside of the remote control 300. The transmitting device 302 may, for example, repeatedly transmit information that can be received by the flying object 200 at a predetermined cycle, or may transmit information that can be received by the shovel 100. In this embodiment, the transmitting device 302 repeatedly transmits information that can be received by the flying object 200 at a predetermined cycle. The information that can be received by the flying object 200 includes, for example, information regarding the target flight position of the flying object 200.

The receiving device 303 receives information from outside the remote control 300. The receiving device 303 receives, for example, information transmitted by at least one of the shovel 100 and the flying object 200. In this embodiment, the receiving device 303 receives information transmitted by the flying object 200. The information transmitted by the flying object 200 includes, for example, position information indicating the position of the flying object 200 and image data indicating an image captured by the camera 205.

The display device 304 is a device for displaying various types of information. In this embodiment, the display device 304 is a liquid crystal display, and displays information related to the operation of the flying object 200. It may also display images captured by the camera 205 of the flying object 200.

The operation input device 305 is a device for receiving operation input from the pilot of the flying object 200. In this embodiment, the operation input device 305 is a touch panel placed on top of a liquid crystal display.

Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of the excavator controller. The controller 30 of this embodiment includes an information acquisition unit 31, a display control unit 32, an input reception unit 33, a setting information generation unit 34, and a communication control unit 35.

The information acquisition unit 31 acquires various types of information. Specifically, the information acquisition unit 31 acquires the position information of the aircraft itself, the position information of the flying object 200 transmitted from the flying object 200, and image data.

The display control unit 32 controls the display on the display device 40. Specifically, the display control unit 32 causes the display device 40 to display a setting screen related to the flying object 200.

The input reception unit 33 receives operations on the display device 40. The input reception unit 33 also receives as input voice data collected by a sound collection device provided in the cabin 10 of the excavator 100.

The setting information generating unit 34 generates setting information indicating the settings for the flying object 200 based on the information input on the setting screen. The setting screen and the setting information generating unit 34 will be described in detail later. The communication control unit 35 transmits and receives information using the transmitting device S1 and receiving device S2 of the shovel 100.

Next, the operation of the work support system will be described with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a first flowchart showing the processing of the flying object. FIG. 4 shows the processing for starting the following function in the flying object 200 (hereinafter, referred to as "following start processing"). The following function is a function in which the flying object 200 automatically follows the shovel 100 while capturing images of the surroundings of the shovel 100 and transmitting the images to the shovel 100.

First, the flying object 200 acquires information identifying the shovel to be followed (step S401). The information identifying the shovel may be transmitted from the remote control 300 to the flying object 200, for example, when the operator operates the remote control 300 to determine the shovel 100 that the flying object 200 is to follow. Note that the information identifying the shovel may also be transmitted to the shovel 100 that is the target to be followed.

When the flying object 200 receives information identifying the shovel to be followed, it starts a process of having the shovel follow it (hereinafter referred to as "following process") (step S402). Then, the flying object 200 starts transmitting image data representing the captured image (step S403). The flying object 200 repeatedly transmits information including image data representing the captured image captured by the camera 205 from the transmitting device 202 at a predetermined interval.

Now, referring to FIG. 5, a method in which the operator uses the remote control 300 to determine the shovel to be followed will be described. FIGS. 5A and 5B are front views of the remote control 300. In each of the examples in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the remote control 300 is a smartphone having a liquid crystal display as the display device 304 and a touch panel as the operation input device 305.

Figure 5A shows a case where three shovels are present within the reception range of the flying object 200. The flying object 200 authenticates the shovels, for example, by receiving shovel ID numbers via wireless communication. Selection buttons G1 to G3 are software buttons corresponding to each authenticated shovel. The remote control 300 displays a number of selection buttons according to the number of recognized shovels. Each selection button is assigned a shovel ID number. Operation button G5 is a software button for raising, lowering, turning left, or turning right the flying object 200.

The pilot can send an ascent command from the remote control 300 to the flying object 200 by touching the upper part of the operation button G5 (the part marked "ascend"), causing the flying object 200 to ascend. The same applies to descent, left turns, and right turns. The operation button G6 is a software button for moving the flying object 200 forward, backward, left, and right. The pilot can send a forward movement command from the remote control 300 to the flying object 200 by touching the upper part of the operation button G6 (the part marked "forward"), causing the flying object 200 to move forward. The same applies to movement in other directions.

The pilot flies the flying object 200 above the work site by touching the operation buttons G5 and G6. When the flying object 200 authenticates the shovels, the remote control 300 displays selection buttons G1 to G3 corresponding to each of the three authenticated shovels based on the information received from the flying object 200. The pilot determines the shovel to follow by touching one of the selection buttons G1 to G3. The flying object 200 approaches the shovel to follow, for example, by using information received from the shovel to follow. The flying object 200 then flies in a tracking manner so as to maintain a relative positional relationship with the shovel to follow.

Figure 5B shows a case where four shovels are present within the imaging range of camera 205 of flying object 200. Flying object 200 recognizes the shovels present within the imaging range of camera 205, for example, by applying image processing to the image captured by camera 205. Camera image G10 is an image captured by camera 205, and includes four shovel images G11 to G14 corresponding to each of the four shovels present within the imaging range of camera 205. Remote control 300 displays camera image G10 in real time using information received from flying object 200.

The pilot determines the shovel to be followed by touching one of the four shovel images G11 to G14. The flying object 200 then flies in a tracking manner, for example, such that the shovel image of the shovel to be followed occupies a predetermined size at a predetermined position in the captured image. In other words, the flying object 200 flies in a tracking manner so that the relative positional relationship between the shovel to be followed and the flying object 200 is maintained as a predetermined relative positional relationship.

Next, an example of the tracking process will be described with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the process in the shovel.

First, the controller 30 of the shovel 100 acquires the position information of the shovel 100 by the information acquisition unit 31 (step S601). The controller 30 acquires, for example, the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the shovel 100 based on the output of the positioning device S3. The controller 30 may also additionally acquire posture information of the excavation attachment, direction information of the shovel 100, operation information of the shovel 100, and the like. For example, the controller 30 may acquire the boom angle, arm angle, bucket angle, and vehicle tilt angle based on the output of the posture detection device S4. The controller 30 may also acquire the absolute azimuth angle of the shovel 100 based on the output of the direction detection device S5. The controller 30 may also acquire the operation details of the shovel 100 based on the output of the pilot pressure sensor 15a.

Next, the controller 30 of the shovel 100 causes the display control unit 32 to display on the display device 40 a setting screen for making settings related to the flying object 200 (step S602). The settings related to the flying object 200 are, specifically, settings related to how the flying object 200 moves (flies) relative to the shovel 100. The setting screen will be described in detail later.

Next, the controller 30 determines whether the setting is complete (step S603). If the setting is complete in step S603, the controller 30 causes the setting information generating unit 34 to generate setting information based on the information input on the setting screen (step S604).

Next, the controller 30 transmits the setting information and the position information of the shovel 100 to the flying object 200 via the communication control unit 35 (step S605).

For example, the controller 30 transmits position information and setting information to the flying object 200 via the transmitting device S1. The controller 30 may also transmit orientation information of the shovel 100, operation information of the shovel 100, attitude information of the excavation attachment, etc. to the flying object 200.

After transmitting the setting information to the flying object 200, the controller 30 may continue to transmit its own position information to the flying object 200 at a predetermined control period.

The processing of the controller 30 shown in FIG. 6 may be executed by the control device 301 of the remote control 300. In this case, in the work support system SYS, the remote control 300 acquires position information indicating the current position of the shovel 100 from the shovel 100, and displays on the display device 304 a setting screen for specifying the flight position of the flying object 200 relative to the shovel 100. In addition, when the flight position of the flying object 200 is set on the display device 304, the remote control 300 may transmit the setting information and the position information of the shovel 100 to the flying object 200 and the shovel 100.

Next, the processing of the control device 201 of the flying object 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a second flowchart showing the processing of the control device of the flying object.

The control device 201 of the flying object 200 receives the position information and setting information of the shovel 100 (step S701). For example, the control device 201 receives the position information and setting information of the shovel 100 transmitted by the controller 30 of the shovel 100 through the receiving device 203. The control device 201 may additionally receive orientation information of the shovel 100, operation information of the shovel 100, attitude information of the excavation attachment, etc.

Next, the control device 201 acquires position information indicating the current position of the flying object 200 (step S702).

Then, the control device 201 determines a target flight position (step S703). For example, the control device 201 calculates the target flight position of the flying object 200 based on the position information indicating the position of the flying object 200, and the position information and setting information of the shovel 100.

The target flight position may be determined, for example, based on the relative positional relationship between the flying object 200 and the shovel 100 indicated by the setting information, position information indicating the current position of the shovel 100, and position information indicating the current position of the flying object 200.

Next, the control device 201 moves the flying object 200 to the target flight position (step S704).

For example, the control device 201 outputs information about the target flight position to the autonomous navigation device 204. The autonomous navigation device 204 moves the flying object 200 to the target flight position using GNSS (GPS) navigation, inertial navigation, or hybrid navigation that combines GPS navigation and inertial navigation. When using GPS navigation, the autonomous navigation device 204 may acquire the absolute position (latitude, longitude, altitude) of the shovel 100 as information about the target flight position. When using inertial navigation, the autonomous navigation device 204 may acquire information about the change between the position of the shovel 100 received last time and the position of the shovel 100 received this time as information about the target flight position. In this case, the receiving device 203 of the flying object 200 may continuously receive the position information of the shovel 100.

The control device 201 then repeatedly executes steps S702 to S703 each time it receives position information of the shovel 100, thereby allowing the flying object 200 to continuously follow the shovel 100 in accordance with the settings indicated by the setting information.

In addition, if the flying object 200 is equipped with multiple GNSS receivers, the control device 201 can grasp the position and orientation (rotation angle relative to a reference direction) of the flying object 200. In this case, when the control device 201 acquires the position information and orientation information of the shovel 100, it can compare the respective positions and orientations of the shovel 100 and the flying object 200. Then, the position and orientation of the flying object 200 can be changed in response to changes in the position and orientation of the shovel 100, so that the flying object 200 can follow the shovel 100.

Next, the setting screen of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 8 to 11. Figure 8 is the first figure showing an example of the setting screen.

The screen 80 shown in FIG. 8 is an example of a screen displayed on the display device 40 in step S602 of FIG. 6, and is an example of a setting start screen that is displayed when starting settings related to the flying object 200.

The screen 80 includes display areas 81 and 82. The display area 81 is a display area for specifying the relative positional relationship between the flying object 200 and the shovel 100, and an image 83 showing a top view of the shovel 100 to be tracked is displayed in the center.

In this embodiment, a position specified in the display area 81 may be set as the flight position of the flying object 200 relative to the shovel 100. The position specified in the display area 81 may be detected, for example, by contact with an operator's finger or the like. In other words, in this embodiment, the operator or the like can touch any position within the display area 81 of the screen 80 with a finger or the like, and the touched position can be set as the flight position of the flying object 200 relative to the shovel 100.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, the operator can set the positional relationship between the flying object 200 and the shovel 100 with a simple operation, and can easily set the flying object 200 to follow the shovel 100. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the flight position of the flying object 200 is specified using the image 83 of the shovel, so that the operator can easily imagine the flight position of the flying object 200 and can intuitively set the positional relationship between the shovel 100 and the flying object 200.

A message prompting the user to set the flight position of the aircraft 200 is displayed in the display area 82.

Figure 9 is a second diagram showing an example of a setting screen. Screen 80A shown in Figure 9 shows a state in which the flight position of the flying object 200 has been set on screen 80 shown in Figure 8.

The screen 80A includes display areas 81, 91, 92, and an operation button 93. In the display area 81, an image 83 of a top view of the shovel 100 and a mark 85 indicating the flight position of the flying object 200 are displayed.

In this embodiment, information indicating the positional relationship between the shovel 100 and the flying object 200 is generated from the positional relationship between the image 83 and the mark 85, and is included in the setting information. The information indicating the positional relationship may include, for example, the scale of the shovel shown in the image 83 relative to the actual shovel 100, the coordinates of point P1 indicating the center of rotation of the shovel shown in the image 83 in the display area 81, and the coordinates of the center point P2 of the mark 85.

The display area 91 displays the remaining flight time of the flying object 200. The flying object 200 is powered by a secondary cell such as a battery. In this embodiment, the remaining flight time according to the remaining battery charge of the battery of the flying object 200 is displayed in the display area 91. The controller 30 may previously acquire information indicating the remaining flight time from the flying object 200.

In this way, by displaying the remaining flight time, the operator can understand the remaining flight time of the aircraft 200.

In the display area 92, selection fields 92a and 92b are displayed for selecting whether or not to cause the flying object 200 to follow the shovel 100 to be followed when the shovel 100 to be followed is traveling and turning. In other words, the display control unit 32 causes the display area 92 to display selection fields 92a and 92b for setting whether or not to cause the flying object 200 to follow the shovel 100 for each type of operation of the shovel 100.

In the example of FIG. 9, a check is entered (selected) in both the selection field 92a for whether or not the flying object 200 should follow the shovel 100 when it is moving, and the selection field 92b for whether or not the flying object 200 should follow the shovel 100 when it is turning.

Therefore, in the example of FIG. 9, it can be seen that the flying object 200 is set to follow the shovel 100 so that the positional relationship between the flying object 200 and the shovel 100 is as shown in the display area 81, both when the shovel 100 is traveling and when it is turning.

In this embodiment, the controller 30 also includes information indicating the results of the selections made for each selection field 92a, 92b in the display area 92 in the setting information.

If only the selection field 92a is selected in the display area 92 of the screen 80A, the flying object 200 will remain in its current position without moving when the shovel 100 is turning. If only the selection field 92b is selected in the display area 92 of the screen 80A, the flying object 200 will remain in its current position without moving when the shovel 100 is traveling.

In addition, if neither selection field 92a nor 92b is selected on screen 80A, the flying object 200 will remain in the flight position indicated by mark 85 without following the shovel 100.

In this way, in this embodiment, it is possible to easily set whether or not the flying object 200 follows the shovel 100 for each type of motion of the shovel 100.

The operation button 93 is operated after the settings for the flying object 200 are completed. In the controller 30 of this embodiment, when the operation button 93 is operated, setting information is generated by the setting information generation unit 34. The generated setting information is transmitted to the flying object 200 by the communication control unit 35 together with the position information of the shovel 100.

The setting information generated from the setting screen shown in FIG. 9 may include the scale of the shovel shown in the image 83, the coordinates of point P1 indicating the center of rotation of the shovel shown in the image 83 in the display area 81, the coordinates of the center point P2 of the mark 85, information indicating that the flying object 200 is to follow the shovel 100 both when it is traveling and when it is turning, and the like.

In addition, in the example of FIG. 9, the flying height of the flying object 200 is not set, so the flying height of the flying object 200 may be set to a preset initial value.

Figure 10 is a third diagram showing an example of a setting screen. Screen 80B shown in Figure 10 shows a state in which the flying height of the flying object 200 has been set on screen 80A shown in Figure 9.

In the screen 80B shown in FIG. 10, an input field 94 for setting the height of the flying object 200 is displayed in the display area 81. The input field 94 may be displayed near the mark 85 when the operator performs an operation to specify the position of the mark 85 in the display area 81.

When the operation button 93 is operated and a value indicating height is input in the input field 94, the controller 30 of this embodiment includes a value indicating the height of the flying object 200 from the ground in the setting information. In this embodiment, by doing so, the height of the flying object 200 can be freely and easily set when making the flying object 200 follow the shovel 100.

In addition, in this embodiment, multiple flight positions for the flying object 200 can be set on the setting screen.

Figure 11 is a fourth diagram showing an example of a setting screen. Screen 80C shown in Figure 11 shows a state in which multiple flight positions for the flying object 200 are set in the display area 81.

In this embodiment, marks 85, 86, and 87 are displayed in the display area 81. In other words, the screen 80C indicates that the operator has touched three points within the display area 81.

In this manner, when multiple flight positions for the flying object 200 are selected, the controller 30 of this embodiment sets a trajectory that passes through the multiple flight positions as the target flight trajectory for the flying object 200, and includes information indicating the target trajectory in the setting information. In the example of FIG. 11, the trajectory 88 connecting the mark 85 to the mark 87 becomes the target flight trajectory for the flying object 200. The flying object 200 may circle the target flight trajectory or may make a round trip.

In this embodiment, once a target flight trajectory is set, the flying object 200 orbits or travels back and forth along this target flight trajectory.

In this way, in this embodiment, the target flight trajectory of the flying object 200 can be set simply by specifying multiple locations in the display area 81, and the flight position of the flying object 200 to follow the shovel 100 can be easily set.

Note that, although an example of each setting screen is shown to be displayed on the display device 40 in Figs. 8 to 11, this is not limiting. The setting screens shown in Figs. 8 to 11 may be displayed on the display device 304 of the remote control 300. Also, the setting screens shown in Figs. 8 to 11 may be displayed on a management device or the like (not shown). The management device may be a device for managing the excavator 100.

In addition, when a specific operation is performed on the display device 40 on which an image captured by the flying object 200 is displayed, the controller 30 of this embodiment may operate the flying object 200 in response to the operation.

The specific operation may be, for example, an operation to enlarge or reduce the captured image being displayed. The operation to enlarge or reduce the captured image may be a pinch out operation or a pinch in operation.

When an operation to enlarge or reduce the captured image is performed, the controller 30 may transmit an instruction corresponding to the operation to the flying object 200. In response to this instruction, the control device 201 of the flying object 200 may instruct the camera 205 to zoom up or zoom back.

The specific operation may also be an operation for changing the range of the captured image. The operation for changing the range of the captured image may be a swipe operation or a flick operation.

When an operation to change the range of the captured image is performed, the controller 30 may transmit an instruction corresponding to the operation to the flying object 200. The control device 201 of the flying object 200 may move horizontally or vertically in response to this instruction.

In this embodiment, by doing this, the operator can have the flying object 200 capture the image he or she desires.

The same operations can also be performed when an image captured by the flying object 200 is displayed on the display device 304 of the remote control 300 or on a display device of the management device.

In addition, in this embodiment, the setting information for the flying object 200 is generated based on the information input to the setting screen, but this is not limited to this. The controller 30 in this embodiment may generate the setting information for the flying object 200 based on audio data.

In this case, the input reception unit 33 of the controller 30 may convert the voice data collected by the sound collection device into text data or the like, and generate setting information for the flying object 200 according to the converted content.

For example, if voice data such as "go around the area" is input, the controller 30 may generate setting information including a target flight trajectory for going around the area of the aircraft, and transmit the setting information to the aircraft 200. In this case, if no additional setting is performed, the aircraft 200 may periodically repeat flight and landing, or may fly the target flight trajectory at regular intervals.

In this way, even if the operator is in a situation where he or she cannot operate the display device 40, the operator can move the flying object 200 to a desired position by voice, and the flying object 200 can be easily made to follow the shovel 100.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the shovel 100 generates setting information and transmits it to the flying object 200, and the target flight position is calculated in the flying object 200, but this is not limited to the above. The calculation of the target flight position may be performed by the controller 30 of the shovel 100.

In addition, in each of the above-described embodiments, the shovel 100 is an example of a work machine, but the work machine is not limited to the shovel 100. The work machine may be any machine that has an attachment, such as a forklift or a crane.

The above describes the preferred embodiments of the present invention in detail. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Various modifications, substitutions, etc. may be applied to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Furthermore, features described separately may be combined as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

1 Lower traveling body 2 Swivel mechanism 3 Upper rotating body 4 Boom
5 Arm 6 Bucket 30 Controller 31 Information acquisition unit 32 Display control unit 33 Input reception unit 34 Setting information generation unit 100 Shovel 200 Aircraft

Claims (9)

A work machine that communicates with an aircraft,
a display control unit that displays on a display device a setting screen that allows the user to specify a relative flight position of the aircraft with respect to the work machine;
A work machine having a communication control unit that transmits setting information including position information indicating the flight position specified on the setting screen and position information indicating the current position of the work machine to the flying object. a setting information generating unit that generates setting information based on an input to the setting screen,
The setting information generation unit
A work machine as described in claim 1 , wherein when a plurality of flight positions are specified on the setting screen, information indicating a target flight trajectory of the aircraft including the plurality of flight positions is generated and included in the setting information. The display control unit is
displaying an input field on the setting screen for setting the height of the flying object from the ground;
The setting information generation unit
The work machine according to claim 2 , wherein information indicating the height input in the input field is included in the setting information. The display control unit is
displaying on the setting screen a selection field for setting whether or not to cause the flying object to follow the work machine for each type of operation of the work machine;
The setting information generation unit
The work machine according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a result of a selection in the selection field is included in the setting information. The setting screen includes:
2. The work machine according to claim 1, wherein a remaining flight time according to a remaining battery charge of a secondary battery of the flying object is displayed. While an image captured by an imaging device of an aircraft is being displayed on the display device, an operation is received to instruct the display device to enlarge or reduce the image displayed on the display device,
The work machine according to claim 1 , wherein the communication control unit transmits to the flying object a signal instructing an imaging device of the flying object to zoom up or zoom back. Accepting an operation to instruct a change in the range of the image displayed on the display device;
The work machine according to claim 1 , wherein the communication control unit transmits, to the flying object, a signal instructing the flying object to move in accordance with the instruction. The work machine has a sound collecting device,
The work machine according to claim 1 , further comprising: a sound collection device configured to collect the sound from the work machine and a sound collection device configured to collect the sound from the work machine and a sound collection device configured to collect the sound from the work machine. A work support system for a work machine including an aircraft, a terminal device, and a work machine that communicates with the terminal device,
The terminal device
a display control unit that displays a setting screen on a display device of the terminal device, the setting screen allowing the user to specify a relative flight position of the aircraft with respect to the work machine;
A work support system for a work machine having a transmission unit that transmits to the flying object setting information including position information indicating the flight position specified on the setting screen, and position information indicating the current position of the work machine.

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