KR20200121544A - Self driving construction machine with a fastening means for attachments - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an autonomous driving construction machine. According to one aspect of the present invention, provided is the autonomous driving construction machine comprising: a body frame on which a cabin having an operator′s boarding space is mounted on the top: a base bracket installed on the top of the cabin; and an auxiliary bracket detachably mounted on the base bracket and on which at least one attachment is mounted.

Description

Self-driving construction machinery with attachment means {SELF DRIVING CONSTRUCTION MACHINE WITH A FASTENING MEANS FOR ATTACHMENTS}

The present invention relates to a self-driving construction machine, and more specifically, to an autonomously-driving construction machine having a means for mounting various accessories required for autonomous driving.

Construction machines (construction vehicles) are used in civil works or construction works, and vehicles using hydraulic pressure are used because they require great power for work. Types of such hydraulic work vehicles include wheel loaders, excavators, graders, cranes, and transport machines. 1 shows the structure of a general wheel loader 1. Referring to FIG. 1, the wheel loader 1 includes a boom 10 and a bucket 20. It may further include an arm disposed between the boom 10 and the bucket 20 to connect the boom 10 and the bucket 20. The boom 20 may be installed to be movable in the vertical direction on the main body, and the bucket 30 may be installed on the boom 20 to be movable in the vertical direction.

The construction machine 1 is provided with a cabin 30 providing a space for a worker to board, and various operating means for operating the construction machine 1 are provided inside the cabin 30. That is, the driver can operate by sitting in the cabin 30, raising and lowering the position of the boom 10, and also crowding and dumping the position of the bucket 20. ) Can be manipulated. For example, a boom cylinder 15 that controls the movement (position) of the boom 10 and a bucket cylinder 25 that controls the movement (position) of the bucket 20 are installed, and the boom cylinder 15 and the bucket According to the extension or contraction of the cylinder 25, the boom 10 and the bucket 20 can implement various movements, and the working machines 10 and 20 can perform various tasks. In one embodiment, the boom cylinder 15 and the bucket cylinder 25 may be extended or contracted by hydraulic oil supplied from a hydraulic pump.

As described above, a typical construction machine is generally operated by a worker, but recently, development of a construction machine capable of unmanned operation without a worker has been made according to the development of control and sensing technologies. Such an autonomous construction machine self-recognizes information on a work space using a mounted sensor, and performs a required task while controlling the device by itself based on the recognized information.

There are various types of sensors mounted on such autonomous construction machinery, but recently, the use of Lidar sensors to recognize surroundings by emitting laser pulses and receiving reflected laser pulses is increasing. . This is because the lidar sensor has a wide range of obtainable distance information of about 100m, the accuracy of distance information is about ±3cm, and has the advantage of having higher accuracy compared to other distance sensors such as stereo cameras and ultrasonic sensors. In addition, additional equipment such as GPS antenna, Beacon, camera, etc. is required.

The sensor may have a difference in performance depending on its location, so it is important to select an optimized location. In addition, for versatility, it must be possible to install the existing construction machinery without significantly changing the structure.

In response to the above demands, the present invention has made it a technical subject to provide an autonomous driving construction machine having an attachment mounting means capable of easily and firmly mounting various accessories such as sensors and cameras.

According to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem, a body frame in which a cabin having an operator's boarding space is mounted thereon: a base bracket installed on an upper portion of the cabin; Self-driving construction machine including an auxiliary bracket that is detachably mounted to the base bracket and to which at least one accessory is mounted is provided.

According to an embodiment, the base bracket may include a pair of first members and a pair of second members facing each other, and the first and second members may be arranged to form a square on the upper surface of the cabin. have.

Here, each of the pair of first members may have a rectangular cross-sectional shape with one side open. In addition, each of the pair of second members is mounted on an upper surface of the first member and a mounting surface on which at least one accessory is mounted, and a support surface extending from the mounting surface to face an end surface of the first member. Can have

In addition, the pair of second members includes a front member disposed adjacent to the front portion of the cabin and a rear member disposed rearwardly spaced apart from the front second member along the length direction of the body frame. In addition, a lidar sensor bracket may be installed on the front second member.

Here, the lidar sensor bracket may provide a mounting surface spaced upwardly from the upper surface of the front side second member, so that the lidar sensor mounted on the mounting surface may be disposed upwardly spaced apart from the upper surface of the cabin. .

In addition, the lidar sensor bracket is rotatably mounted along the length direction of the body frame, so that the mounting height of the lidar sensor can be changed.

According to another embodiment, the pair of first members includes a left first member and a right first member spaced apart from the left first member in the width direction of the body frame, and the left and right first members A camera bracket may be installed on at least one of the members.

Here, the camera bracket may have one end portion fixed to the first member, and the other end portion may provide a mounting surface on which the camera is mounted. In addition, the mounting surface may be formed of two mounting surfaces spaced vertically apart.

In addition, a beacon bracket may be additionally installed on at least one of the left and right first members, and the beacon bracket may have one end fixed to the first member and the other end extending from the one end.

In addition, the rear second member may include an extension part protruding from the first member in the width direction, and may additionally include an antenna mounted on the extension part.

According to an embodiment, a lead wire connected to the accessories may be fixed to the first or second member. Here, the first or second member may have a space portion provided therein, and the lead wire may be accommodated in the space portion.

According to the embodiment of the present invention as described above, it is possible to easily mount various accessories related to autonomous driving without significantly changing the structure of an existing construction machine. In addition, since the accessories are mounted on the base bracket by using the auxiliary bracket, the accessories can be freely installed in any position optimized for each accessory, thereby facilitating manufacturing and maintenance.

In addition, since the base frame is composed of a plurality of members, partial replacement is possible even in case of partial damage, and installation and maintenance because each member can be transported and installed individually without the need to move heavy weights at once even during installation. Maintenance becomes easy.

1 is a side view showing a conventional wheel loader.
2 is a side view showing an embodiment of an autonomous driving construction machine according to the present invention.
3 is a plan view showing the embodiment shown in FIG. 2.
4 is a side view showing the upper portion of the cabin in FIG. 2.
5 is a plan view illustrating a base bracket and an auxiliary bracket in FIG. 2.
6 is a rear view showing the base bracket and the auxiliary bracket shown in FIG. 5.
7 is a side view showing the base bracket and the auxiliary bracket shown in FIG. 5.
8 is an exploded perspective view showing a base bracket and an auxiliary bracket.
9 is a partially enlarged view showing the embodiment shown in FIG. 2.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an autonomous driving construction machine according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to Fig. 2, a first embodiment of the present invention is shown, and the first embodiment targets a wheel loader. However, it should be noted that the present invention is not necessarily limited to wheel loaders and can be applied to any construction machine such as an excavator, a grader, a crane, and a transport machine.

The above embodiment may adopt the structure of a conventional wheel loader. That is, an engine room including a body frame 100 constituting a vehicle body, in which a driving wheel 102 is mounted and an engine that is a power generating device for driving the driving wheel 102 is accommodated. 104 is disposed at the rear end of the body frame 100 based on the driving direction. A radiator grill 106 is disposed at the rear end of the engine room 104 to communicate a radiator (not shown) disposed inside the engine room 104 with the outside.

Meanwhile, a cabin 110 is disposed above the body frame 100 to provide a space for a worker to board. Inside the cabin 110, various operating means for operating the above embodiment and a display device for displaying the state of a construction machine are provided. Despite the fact that the present invention targets self-driving construction machines that can perform work on their own without operator's manipulation, the reason why a cabin for workers is provided is an autonomously driven construction machine without significantly changing the structure of the previously released construction machine. It is to implement.

If, in the case of targeting a fully autonomous construction machine excluding a worker's boarding, the cabin may be replaced with the highest position among construction machines.

A boom 120 and a bucket 130 are provided on the front of the body frame 100. The boom 120 is mounted to be rotatable in the vertical direction based on FIG. 2 by a hydraulic device mounted on the body frame 100.

Meanwhile, the embodiment includes sensing devices for recognizing a work space. Specifically, the sensing device may be a Lidar sensor that senses a distance to an object using a laser pulse and then scans a three-dimensional space based on this. In addition, the sensor may be any one of an infrared sensor, a camera, and an ultrasonic sensor. These sensors differ depending on their characteristics, but have a limited range of recognition. In addition, even if there is no limit to the recognition range, a blind spot may occur depending on a position mounted on the vehicle. In particular, in the case of construction machinery such as wheel loaders, unlike vehicles running on the road, not only the recognition targets and ranges are diverse, but also the ranges in which dead angles occur because the front structures such as buckets are continuously moved during the working process. There are difficulties that do not remain constant. Therefore, the optimal position of the lidar sensor varies depending on the type and type of construction machinery to be mounted.

Meanwhile, the above embodiment requires various accessories in addition to such a sensing device. For example, self-driving construction machines include beacons or LTE communication equipment for communication with the outside, GPS devices (antennas, etc.) to check the current location, and various camera equipment to check the external situation in real time. will be. These equipment, like the above-described lidar sensor, have different optimal positions according to their characteristics and according to the type and type of construction machinery to be mounted.

In the above embodiment, the various accessories are mounted on the upper surface of the cabin 110 described above. Since the upper surface of the cabin 110 corresponds to the highest position among the wheel loaders, it corresponds to an optimal position for receiving an external signal or transmitting a signal. In addition, since the cabin is located approximately at the center of the construction machinery, it is advantageous to minimize blind spots when a camera or lidar sensor is installed. In addition, since it is located at a distance from the place where the work is performed by the bucket, it is possible to reduce the risk of damage due to objects scattered during work or while moving.

Accordingly, in the above embodiment, various accessories related to autonomous driving are mounted on the upper portion of the cabin 110.

Referring to Figure 3, the arrangement of various accessories mounted in the above embodiment is shown. First, a lidar sensor 150 is disposed at a position adjacent to the front portion of the cabin 110. As shown in FIG. 4, the commercial lidar sensor 150 is disposed so as to be spaced upward from the upper surface of the cabin as well as protruding further forward than the front part of the cabin. This is to further expand the recognition range of the lidar sensor and minimize the occurrence of blind spots due to the cabin. In addition, the lidar sensor 150 is disposed approximately in the center with respect to the width direction of the cabin.

A beacon 152 as a short-range wireless communication means is installed behind the lidar sensor 150. One of the beacons 152 is installed on the left and right sides of the cabin, and as shown in FIG. 4, two beacons are installed side by side on one side.

A camera 154 is installed behind the beacon 152. The camera 154 is installed to monitor the left and right sides of construction machinery, and is installed on the left and right sides of the cabin, respectively.

In addition, two antennas are sequentially installed at the rear of the camera 154 side by side, the GNSS antenna 156 and the GPS antenna 158. All of these are part of the location information verification means for identifying the current location of construction equipment, so that a plurality of location information verification systems can be used together. It is installed as a dedicated antenna for the system.

On the other hand, each of the accessories has a lead wire for connecting to a control unit or a power supply device, which is not shown. That is, a lidar sensor lead wire 150a for the lidar sensor 150, a beacon lead wire 152a for the beacon 152, a camera lead wire 154a for the camera 154, a lead wire for a GNSS antenna 156a and the like, as such, all of which can be individually connected to the control unit or power supply. And, as shown in FIG. 3, each of the lead wires is bundled with one lead wire bundle 158. Through this, it is possible to concisely arrange the lead wires on the upper surface of the cabin. That is, each of the lead wires forms a bundle, and has a shape branching from the bundle into individual accessories.

The lead wires arranged in this way extend to the control box 160 mounted at the rear of the cabin 110. Inside the control box 160, a controller (not shown) for processing signals received from the respective sensors and sensing devices, and generating and transmitting appropriate control signals accordingly is mounted. The control box 160 is disposed at the rear and upper side of the cabin 110 so as to minimize impact from stones or gravel scattered from the ground. The control box 160 may include a door that is raised or lowered by a hydraulic or gas lift.

The lead wire and bundle are fixed to the base bracket. The base bracket is disposed to have a substantially rectangular shape on the upper portion of the cabin. That is, the base bracket includes a pair of first members 200 and 210 disposed to be spaced apart from each other along the width direction of the cabin, and a pair of second members 220 disposed to be spaced apart from each other along the front and rear directions of the cabin. 230). The first member of the pair is a left first member 200 and a right first member 210 for convenience of explanation, and the second member of the pair is a front second member 220 and a rear second member. It will be referred to as the member 230.

Each of the first and second members is disposed to form a rectangle in the above embodiment, but is not limited thereto and may be disposed to have an arbitrary shape such as a trapezoid or a parallelogram. In addition, each of the first and second members does not necessarily have a linear shape, and may have a shape extending along an arbitrary curve.

The pair of first members are detachably mounted on the upper portion of the cabin by fixing bolts 202 and 212, respectively. In addition, the pair of second members are fixed by fixing bolts 222 and 232 while their upper surfaces are supported by the upper surfaces of the first member. That is, the second member is fixed to the first member, and the first member is fixed to the cabin so that the base bracket is fixed to the upper surface of the cabin. That is, the base brackets are fixed to each other so as to maintain the illustrated square shape even when separated from the cabin.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the lidar sensor 150 is fixed to the front second member 220 by a lidar sensor bracket 240. Similarly, the beacon 152 is fixed to the left and right first members 200 and 210 by a beacon bracket 250, and the camera 154 is fixed to the left and right first members 200 and 210 by a camera bracket 260 Is fixed to In addition, the GNSS antenna 156 is directly fixed to the rear second member 230 without a separate auxiliary bracket.

To this end, the rear second member 230 has an extension 234 extending from the first members 200 and 210 in the left and right directions as shown in FIG. 5. The extension part 234 has the same cross-sectional shape as the first member and extends to provide a mounting surface on which the GNSS antenna is mounted.

Meanwhile, each of the lead wires and bundles may be fixed to the upper surfaces of the first and second members, as shown in FIG. 3, and may be accommodated inside the first and second members in some cases. have.

In the above embodiment, each component is equipped with a separate auxiliary bracket, but in some cases, it may be directly coupled to the base bracket without the auxiliary bracket.

Now, the base bracket and the auxiliary bracket will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9.

Referring to FIG. 6, the lidar sensor bracket 240 includes a mounting part 242 disposed upwardly spaced apart from the front second member 220. In addition, a connection portion 244 extending from the mounting portion 242 to the surface of the front second member 220 and a fastening portion formed integrally with the connection portion 244 and fastened to the second member 220 ( 246). That is, the lidar sensor bracket 240 is formed to have a'U' shape as a whole, whereby the lidar sensor 240 is disposed to be spaced upward from the upper surface of the cabin.

In the illustrated example, the lidar sensor bracket has a fixed shape, but in some cases, the lidar sensor bracket may have a shape rotated about a rotation axis extending in a direction perpendicular to the ground in FIG. Through this, in the case of using the lidar sensor, as shown in Fig. 6, the lidar sensor is arranged to be spaced upward, and when moving or not in use, the lidar sensor is positioned close to the upper surface of the cabin to prevent external objects. It can prevent damage caused by collision with.

Meanwhile, the beacon bracket 250 is formed to have two mounting surfaces 252 and 256 spaced apart from each other up and down. The two mounting surfaces 252 and 256 are arranged to be spaced apart from each other in parallel, so that the two beacons as described above are mounted vertically. The two mounting surfaces 252 and 256 are integrally connected by a connection portion formed to extend therebetween, and one end 252a of the mounting surface 252 mounted at the lower portion is the first member 200 and 210 ) Is formed to extend to provide a mating surface that is engaged with.

The camera bracket 260 is formed such that the mounting surface 262 coupled to the first member 200 and 210 extends in the longitudinal direction, and the end 264 of the mounting surface 262 is bent downward Has. The end portion 264 extends so as to contact the upper surface of the cabin 110 to support the camera more stably.

As described above, since the auxiliary brackets may have various shapes according to the characteristics and shapes of the attached attachments, they are not necessarily limited to the illustrated shapes. For example, instead of the beacon bracket, the lidar sensor bracket may be used to mount the beacon, and any other combination may be used.

Referring to FIG. 8, the first member 210 for the right side has a shape of a square pipe with an open lower surface as shown. Here, since the left first member 200 also has the same structure, redundant descriptions related thereto will be omitted.

Both side surfaces 212 of the right first member 210 extend parallel to each other, and their ends are disposed to contact the upper surface of the cabin 110. In addition, the upper surface 214 extending between the two side surfaces serves as a support portion on which the plurality of auxiliary brackets are mounted. As shown, since the inside of the first member is empty, it is also possible to accommodate the above-described lead wire or the like in the space part.

The second members 220 and 230 are formed to have an approximately'L' shape. Specifically, a mounting surface 230a fastened from an upper side of the upper surface of the first member has a support surface 230b extending downward from the mounting surface 230a. A plurality of fastening holes 232 are formed in the mounting surface 230a so that the second member is fastened to the upper surface of the first member through fixing bolts (not shown).

Referring to FIG. 7, it can be seen that the support surface 236 formed on the rear second member 230 is formed longer than the support surface formed on the front second member 220. This is to ensure that the antenna bracket 270 for mounting the GPS antenna 158 mounted on the support surface 236 of the rear second member 230 has a sufficient support area. If the width of the support surface formed on the rear second member 220 is sufficiently long, the front and rear second members may be formed to have the same shape.

The GPS antenna 158 must have a preset length due to its operating characteristics. Therefore, the GPS antenna 158 is disposed to protrude upward compared to other accessories. However, if the GPS antenna 158 protrudes excessively, there is a high risk of damage by colliding with other structures or the like during movement or during work. In addition, since the GPS antenna has a large length compared to its diameter and extends in one direction, it is vulnerable to vibration.

Accordingly, as shown, the GPS antenna 158 is fixed to the side of the cabin rather than the upper surface, so that the degree of protruding upward while having a sufficient length can be minimized. That is, since one end of the GPS antenna 158 is not fixed to the upper surface of the cabin, but is fixed using the antenna bracket 270 at a position separated from the end, the length protruding to the upper side of the cabin is the GPS antenna. It is part of the total length. Accordingly, the length of the portion protruding from the top of the cabin can be minimized.

By installing the GPS antenna low in this way, it is possible to easily assemble and remove the GPS. In addition, when the end is fixed at a position spaced apart from the end compared to the case where the end is fixed, even if the same impact is applied, less vibration is induced.

The antenna bracket 270 for fixing the GPS antenna 158 includes a curved portion 272 curved to have a curvature corresponding to the shape of the outer peripheral portion of the GPS antenna and a fixing portion 274 extending from both ends of the curved portion 272 Has. The fixing part 274 is fixed to the support surface 230b of the second member described above. In some cases, the antenna bracket may be integrally formed with the second member.

Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 9, a work lamp 159 for illuminating the rear surface of a construction machine may be provided on the rear surface of the cabin 110. A pair of the work lamps 159 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other in order to sufficiently secure an irradiation angle, and are disposed adjacent to the GPS antenna due to insufficient space at the rear of the cabin. At this time, when the work lamp 159 is operated, signal interference/interference with the GPS antenna may be caused.

Therefore, in order to reduce such signal interference/interference, the GPS antenna and the work lamp should be arranged to be spaced apart as much as possible, but there is a limit to securing the separation distance due to the narrow space at the rear of the cabin. Accordingly, as a result of research by the present inventors, it was found that signal interference/interference can be minimized when the distance between the center of the GPS antenna and the adjacent end of the work lamp, A is 50 mm or more. Therefore, in the illustrated example, the distance A is set to 50 mm or more.

In the above-described embodiment, the GPS antenna is mounted on the second member in the case of having the base bracket and the auxiliary bracket as described above, but is not limited thereto.

That is, the GPS antenna does not necessarily need to be fixed to the second member, and an example in which the GPS antenna is directly mounted on the rear or side of the cabin may be considered. In addition, an example in which a separate member is additionally installed and fixed in addition to the second member may be considered. In addition, if necessary, it is possible to consider a case in which only a GPS antenna is included except for a plurality of the aforementioned accessories.

In either case, the lower end of the GPS antenna may be installed lower than the upper surface of the cabin, and may be fixed by a fixing means such as a bracket at a position spaced apart from the end.

100 body frame
110 cabin
120 boom
130 bucket
200, 210 first member
220, 230 second member
240 lidar sensor bracket
250 beacon bracket
260 camera bracket
270 antenna bracket

Claims (18)

Body frame on which the cabin having the operator's boarding space is mounted on the top:
A base bracket installed on the upper part of the cabin;
An auxiliary bracket detachably mounted on the base bracket and on which at least one accessory is mounted;
A control box mounted on the rear surface of the cabin; And
Including a lead wire electrically connecting the control box and the at least one accessory,
At least a portion of the lead wire is an autonomous driving construction machine disposed along the base bracket.
The method of claim 1,
The base bracket includes a pair of first members and a pair of second members facing each other, and the first and second members are arranged to form a square on an upper surface of the cabin.
The method of claim 2,
Each of the pair of first members is an autonomous driving construction machine having a rectangular cross-sectional shape with one side open.
The method of claim 3,
Each of the pair of second members has a mounting surface mounted on an upper surface of the first member and on which at least one accessory is mounted, and a support surface extending from the mounting surface so as to face an end surface of the first member. Self-driving construction machinery.
The method of claim 3,
The pair of second members includes a front member disposed adjacent to a front portion of the cabin and a rear member disposed rearwardly spaced apart from the front second member along a length direction of the body frame,
An autonomous driving construction machine in which a lidar sensor bracket is installed on the front second member.
The method of claim 5,
The lidar sensor bracket provides a mounting surface spaced upward from the upper surface of the front second member, and the lidar sensor mounted on the mounting surface is spaced upwardly from the upper surface of the cabin. .
According to claim 6
The lidar sensor bracket is rotatably mounted along the length direction of the body frame, the autonomous driving construction machine that can change the mounting height of the lidar sensor.
The method of claim 2,
The pair of first members includes a left first member and a right first member spaced apart from the left first member in the width direction of the body frame,
Self-driving construction machine in which a camera bracket is installed on at least one of the left and right first members.
The method of claim 8,
One end of the camera bracket is fixed to the first member, and the other end of the camera bracket provides a mounting surface on which the camera is mounted.
The method of claim 9,
The mounting surface is a self-driving construction machine consisting of two mounting surfaces spaced up and down.
The method of claim 8,
A beacon bracket is additionally installed on at least one of the left and right first members, and the beacon bracket has one end fixed to the first member and the other end extending from the one end.
The method of claim 11,
The rear second member includes an extension part protruding from the first member in the width direction, and an autonomous driving construction machine further comprising an antenna mounted on the extension part.
The method of claim 2,
A self-driving construction machine in which a lead wire connected to the accessories is fixed to the first or second member.
The method of claim 13,
The first or second member is an autonomous driving construction machine in which a space is provided therein, and the lead wire is accommodated in the space.
Body frame on which the cabin having the operator's boarding space is mounted on the top:
A base bracket installed on the upper part of the cabin and disposed to have a rectangular shape;
A lidar sensor disposed between both ends of the base bracket in front of the base bracket;
A pair of cameras and a pair of beacons respectively installed on both sides of the base bracket; And
Self-driving construction machine including; a GNSS antenna and a GPS antenna disposed behind the base bracket.
The method of claim 15,
The GPS antenna is installed adjacent to the work lamp installed at the rear of the cabin, and is installed at least 50mm apart from the autonomous driving construction machine.
The method of claim 15,
The camera is an autonomous driving construction machine, characterized in that disposed behind the beacon based on the length direction of the body frame.
The method of claim 15,
The base bracket rear portion is further extended laterally than the front portion, and the GNSS antenna is installed in the extended portion.

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