JP5144894B2 - Joystick device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a joystick (composite operation lever) device for controlling the operation of a work device by a combined operation of a single operation lever (front / rear / left / right movement operation and lever head rotation operation).

  In an aerial work vehicle having an aerial work device, the swivel is swung, and the boom is moved up and down, and the work table provided at the tip of the boom is moved to a desired height. It is configured to work at high places. For this reason, an operating device (joystick device) that can perform combined operation of the high-altitude working device with a single operating lever so that an operator on the work table can operate these high-altitude working devices with a simple operation. (See, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). Such an operating device can be operated by tilting the operating lever in the front-rear direction to raise and lower the boom, tilting in the left-right direction to extend and retract the boom, and rotate the grip portion of the operating lever. The swivel base is swiveled. In addition, this operating device is provided with a switch that enables the operation of the operating lever only when it is pushed in so that the working device at a high place does not operate when the operator accidentally touches the operating lever.

JP 2002-318628 A

JP 2004-262629 A

  However, in such a conventional operation device, it is difficult to push the switch at the time of operation, and due to the poor operability with the index finger and the middle finger when rotating the grip part, there is a problem that the feeling of fatigue remains in the arms and fingers was there.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a joystick device (operation device) with improved operability.

In order to solve the above-described problem, a joystick device according to the present invention (for example, the upper operation device 10 in the embodiment) is a rod-shaped member provided to extend upward from a base portion, and has an axis extending upward as a center. A rod portion that is configured to be tiltable so that the axis is tilted with respect to the base, but a grip portion that is pivotally attached to the upper end portion of the rod portion around the axis. The head is located on the top of the grip and is fixed to the rod. A switch that can be operated with the first finger of the hand in a state where the operator has operated the switch with the first finger while holding the head part with the palm applied. Less than Grip can be operated to rotate the at finger, and the joystick device configured to allow an operation to tilt the rod portion moving the hand, on the rear side of the joystick device in a plan view The operator positioned is configured to apply a palm of a right hand to the head unit to grip the head unit, and the switch is attached to the side of the head unit diagonally left rear in plan view, On the side of the grip portion, in plan view, a first recess formed obliquely left frontward, a second recess formed diagonally forward right, and a third recess formed rightward Have.

The joystick device according to the present invention is preferably configured such that the first finger is a thumb.
In addition, the joystick device according to the present invention further includes a first projecting portion projecting obliquely forward to the left on the side portion on the left side of the first concave portion in a plan view, on the side portion of the grip portion, A second protrusion that protrudes forward between the second recesses, a third protrusion that protrudes obliquely forward to the right between the second and third recesses, and a third It is preferable that a fourth protrusion that protrudes obliquely rearward to the right is formed on the right side of the recess.
In addition, the joystick device according to the present invention has means for outputting an operation signal in response to the tilting operation of the rod portion and the rotation operation of the grip portion in any of the above cases, and operates the switch. It is preferable that the operation signal is made effective only during the interval.

When the joystick device according to the present invention is configured as described above, the switch is arranged at the position of the first finger when the operator of the joystick device naturally holds the head portion and the grip portion by hand. Therefore, the operation of the switch with the first finger becomes easy. Further, since the rotation operation can be performed around the first finger pressing the switch, the operator can easily recognize how much the grip portion is rotated by being positioned by the first finger. can be, grasps the head portion Misao author with the right hand, when the grip portion for turning operation, the index finger, middle finger, and, since the ring finger is inserted to the first to third recess of the grip portion, rotates The operation becomes easy, and it becomes easy to simultaneously perform the tilting operation of the rod portion and the rotation operation of the grip portion.
According to a preferred configuration of the present invention, the first finger is a thumb . Furthermore, when gripping this grip portion, the first to fourth protrusions facilitate finger positioning.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, an aerial work vehicle having an aerial work device on the upper part of the vehicle body will be described as a work vehicle having the joystick device according to the present invention with reference to FIG. The aerial work vehicle 1 has a driving cabin 2a in front of a vehicle body 2 and is configured based on a truck vehicle that can travel on front and rear wheels 3a and 3b. At the rear part of the vehicle body 2 is mounted a turntable 4 that is driven by a turn motor 51 and configured to be turnable. A base 5 is pivotally connected to the upper part of the swivel base 4, and the boom 5 is attached so as to be movable up and down in a vertical plane by the expansion and contraction operation of the hoisting cylinder 52.

  The boom 5 is configured such that a base boom 5a, an intermediate boom 5b, and a tip boom 5c are combined in a nested manner, and can be expanded and contracted by a built-in telescopic cylinder 53. Although the boom 5 has a three-stage telescopic boom configuration here, a multi-stage telescopic boom configuration including two or four or more booms may be used.

  A vertical post 6 is pivotally connected to the tip of the tip boom 5c so as to be able to swing in the same plane (in the vertical plane) as the hoisting operation surface of the boom 5, and the boom 5 can be raised and lowered by a leveling system (not shown). Regardless, the leveling control is performed so that the vertical post 6 always extends vertically. A work table 7 is attached to the vertical post 6 that is always held vertically in this manner so that it can be swiveled horizontally (to be able to swing freely) by a swing motor (not shown). Regardless of the undulation state of the boom 5, it is always held horizontally. In the following description, the swivel base 4, the boom 5, the vertical post 6, and the work table 7 are collectively referred to as “aerial work apparatus 9”.

  Outrigger jacks 8 that can be widened in the width direction of the vehicle body 2 and can be expanded and contracted in the vertical direction are provided at four locations on the vehicle body 2 in the front, rear, left, and right directions. When working at a high place, an operator widens and extends the left and right outrigger jacks 8 in the vehicle width direction according to the relative positional relationship with surrounding obstacles, and projects the vehicle body 2 by lifting it downward. The operation of the outrigger jack 8 is performed by a jack operation lever 12 provided on the vehicle body 2.

  In the aerial work vehicle 1 configured as described above, an upper operating device 10 is provided on the work table 7 and a lower operating device 11 is provided on the vehicle body 2 in order to operate the aerial work device 9. . Now, the configuration of the upper operation device (joystick device) 10 provided on the work table 7 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The upper operating device 10 includes a rod portion 22 that extends upward from a base portion 21, a grip portion 23 that is rotatably attached to a distal end portion of the rod portion 22, and a head portion 24 that is fixed to the upper portion of the grip portion 23. Consists of In addition, this head part 24 is being fixed to the rod part 22, and only the grip part 23 is comprised so that rotation operation is possible. The rod part 22 can be tilted forward and backward and right and left around the lower end part, but is configured not to rotate with respect to the base part 21, and the lower end part is provided with rod parts 22 in the front and rear direction and the left and right direction. A first potentiometer 25 and a second potentiometer 26 that detect the tilt angle and output a detection value corresponding to the tilt angle are attached. A third potentiometer 27 that detects the rotation angle of the grip portion 23 around the central axis extending in the vertical direction of the rod portion 22 and outputs a detection value corresponding to the rotation angle is attached inside the grip 23. It has been.

  With respect to the upper operating device 10, an operator who has boarded the work table 7 has the direction of arrow R in FIG. 1 (in the following description, the direction of arrow R is “rear” and the direction of arrow F is “front”). ) Standing up and operating the upper operating device 10. The grip portion 23 has a polygonal column shape (an octagonal column shape in the present embodiment) whose central axis extends in the vertical direction, and is obliquely left frontward (as viewed from the rod portion 22) from the outer peripheral surface in plan view. First projection 23a projecting forward (in the direction of about 45 degrees forward), second projection 23b projecting forward, and diagonally forward right (in the direction of about 45 degrees diagonally forward right when viewed from the rod section 22). A third protruding portion 23c that protrudes and a fourth protruding portion 23d that protrudes diagonally to the right (in the direction of about 45 degrees diagonally right rearward when viewed from the rod portion 22) are formed. The grip 23 has a first recess 23e in which a side surface (left oblique front side) between the first projection 23a and the second projection 23b is formed in a concave shape. The side surface (right diagonally forward side) between the projection portion 23b and the third projection portion 23c has a second recess portion 23f formed in a concave shape, and further, the third projection portion 23c and the fourth projection portion The side surface (right side) between the portions 23d has a third concave portion 23g formed in a concave shape.

  Further, the head portion 24 has a substantially cylindrical shape whose central axis extends in the up-down direction, and is obliquely left rearward from the outer peripheral surface in a plan view (in a direction of about 45 degrees diagonally left rearward when viewed from the rod portion 22). Two plate-like guide portions 24a and 24b extending in the vertical direction are formed, and a switch 28 is disposed therebetween. A bellows-like cover 29 is attached between the lower surface of the grip portion 23 and the upper surface of the base portion 21 so as to cover the periphery of the rod portion 22.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when the upper operating device 10 is operated, operation signals s 1 to s 4 are output from the first to third potentiometers 25 to 27 and the switch 28 to the controller 30. That is, when the rod portion 22 is tilted in the front-rear direction, the operation signal s1 is output from the first potentiometer 25, and when the rod portion 22 is tilted in the left-right direction, the operation signal s2 is output from the second potentiometer 26, When the switch 23 is rotated, an operation signal s3 is output from the third potentiometer 27, and the operation signal s4 is output only while the switch 28 is depressed. The controller 30 outputs actuation signals s5 to s7 based on the operation signals s1 to s3 to the hydraulic unit 40 when the operation signal s4 is output from the switch 28. In FIG. 4, the electrical or optical signal circuit is indicated by a solid line, and the hydraulic circuit is indicated by a dotted line.

  The hydraulic unit 40 includes a tank 41 that stores hydraulic oil, a hydraulic pump 42 that is driven by an engine or an electric motor to discharge hydraulic oil at a predetermined hydraulic pressure and flow rate, and hydraulic oil that is discharged from the hydraulic pump 42 to operation signals s5 to s7. Consists of an undulating cylinder 52, a telescopic cylinder 53, electromagnetic proportional valves 43 to 45 for controlling the supply to the turning motor 51, an oil cooler (not shown) for cooling the operating oil whose temperature has risen, and the like based on the supply direction and supply amount. Has been. Therefore, the controller 30 controls the operation signal s5 based on the operation signal s1, thereby causing the boom 5 to move up and down in accordance with the tilting operation of the rod portion 22 in the front-rear direction, and the operation signal s6 based on the operation signal s2. By controlling, the boom 5 is expanded and contracted in accordance with the tilting operation of the rod portion 22 in the left-right direction, and the operation signal s7 is controlled on the basis of the operation signal s3, thereby turning according to the turning operation of the grip portion 23. The base 4 can be turned.

  When the upper operating device 10 is in the state of FIGS. 1 to 3, that is, the rod portion 22 extends from the base portion 21 in a substantially vertical direction, and the first to fourth projecting portions 23 a to 23 d of the grip portion 23 are provided. The neutral position is defined as the position at the above-described position, and the operation signals s1 to s3 are not output when the neutral position is established. Further, the elastic member or the like (not shown) provided in the upper operation device 10 loosens the force for the operator to operate the upper operation device 10 or releases the hand so that the neutral position can be obtained by the elastic member. It is configured to be returned to.

  When operating the upper operation device 10 configured as described above, the operator turns the palm of the right hand downward from the rear of the upper operation device 10 and extends the fingertip forward, and the palm of the palm of the palm of the hand is extended. The part close to the base is placed on the upper part of the head part 24. The thumb's belly portion is applied to the switch 28, the index finger is placed on the first recess 23e from between the first and second projections 23a, 23b of the grip portion 23, and the middle finger is placed on the second and third projections. The ring finger is placed on the second recess 23f between the portions 23b and 23c, the ring finger is placed on the third recess 23g between the third and fourth projections 23c and 23d, and the little finger is placed on the rear side of the fourth projection 23d. And grip the grip portion 23 with four fingers.

  In this way, when the grip portion is rotated, at least the forefinger, middle finger, and ring finger are inserted into the first to third recesses 23e to 23g. The rotation operation can be easily performed. Further, since the grip part 23 and the head part 24 are gripped by the entire palm, the tilting operation of the rod part 22 can be easily performed, and the tilting operation and the turning operation can be easily performed simultaneously. Further, since the switch 28 is disposed diagonally to the left of the side surface of the head portion 24 (within 90 degrees from the rear to the left), the thumb when the grip portion 23 and the head portion 24 are gripped as described above. The switch 28 is positioned at the position, so that it is easy to apply a force and the operation becomes easy.

  In particular, when the upper operating device 10 is operated, the switch 28 is always pressed with the thumb, so that the grip portion 23 is rotated around the thumb, and the position of the thumb is fixed. By positioning with the thumb as the center, the operator can easily recognize how much the grip portion 23 has been rotated, and the amount of turning of the work device 9 can be easily adjusted. Further, when the operator holds the upper operation device 10, the first to fourth protrusions 23 a to 23 d are used as a guide, so that the finger can be easily positioned with respect to the grip portion 23.

  The arrangement of the first to fourth protrusions 23a to 23d and the switch 28 is based on the assumption that the upper operating device 10 is operated with the right hand, and is configured to be operated with the left hand. This can be handled by reversing the left and right arrangements.

It is a top view of the joystick device (upper operation device) concerning the present invention. In FIG. 1, it is the side view which looked at the said joystick apparatus from the II direction. In FIG. 1, it is the side view seen from the said joystick apparatus III direction. It is a block diagram which shows the control method of an aerial work apparatus. It is a side view of an aerial work vehicle in which the joystick device according to the present invention is used.

Explanation of symbols

10 Upper operation device (joystick device)
21 Base part 22 Rod part 23 Grip part 23a 1st projection part 23b 2nd projection part 23c 3rd projection part 23d 4th projection part 23e 1st recessed part 23f 2nd recessed part 23g 3rd recessed part 24 Head part 28 switches

Claims (4)

A rod-shaped member that extends upward from the base, and does not rotate around an upwardly extending axis, but is configured to allow a tilting operation in which the axis is tilted with respect to the base. When,
A grip portion rotatably attached to the upper end portion of the rod portion around the axis,
A head portion that is positioned at the upper portion of the grip portion and is fixed to the rod portion;
A switch that is attached to a side of the head part, and that can be operated with the first finger of the hand in a state in which an operator applies a palm to grip the head part,
The operator can rotate the grip portion with a finger other than the first finger while holding the palm and holding the head portion while operating the switch with the first finger. And in the joystick device configured to allow the operation of tilting the rod portion by moving the hand,
An operator located on the rear side of the joystick device in a plan view is configured to hold the head part by applying a palm of the right hand to the head part,
The switch is attached to the side of the head portion obliquely left rear in plan view,
On the side of the grip portion, in plan view,
A first recess formed diagonally left front;
A second recess formed diagonally forward right;
And a third recess formed on the right side.   The joystick device according to claim 1, wherein the first finger is a thumb. On the side of the grip portion, in plan view,
A first protrusion projecting diagonally to the left and on the left side of the first recess;
A second protrusion projecting forward between the first and second recesses;
A third protrusion between the second and third recesses and projecting diagonally right forward;
3. The joystick device according to claim 1, wherein a fourth protrusion that protrudes obliquely rearward to the right is formed on the side portion on the right side of the third recess. 4.   It has means for outputting an operation signal in response to the tilting operation of the rod part and the rotation operation of the grip part, and is configured to validate the operation signal only while operating the switch. The joystick device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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