Abstract:
In controlling a hydraulic excavator equipped with a front mechanism having multiple foldable and rotatable joints, the controlling method described enables complex joint actions to be controlled readily by manipulating electrical joy sticks. Translational and rotational control commands are input to a certain point on the longitudinal axis of a rear arm through the joy sticks and cooperative actions of multiple joints are achieved simultaneously.

Description:
This is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 07/819,064, filed Jan. 10, 1992 abandoned. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a method of controlling a hydraulic excavator and the like for construction work such as digging and other earth moving work. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A front mechanism having eight degrees of freedom has previously been disclosed. As shown in FIG. 4, in such a front mechanism, an upper rotating frame 102 is pivotally mounted on a lower traveling body 101 of a hydraulic excavator, and each member of this front mechanism, namely, a rear boom 103 extruded from the upper rotating frame 102, a front boom 104, a rear arm 105, a front arm 106 and a bucket 107 is connected to each other in this order with each foldable joint able to be folded freely up and down in each vertical swing, and furthermore the front boom 104 and rear arm 105 respectively have each joint rotatable around a front boom rotating axis 108 and a rear arm rotating axis 109 each supported longitudinally on the front boom 104 and front arm 106. 
     With such a front mechanism, work such as open channel side ditching, bank cutting, land cleaning and cutting in any arbitrary direction, and digging around a pole become possible. 
     Hitherto in controlling a front mechanism, multiple levers and pedals were installed in the cabin of the hydraulic excavator as manipulators corresponding one by one with each joint action. The manipulators were controlled in combination so as to generate the required working conditions. 
     However, in excavating works such as bank cutting, land clearing, side cutting and open channel side ditching, this traditional controlling method applying these multiple manipulators corresponding one by one with each joint action, has the following difficult problems. For example, in determining the position of the bucket for working, it is necessary for the axial direction of the rear arm to face vertically against the working surface without changing the position of the tip of the rear arm, and to direct the bucket to face toward the excavating direction. Usually these controls are very complex and it is inefficient to work in this way. Furthermore, in order to operate the bucket along the working side or toward a specified working direction, the operator must shift at least five manipulators in harmony, at one time, and this requires skill and experience and, even so, it is inefficient to do so. 
     Until now, owing to above mentioned cumbersome problems, it was difficult to put a power excavator having arms with multiple directions of freedom of movement, in practical use. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     For solving these troublesome problems encountered in the operation of a power excavator equipped with manipulators corresponding respectively with respective joint action, a new controlling method having the following elements has been invented: 
     (1) Position sensors which detect respective rotational angle of the upper rotating frame, rear boom, front boom, front boom rotating axis, rear arm and rear arm rotating axis, so that the respective joint locations can be fed back to a control system. 
     (2) A wrist coordinate system OE-XE YE ZE (rectangular coordinate system) fixed on the tip of the rear arm, to specify the required translational speed commands (each command is directed to the XE, YE and ZE directions) and rotational speed commands (each command allows rotation around the XE, YE and ZE axes) described in the wrist coordinate system. 
     (3) Specified translational and rotational speed commands, which are input into the origin of the wrist coordinate system through the electrical joy sticks installed in the cabin, compute the angular speeds of each respective joint by combining respective joint angle feed back from each of the joint position sensors. 
     (4) Computed joint angular speeds are input into a hydraulic control system for driving each hydraulic actuator so as to generate the required excavating work. 
     A joint position feed back loop may be included in this controlling system for sequentially executing the above steps. 
     In consequence, as this controlling method uses a method for supplying translational and rotational commands described in the local wrist coordinate system, as aforementioned, to determine the bucket position, by inputting translational commands through the joy sticks, it becomes simple to determine the position for the working surface and working direction without changing the position of the top of the rear arm. Furthermore, in the case of translational work towards a working place or excavating work along a working surface, it is also simple to execute the work by inputting the translational commands through joy sticks. Complicated harmonized joint motions are realized in a simple manner. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a controlling method according to this invention. 
     FIG. 2 shows established coordinate systems enabling a controlling method according to this invention. 
     FIG. 3 shows a preferred embodiment of the manipulators. 
     FIG. 4 shows a prior art hydraulic excavator having eight degrees of freedom. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     A preferred embodiment according to this invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings. 
     In FIG. 2, established coordinate systems for this invention are shown. Two coordinate systems are established. The first OB-XB YB ZB coordinate system is the basic absolute coordinate system fixed to the lower traveling body 101, and the second OE-XE YE ZE coordinate system is the local wrist coordinate system fixed to the tip of rear arm 105. 
     The freedoms of motion of point OE are composed with six freedoms, namely three translational freedoms in each XE, YE and ZE direction, and three relational freedoms in each φ, Θ and φ rotation. 
     The motion of point OE having the above mentioned six freedoms is generated by combining the respective rotations as shown below. 
     rotation 200 (rotation of upper rotating frame 102) 
     rotation 201 (folding of rear boom 103) 
     rotation 202 (folding of front boom 104) 
     rotation 203 (rotation of front boom 104) 
     rotation 204 (folding of rear arm 105) 
     rotation 205 (rotation of rear arm 105) 
     FIG. 3 shows a preferred embodiment of the manipulators installed in the cabin. By selecting a mode selection switch 1, multi-axes mode performing translational and rotational operation in the wrist coordinate system and mono-axis mode commanding operation corresponding respectively to each joint axis are selectable. 
     Four sets of electrical joy sticks, 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d are installed in the cabin, and each joy stick provides two kinds of controlling commands by shifting each control lever backward and forward or right and left. 
     In the multi-axes mode, each speed command shown in Table 1 can be input by shifting a control lever. 
     In general, as moving works towards the working position and digging works are operated continuously, the commands for the front arm and bucket performing digging works can be input in the multi-axes mode in the same way as in the mono-axis mode. 
     
                       TABLE 1______________________________________multi-axes modecommand                lever position______________________________________positive X.sub.E direction                  position 11negative X.sub.E direction                  position 12positive Y.sub.E direction                  position 13negative Y.sub.E direction                  position 14positive Z.sub.E direction                  position 15negative Z.sub.E direction                  position 16positive ψ around  position 17negative ψ around  position 18positive θ around                  position 19negative θ around                  position 20positive φ around  position 21negative φ around  position 22front arm upward motion                  position 23front arm downward motion                  position 24bucket upward motion   position 25bucket downward motion position 26______________________________________ 
    
     
                       TABLE 2______________________________________mono-axis modecommand                      lever position______________________________________rear boom     upward motion  position 11rear boom     downward motion                        position 12upper rotating frame         rightward motion                        position 13upper rotating frame         leftward motion                        position 14front boom    upward motion  position 15front boom    downward motion                        position 16front boom    rightward motion                        position 17front boom    leftward motion                        position 18rear arm      upward motion  position 19rear arm      downward motion                        position 20rear arm      rightward motion                        position 21rear arm      leftward motion                        position 22front arm     upward motion  position 23front arm     downward motion                        position 24bucket        upward motion  position 25bucket        downward motion                        position 26______________________________________ 
    
     In the mono-axis mode, each command can be input as shown in Table 2. 
     Each sequential step of this method of controlling a hydraulic excavator is described in detail as follows, referring to FIG. 1. 
     (1) Respective joint angles obtained from each joint position sensor 51 are collected and transformed to the position coordinates of the point OE described in the basic coordinate system through a coordinate transformer 52. 
     (2) The translational and speed commands inputted from each joy stick are assumed to dictate the position coordinates of the point OE after elapsed unit time, and are transformed to the position coordinates described in the basic coordinate system through a coordinate transformer 53. 
     (3) Finite differences between coordinates of the point OE at a first time and at an elapsed unit time are transformed to the values described in the wrist coordinate system through a coordinate transformer 54. 
     (4) The finite differences of position are multiplied by position gains derived from a position gain calculator 55 and are converted to respective joint angle speeds through an angular speed transformer 56. 
     (5) The respective joint angle speed is sent to a hydraulic control system 57. 
     (6) The above mentioned transforming and calculating processes are computed through a computer mounted in the cabin of the hydraulic excavator. 
     By applying this controlling method to control the hydraulic excavator, the following benefits are obtainable: 
     (1) By inputting only the required rotating commands through the joy sticks, it is possible to determine the required position without changing the position, and difficult operations of independent joint action become unnecessary. 
     (2) By inputting only the required translational commands through the joy sticks, it is possible to execute the required working movements along a working surface or working direction. It is then unnecessary to combine independent operations related to difficult joint actions. 
     Accordingly, working efficiency and working accuracy are improved.