Patent Description:
In the related art, a crane including a swivel angle detector for detecting the amount of swiveling and a position of a swivel body has been known as an example of a work vehicle. For example, Patent Literature <NUM> and Patent Literature <NUM> disclose a crane having a potentiometer as the swiveling angle detector.

Patent Literature <NUM> discloses an informing device of crane. Specifically, the informing device is mounted on a crane that includes a lower base body, and a swivel body swivelably provided at the lower base body. The informing device includes a first detection unit and a notification unit. The first detection unit detects an actual amount of rotation of a drive device which swivels the swivel body or a driven part driven by the drive device. The notification unit issues a notification regarding information corresponding to the amount of rotation detected by the first detection unit.

Incidentally, a crane in which an operation of the swivel body is achieved by an operation of a bleed-off circuit has been known. In the case of the crane including the bleed-off circuit, the amount of operation of an operation lever at which the swivel body starts swiveling fluctuates depending on a load fluctuation of the swivel body, an environmental fluctuation such as wind, or a pump flow rate of the bleed-off circuit. Thus, there is a possibility that a worker is not to be able to grasp the amount of operation of the operation lever at which the swivel body starts swiveling.

Regardless of the circuit configuration, when a working radius of the crane is large, a position of a suspended load fluctuates greatly even though the amount of swiveling of the swivel body is small. Thus, the worker needs to pay close attention to the operation of the operation lever. However, means for the worker to confirm that the swivel body is swiveling is only visual information and experience. Thus, it is not easy to grasp the swiveling of a swiveling table.

An object of the present invention is to provide an informing device, a work vehicle, and an informing method capable of notifying a worker that a swivel body is swiveling.

According to a first aspect, the present invention provides an information device according to independent claim <NUM>. According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a work vehicle according to independent claim <NUM>. According to a third aspect, the present invention provides an informing method according to independent claim <NUM>. Further aspects of the present invention are set forth in the dependent claims, the drawings, and the following description. Further, according to an aspect, the present invention provides an informing device mounted on a work vehicle that includes a lower base body, and a swivel body swivelably provided at the lower base body. The informing device includes a first detection unit that detects the actual amount of rotation of a drive device which swivels the swivel body or a driven part driven by the drive device, and a notification unit that issues a notification regarding information corresponding to the amount of rotation detected by the first detection unit.

An aspect of a work vehicle according to the present invention includes a lower base body, a swivel body swivelably provided at the lower base body, and the informing device.

An aspect of an informing method according to the present invention is an informing method executed by a processor mounted on a work vehicle that includes a lower base body, and a swivel body swivelably provided at the lower base body. The informing method includes a step of detecting the actual amount of rotation of a drive device which swivels the swivel body or a driven part driven by the drive device, and a step of issuing a notification of information corresponding to the detected amount of rotation.

According to the present invention, it is possible to notify the worker that the swivel body is swiveling.

Hereinafter, a swiveling operation informing device, a crane, and a swiveling operation informing method according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or equivalent parts are designated by the same reference signs. In the present description, a front-rear direction means a front-rear direction with respect to a driver's seat provided in a cabin of the crane.

A swiveling operation informing device 1A of the present embodiment is a swiveling operation informing device provided at a crane C1 including a swivel body <NUM> provided above a lower running body (not illustrated). The crane C1 corresponds to an example of a work vehicle. When the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> is detected, the swiveling operation informing device 1A of the present embodiment outputs an operation noise by the number of times corresponding to the actual amount of rotation of the swivel body <NUM>.

First, a configuration of the crane C1 on which the swiveling operation informing device 1A is mounted will be described with reference to <FIG>. Next, an operation of the swiveling operation informing device 1A will be described.

In the present embodiment, the mobile crane C1 will be described as an example of the work vehicle. The mobile crane is, for example, a rough terrain crane, an all-terrain crane, a truck crane, or a vehicle-mounted truck crane (also referred to as a cargo crane). The work vehicle is not limited to the mobile crane, and may be various cranes including a lower base body and a swivel body swivelably provided at the lower base body. The lower base body may or may not be able to run. For example, various work vehicles having a swiveling function (for example, a hydraulic excavator) are used as a work vehicle other than the crane.

<FIG> is a circuit diagram of a hydraulic circuit and an electric circuit of the swivel body <NUM> included in the crane C1 at which the swiveling operation informing device 1A is provided. <FIG> is a front view of a motor <NUM> included in the swivel body <NUM> of the crane. <FIG> is a perspective view of the motor <NUM> and a swiveling bearing <NUM> included in the swivel body <NUM>.

The crane C1 includes a lower running body <NUM>, the swivel body <NUM>, a boom <NUM>, a wire rope (not illustrated), a hook (not illustrated), the swiveling operation informing device 1A, and the like.

The lower running body <NUM> corresponds to an example of the lower base body and is able to run. The lower running body <NUM> may be a lower running body including wheels, or may be a lower running body including crawlers. The lower base body may or may not be able to run. When the lower base body cannot run, the lower base body may be fixed to a fixed portion such as the ground or a building.

The swivel body <NUM> is swivelably supported by a swiveling table (not illustrated) of the lower running body <NUM>. The swivel body <NUM> includes a hydraulic circuit AC, the motor <NUM>, a reducer <NUM>, a swiveling brake <NUM>, a swiveling lever <NUM>, and the like.

The hydraulic circuit AC has a hydraulic pump <NUM>, a relief valve <NUM>, a control valve <NUM>, and the like as actuators. These actuators are provided to drive the motor <NUM>. Such a hydraulic circuit AC corresponds to an example of a bleed-off circuit. The bleed-off circuit can improve a circuit efficiency by reducing power consumption of the actuator.

Specifically, the hydraulic pump <NUM> supplies hydraulic oil from an oil tank <NUM> to the hydraulic circuit AC by operating based on a power of a motor <NUM>.

When the supplied hydraulic oil reaches a pressure higher than a set value, the relief valve <NUM> releases the hydraulic oil to the oil tank <NUM> by opening the valve. Accordingly, the relief valve <NUM> protects the hydraulic circuit AC by preventing the supplied hydraulic oil from exceeding the set pressure.

The control valve <NUM> switches a rotation direction of the motor <NUM> by switching a supply path of the hydraulic oil to the motor <NUM>. That is, the control valve <NUM> selectively switches between a first path for supplying the hydraulic oil to a port P1 of the motor <NUM> and a second path for supplying the hydraulic oil to a port P2.

Specifically, the control valve <NUM> gradually narrows an oil passage (hereinafter, referred to as a bleed oil passage) that passes through the control valve <NUM> and returns to the tank depending on the amount of operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>, and finally closes the oil passage. Thus, the control valve switches between the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the port P1 of the motor <NUM> (first path) and the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the port P2 of the motor <NUM> (second path).

When the control valve <NUM> switches the path for supplying hydraulic oil to the motor <NUM> to the first path, the motor <NUM> rotates in a forward rotation direction. When the control valve <NUM> switches the path for supplying hydraulic oil to the motor <NUM> to the second path, the motor <NUM> rotates in a reverse rotation direction.

At this time, a pressure for operating the motor <NUM> depends on a pressure loss caused by passing through the bleed oil passage. In the control valve <NUM>, a relationship between the amount of operation of the swiveling lever <NUM> and the amount of narrowing of the oil passage is uniquely decided. On the other hand, the pressure loss caused by passing through the bleed oil passage changes depending on a flow rate of the hydraulic pump <NUM> which changes based on the amount of accelerator operation for swiveling. A pressure for operating the swiveling changes depending on a load such as a pose of the crane, wind, or a weight of a suspended load. Thus, the amount of operation of the swiveling lever <NUM> at which the swivel body <NUM> starts to move changes depending on the load and the amount of accelerator operation.

A pipe L1 is connected to a port P3 of the control valve <NUM>. The pipe L1 connects the port P3 of the control valve <NUM> and a switching valve <NUM> (to be described later) of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

A pipe L2 is connected to a port P4 of the control valve <NUM>. The pipe L2 connects the port P4 of the control valve <NUM> and the switching valve <NUM> of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

The motor <NUM> corresponds to an example of a swiveling motor and a drive device. The motor <NUM> is a hydraulic motor that rotates an output shaft by inflowing hydraulic oil. The motor <NUM> has the ports P1 and P2 that serve as an inlet and an outlet for hydraulic oil. The motor may be an electric motor.

The motor <NUM> has an output shaft <NUM>. The output shaft <NUM> is connected to the reducer <NUM>. The rotation direction of the motor <NUM> is switched by the control valve <NUM>. The rotation of the motor <NUM> is transmitted to the reducer <NUM>. The rotation of the motor <NUM> is transmitted to the swivel body <NUM> via the reducer <NUM>.

When the hydraulic oil is supplied to the port P1 via the first path, such a motor <NUM> rotates in the forward rotation direction. When the hydraulic oil is supplied to the port P2 via the second path, the motor <NUM> rotates in the reverse rotation direction.

The reducer <NUM> has a gear (not illustrated) connected to the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM>, an output shaft <NUM> (see <FIG>) connected to the gear, a pinion gear <NUM> (see <FIG>), and the like. The gear decelerates the rotation of the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM> and transmits the rotation to the output shaft <NUM>.

The pinion gear <NUM> is fixed to the output shaft <NUM>. The pinion gear <NUM> meshes with the swiveling bearing <NUM> (see <FIG>) included in the swivel body <NUM>. The pinion gear <NUM> functions as a planetary gear. That is, the pinion gear <NUM> swivels the swiveling bearing <NUM> by the rotation of the output shaft <NUM>.

When the swiveling bearing <NUM> rotates, the swivel body <NUM> swivels. When the output shaft of the reducer <NUM> rotates in the forward rotation direction, the pinion gear <NUM> swivels the swivel body <NUM> in a first direction (a left direction when viewed from a worker in the driver's seat). When the output shaft of the reducer <NUM> rotates in the reverse rotation direction, the pinion gear <NUM> swivels the swivel body <NUM> in a second direction (a right direction when viewed from the worker in the driver's seat).

The swiveling lever <NUM> corresponds to an example of an operation lever, and can turn in the front-rear direction based on an operation of the worker. The swiveling lever <NUM> is operated by the worker when the worker instructs an operation of the swivel body <NUM>. The swiveling lever <NUM> corresponds to an example of an operation input unit for the worker to input an instruction regarding the operation of the swivel body <NUM>.

The swiveling lever <NUM> may enter any one state of an upright state (that is, a neutral state in which the swiveling lever does not tilt in the front-rear direction), a state of tilting backward (also referred to as a first state of the swiveling lever. ), and a state of tilting forward (also referred to as a second state of the swiveling lever. ) by being operated by the worker.

The swiveling lever <NUM> has the switching valve <NUM>. The switching valve <NUM> switches the state of the control valve <NUM> based on an operation input input from the swiveling lever <NUM> operated by the worker.

Specifically, the switching valve <NUM> is connected to the port P3 of the control valve <NUM> via the pipe L1. The switching valve <NUM> is connected to the port P4 of the control valve <NUM> via the pipe L2. The switching valve <NUM> is connected to a power source <NUM>. Pilot oil is supplied to the switching valve <NUM> from the power source <NUM>.

The switching valve <NUM> forms a hydraulic circuit PC called a pilot circuit by being connected to the ports P3 and P4 of the control valve <NUM> and the power source <NUM>.

The switching valve <NUM> is switched depending on the state of the swiveling lever <NUM>. Specifically, the switching valve <NUM> may enter any state of a state corresponding to the neutral state of the swiveling lever <NUM> (also referred to as a neutral state of the switching valve), a state corresponding to the first state of the swiveling lever <NUM> (also referred to as a first state of the switching valve), and a state corresponding to the second state of the swiveling lever <NUM> (also referred to as a second state of the switching valve) depending on the state of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

When the state of the swiveling lever <NUM> is switched based on the operation of the worker, the state of the switching valve <NUM> is switched depending on the state of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

Specifically, the switching valve <NUM> is in a state in which a pressure of the pilot oil is not applied to either the port P3 or the port P4 of the control valve <NUM> in the neutral state of the switching valve corresponding to the neutral state of the swiveling lever <NUM> (also referred to as a neutral state of the control valve).

In the neutral state of the control valve, since the control valve <NUM> is closed, the hydraulic oil is not supplied to the motor <NUM>. The swiveling brake <NUM> is provided at the swivel body <NUM>. When the swiveling brake <NUM> is braking the swivel body <NUM>, since the above-mentioned hydraulic oil is not supplied, the motor <NUM> does not rotate.

The switching valve <NUM> is in a state of applying the pilot pressure to the port P3 of the control valve <NUM> in the first state of the switching valve corresponding to the state in which the swiveling lever <NUM> tilts backward (the first state of the swiveling lever) (also referred to as a first state of the control valve).

In the first state of the control valve, the pilot pressure is not applied to port P4 of the control valve <NUM>. In the first state of the control valve, the control valve <NUM> switches the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the motor <NUM> to the first path (that is, the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the port P1 of the motor <NUM>).

In the first state of the swiveling lever, when the swiveling brake <NUM> is released, the motor <NUM> rotates in the forward rotation direction (first rotation direction). As a result, in the first state of the swiveling lever, the swivel body <NUM> swivels in a first swiveling direction.

The switching valve <NUM> is in a state of applying the pilot pressure to the port P4 of the control valve <NUM> in the second state of the switching valve corresponding to the state in which the swiveling lever <NUM> tilts forward (the second state of the swiveling lever) (also referred to as a second state of the control valve).

In the second state of the control valve, the pilot pressure is not applied to port P3 of the control valve <NUM>. In the second state of the control valve, the control valve <NUM> switches the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the motor <NUM> to the second path (that is, the path for supplying the hydraulic oil to the port P2 of the motor <NUM>).

In the second state of the swiveling lever, when the swiveling brake <NUM> is released, the motor <NUM> rotates in the reverse rotation direction (second rotation direction). As a result, in the second state of the swiveling lever, the swivel body <NUM> swivels in a second swiveling direction.

The swivel body <NUM> described above swivels based on the rotation of the output shaft <NUM> of the reducer <NUM>, in other words, the rotation of the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM>. The motor <NUM> is driven by the hydraulic circuit AC which is a bleed-off circuit.

Thus, when a large load is applied to the swivel body <NUM> and a large load is applied to the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM>, it becomes difficult to accurately control the motor <NUM>. As a result, it becomes difficult to accurately operate the swivel body <NUM>. Thus, the swiveling operation informing device 1A is provided at the swivel body <NUM> in order to improve operability. Next, a configuration of the swiveling operation informing device 1A will be described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

<FIG> is a top view of a rotation detector 20A included in the swiveling operation informing device 1A according to the first embodiment.

The swiveling operation informing device 1A includes the rotation detector 20A, an operation noise device 30A, and the like.

The rotation detector 20A corresponds to an example of a first detection unit, and detects the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> that swivels the swivel body <NUM>. Such a rotation detector 20A is provided at a position facing a detection gear <NUM> provided at the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM>.

The detection gear <NUM> has a diameter larger than that of the output shaft <NUM> in order to facilitate the detection of the rotation of the output shaft <NUM>. This diameter is smaller than a diameter of the pinion gear <NUM>. The detection gear <NUM> has an outer peripheral shape having a tooth tip and a tooth bottom.

The rotation detector 20A has a rotation sensor <NUM> facing the tooth tip or tooth bottom of the detection gear <NUM>. The rotation sensor <NUM> outputs a two-phase pulse (so-called square wave with A-phase and B-phase) from the tooth tip and the tooth bottom. The rotation detector 20A detects the amount of rotation and/or the rotation direction of the detection gear <NUM> from the two-phase pulse of the rotation sensor <NUM>.

When the amount of rotation of the detection gear <NUM> is detected, the rotation detector 20A outputs a direction signal indicating the rotation direction of the detection gear <NUM> (that is, the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM>) for each predetermined amount of rotation to the operation noise device 30A (see <FIG>).

Here, the predetermined amount of rotation may be set to a different amount of rotation depending on the rotation direction. When the detected rotation direction is the forward rotation direction, the rotation detector 20A outputs a first direction signal having a constant signal length for each first amount of rotation. When the rotation direction is the reverse rotation direction, the rotation detector 20A outputs a second direction signal having a signal length different from that of the first direction signal for each second amount of rotation different from the first amount of rotation.

The rotation detector 20A may have a light emitting element and a light receiving element instead of the rotation sensor, and may have a reflection type encoder that outputs a two-phase pulse from the output of the light receiving element.

The operation noise device 30A has a buzzer (not illustrated) including a diaphragm that generates sound by vibration. The operation noise device 30A vibrates the diaphragm of the buzzer based on the direction signal received from the rotation detector 20A.

Specifically, the operation noise device 30A outputs a buzzer sound having a signal length of the first direction signal or a signal length of the second direction signal depending on the first direction signal received for each first amount of rotation or the second direction signal received for each second amount of rotation.

The operation noise device 30A generates and outputs the buzzer sound for each first amount of rotation or for each second amount of rotation. That is, the operation noise device 30A generates an operation noise according to the rotation direction detected by the rotation detector 20A.

Next, an operation of the swiveling operation informing device 1A will be described. When the swiveling lever <NUM> tilts forward or backward by the worker, the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM> rotates in a direction corresponding to a tilt direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> (forward rotation direction or reverse rotation direction). At this time, the output shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM> rotates at a rotation speed corresponding to the amount of tilting of the swiveling lever <NUM>. As a result, the detection gear <NUM> provided at the output shaft <NUM> rotates together with the output shaft <NUM>.

When the detection gear <NUM> rotates in the forward rotation direction or the reverse rotation direction, the tooth tip and the tooth bottom of the detection gear <NUM> move relative to the rotation sensor <NUM> of the rotation detector 20A. As a result, the rotation sensor <NUM> outputs the two-phase pulse. When the detection gear <NUM> detects the amount of rotation, the rotation detector 20A outputs the direction signal for each predetermined amount of rotation to the operation noise device 30A based on the two-phase pulse.

When the direction signal is acquired from the rotation detector 20A, the operation noise device 30A vibrates the diaphragm of the buzzer based on the acquired direction signal. Since the direction signal is the first direction signal or the second direction signal corresponding to the rotation direction detected by the rotation detector 20A, the operation noise device 30A outputs the operation noise (buzzer sound) corresponding to the rotation direction of the swivel body <NUM>. The operation noise (buzzer sound) output by the operation noise device 30A corresponds to an example of information issued by a notification unit. The operation noise (buzzer sound) output by the operation noise device 30A may be regarded as information corresponding to the actual amount of rotation of the swivel body <NUM>.

It is preferable that the worker knows in advance that the operation noise (buzzer sound) corresponding to the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>, that is, the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM> is output and the operation noise (buzzer sound) is output by the number of times proportional to the amount of rotation. Accordingly, the worker can recognize a magnitude of a swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> from the number of times of the buzzer sound.

As a result, the worker can easily recognize a swiveling operation of the swivel body <NUM> from the number of times of the buzzer sound even in a situation in which the swivel body <NUM> cannot be visually and physically recognized as being slightly moving. Accordingly, the operability of the swivel body <NUM> is improved.

As described above, in the swiveling operation informing device 1A according to the first embodiment, the operation noise device 30A issues a notification regarding the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> based on the amount of rotation detected by the rotation detector 20A. Since the amount of rotation detected by the rotation detector 20A is the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> that swivels the swivel body <NUM>, the swiveling operation informing device 1A detects the swiveling and can notify the worker even when the swivel body <NUM> slightly swivels.

The operation noise device 30A outputs the operation noised corresponding to the rotation direction detected by the rotation detector 20A. Thus, the worker can easily recognize the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM>. Since the operation noise is the buzzer sound produced for each predetermined amount of rotation based on the amount of rotation detected by the rotation detector 20A, the worker can easily recognize the magnitude of the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> from the number of times of the buzzer sound. As a result, the operability of the swivel body <NUM> is improved.

The rotation detector 20A detects the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> instead of the amount of rotation of the reducer <NUM>. The amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> is the amount of rotation before being decelerated by the reducer <NUM>. The amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> is proportional to the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM>. Thus, the swiveling operation informing device 1A can detect the swiveling operation of the swivel body <NUM> with high accuracy.

A swiveling operation informing device 1B according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to <FIG>. The swiveling operation informing device 1B of the present embodiment includes a controller <NUM> that determines whether or not the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> is operated according to the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>. In the following description of the swiveling operation informing device 1B, the description of the same configurations as those of the swiveling operation informing device 1A of the first embodiment described above will be omitted. Further, among the configurations of the swiveling operation informing device 1B, the same reference signs as those of the swiveling operation informing device 1A are given to the configurations common to the swiveling operation informing device 1A.

<FIG> is a circuit diagram of the hydraulic circuit and the electric circuit of the swivel body <NUM> of a crane C2 at which the swiveling operation informing device 1B is provided according to the second embodiment.

As illustrated in <FIG>, the swiveling operation informing device 1B includes a rotation detector 20B, an operation direction detector <NUM>, a controller <NUM>, an operation noise device 30B, and the like.

The rotation detector 20B has the rotation sensor <NUM> (see <FIG>) that outputs the two-phase pulse, similarly to the rotation detector 20A of the first embodiment.

The rotation detector 20B detects the actual amount of rotation and/or the actual rotation direction of the detection gear <NUM> of the motor <NUM> based on the output of the rotation sensor <NUM>. The rotation detector 20B may detect the actual amount of rotation and/or an actual rotation direction of a driven member driven by the motor <NUM>. In the case of the present embodiment, the reducer <NUM>, the swiveling bearing <NUM>, the swivel body <NUM>, and the like correspond to an example of a driven part.

The rotation detector 20B outputs information regarding the detected amount of rotation (also referred to as rotation amount data) and/or information regarding the rotation direction (also referred to as rotation direction data) to the controller <NUM>. Here, the information regarding the rotation direction (rotation direction data) may be regarded as information indicating any of "forward rotation direction", "reverse rotation direction", and "no direction". A case where the information regarding the rotation direction indicates "no direction" may be regarded as a state the rotation detector 20B does not detect the rotation. That is, when the information regarding the rotation direction is "no direction", the swivel body <NUM> may be regarded as stopped.

The operation direction detector <NUM> corresponds according to the invention to a second detection unit, and detects information regarding an operation input for instructing the rotation direction of the motor <NUM> that rotates the swivel body <NUM>. In the case of the present embodiment, the operation input is input by the worker operating the swiveling lever <NUM>. In the case of the present embodiment, the information regarding the operation input is an operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

That is, the operation direction detector <NUM> detects the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> which is the information regarding the operation input. The operation direction detector <NUM> has two limit switches <NUM> and <NUM>.

The limit switch <NUM> detects the state in which the swiveling lever <NUM> tilts backward (the first state of the swiveling lever). When the first state of the swiveling lever is detected, the limit switch <NUM> outputs a detection signal (for example, an electric signal) to the operation direction detector <NUM>.

The limit switch <NUM> detects the state in which the swiveling lever <NUM> tilts forward (the second state of the swiveling lever). When the second state of the swiveling lever is detected, the limit switch <NUM> outputs a detection signal (for example, an electric signal) to the operation direction detector <NUM>.

When the limit switches <NUM> and <NUM> do not output the detection signals, the swiveling lever <NUM> may be regarded as being in the neutral state. The operation direction detector <NUM> detects the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> based on the detection signals of the limit switches <NUM> and <NUM>.

The operation direction detector <NUM> outputs the information regarding the detected operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> to the controller <NUM>. Here, the information regarding the operation direction means information regarding the operation direction (tilt direction) of the swiveling lever <NUM> from the neutral state of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

That is, the information regarding the operation direction may be regarded as information indicating that the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> is any of "forward", "rearward", and "no direction". The operation direction detector <NUM> may be a pressure switch or a potentiometer instead of the limit switch. The pressure switch is a sensor that detects the pilot pressures of the pipe L1 and the pipe L2. The potentiometer is a sensor that detects a lever operation angle of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

The information regarding the operation input is not limited to the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>. The information regarding the operation input may be various kinds of information corresponding to the operation input (operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>) for instructing the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>.

For example, the information regarding the operation input may be the pressures of the pipe L1 and the pipe L2 (that is, the pilot pressures). The information regarding the operation input may be the information regarding the state of the switching valve <NUM> and/or the control valve <NUM>.

The operation input unit for inputting the operation input is not limited to the swiveling lever <NUM>. The operation input unit may be, for example, a button-type switch (not illustrated) or a touch panel provided in the driver's seat of the work vehicle (for example, the crane). The worker may input an operation input for instructing the operation of the swivel body <NUM> (rotation direction of the motor <NUM>) by operating the switch.

The operation input is not limited to the input based on the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM> by the worker. For example, the operation input may be an input based on the operation of the button by the worker.

The operation input may be an operation signal for controlling (instructing) the operation of the swivel body <NUM> (the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>) received from a remote operation terminal for remotely controlling the crane C2.

The operation input is, for example, an operation signal for controlling (instructing) the operation of the swivel body <NUM> (the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>) of the swivel body <NUM> acquired from an external terminal in which an application such as building information modeling (BIM) is incorporated via a network (for example, the Internet).

The operation input may be an operation signal for controlling (instructing) the operation of the swivel body <NUM> (the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>) of the swivel body <NUM> received from an external terminal such as a server via a network (for example, the Internet).

The operation input is not limited to the operation input input by the worker via the operation input unit. That is, in an automatic driving of the crane C2, an operation signal for automatically controlling the operation of the swivel body <NUM> may also be regarded as an example of the operation input.

The controller <NUM> is an example of a determination unit, and determines whether or not the rotation direction of the motor <NUM> instructed by the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM> coincides with the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> based on a detection value of the operation direction detector <NUM> and a detection value of the rotation detector 20B. The controller <NUM> controls the operation of the operation noise device 30B based on the determination result.

In the case of the invention the controller <NUM> acquires the outputs (detection values) of the operation direction detector <NUM> and the rotation detector 20B. The controller <NUM> is achieved by a central processing unit (CPU) executing a swiveling direction informing program.

The controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the rotation direction acquired from the rotation detector 20B and the information regarding the operation direction acquired from the operation direction detector <NUM>. The controller <NUM> compares the information regarding the rotation direction acquired from the rotation detector 20B with the information regarding the operation direction acquired from the operation direction detector <NUM>, and determines whether or not the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> (may be the actual rotation direction of the detection gear <NUM>) corresponds to the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>. Since the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> corresponds to the actual rotation direction of the swivel body <NUM>, the controller <NUM> may be regarded as determining whether or not the actual rotation direction of the swivel body <NUM> corresponds to the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>. The controller <NUM> outputs the determination result.

Specifically, when it is determined that the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> does not correspond to the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>, the controller <NUM> outputs a first operation noise signal having a constant pulse width, that is, a constant signal length to the operation noise device 30B.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> corresponds to the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM>, the controller <NUM> outputs a second operation noise signal having a signal length different from that of the first operation noise signal to the operation noise device 30B.

The controller <NUM> outputs the first operation noise signal or the second operation noise signal by the number of times corresponding to the information regarding the amount of rotation received from the rotation detector 20B (also referred to as rotation amount data), in other words, for each predetermined amount of rotation. In the present specification, the first operation noise signal or the second operation noise signal corresponds to an example of a direction signal.

The operation noise device 30B corresponds to an example of a notification device, and outputs the operation noise based on the output of the controller <NUM>. Specifically, the operation noise device 30B receives the first operation noise signal or the second operation noise signal from the controller <NUM>. The operation noise device 30B outputs a first operation noise based on the first operation noise signal received from the controller <NUM>. The operation noise device 30B outputs a second operation noise based on the second operation noise signal received from the controller <NUM>.

When the first operation noise signal is received, the operation noise device 30B vibrates the diaphragm to generate the first operation noise constituted by the buzzer sound corresponding to the signal length of the first operation noise signal. When the second operation noise signal is received, the operation noise device 30B generates the second operation noise constituted by the buzzer sound corresponding to the signal length of the second operation noise signal.

The signal lengths of the first operation noise signal and the second operation noise signal are different. A length of the buzzer sound constituting the first operation noise and a length of the buzzer sound constituting the second operation noise are different. The first operation noise and the second operation noise may be regarded as having different numbers of times of output and/or sound properties (sound lengths and/or sound pitches, and the like).

The worker can recognize whether or not the motor <NUM> is rotating in the direction as operated by the swiveling lever <NUM>, that is, the swivel body <NUM> is swiveling in the direction as operated by the swiveling lever <NUM> from a difference in the length of the buzzer sound between the first operation noise and the second operation noise.

The first operation noise and the second operation noise correspond to an example of a notification sound. The first operation noise corresponds to an example of first notification information. The second operation noise corresponds to an example of second notification information. Means for notifying the worker of the first operation noise is referred to as first notification means. Means for notifying the worker of the second operation noise is referred to as second notification means.

The controller <NUM> outputs the first operation noise signal or the second operation noise signal to the operation noise device 30B whenever the motor <NUM> rotates by a predetermined amount of rotation. Thus, the first operation noise and the second operation noise are output for each predetermined amount of rotation of the motor <NUM>.

In other words, the operation noise (buzzer sound) is produced by the number of times corresponding to the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM>. Such an operation noise device 30B notifies the worker of a degree of the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> by outputting the operation noise whenever the motor <NUM> rotates by a predetermined amount of rotation. Since the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM> is proportional to the amount of rotation of the swivel body <NUM>, the worker can recognize the magnitude of the amount of rotation of the swivel body <NUM> from the number of times of the operation noise of the operation noise device 30B.

Next, an operation of the swiveling operation informing device 1B will be described with reference to <FIG>. In the following description, it is assumed that the crane is in a state of stopping running (also referred to as a running stopping state of the crane) and is in a state of performing a work (also referred to as a working state of the crane).

<FIG> is a flowchart of a swiveling direction informing process of the swiveling operation informing device 1B according to the second embodiment. <FIG> is a diagram of a swiveling direction table <NUM> stored in an internal storage unit of the controller <NUM> included in the swiveling operation informing device 1B.

In the swiveling operation informing device 1B, the execution of the swiveling direction informing program is started when a PTO switch is turned on. As a result, the swiveling direction informing process illustrated in <FIG> is started. The swiveling direction informing process may be regarded as being executed by a processor mounted on the crane C2.

First, the controller <NUM> acquires operation direction data from the operation direction detector <NUM> (step S1).

In this operation example, when the swiveling lever <NUM> is operated forward, the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the operation direction indicating "forward" from the operation direction detector <NUM>. When the swiveling lever <NUM> is operated backward, the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the operation direction indicating "rear" from the operation direction detector <NUM>. When the swiveling lever <NUM> is in the neutral state, the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the operation direction indicating "no direction" from the operation direction detector <NUM>.

Subsequently, the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the rotation direction (also referred to as rotation direction data) from the rotation detector 20B (step S2).

When the detection gear <NUM> of the motor <NUM> is rotating in the forward rotation direction (also referred to as a first rotation direction), the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the rotation direction indicating the "forward rotation direction" from the rotation detector 20B.

When the detection gear <NUM> is rotating in the reverse rotation direction (also referred to as a second rotation direction), the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the rotation direction indicating the "reverse rotation direction" from the rotation detector 20B.

When the detection gear <NUM> is not rotating, the controller <NUM> acquires the information regarding the rotation direction indicating "no direction" from the rotation detector 20B.

The controller <NUM> may acquire the information regarding the rotation amount (also referred to as the rotation amount data) from the rotation detector 20B. In the present description, a process of detecting the rotation of the reducer <NUM> by the rotation detector 20B is referred to as a rotation detection process.

Subsequently, the controller <NUM> compares the information regarding the rotation direction acquired from the rotation detector 20B with the information regarding the operation direction acquired from the operation direction detector <NUM>. At this time, the controller <NUM> reads out the swiveling direction table <NUM> illustrated in <FIG> from the storage unit. The swiveling direction table <NUM> stores the information regarding the operation direction (also referred to as operation direction data) in association with a direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate.

The controller compares the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> indicated by the information regarding the rotation direction acquired from the rotation detector 20B with the direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate acquired from the swiveling direction table <NUM>, and determines whether or not these directions coincide as illustrated in <FIG> (step S3).

When the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> indicated by the information regarding the rotation direction does not coincide with the direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate acquired from the swiveling direction table <NUM> ("No" in step S3), the controller <NUM> determines that the swivel body <NUM> swivels in a direction different from the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>. In the present description, the process performed in step S3 is referred to as a determination process.

The controller <NUM> outputs the first operation noise signal having a constant signal length to the operation noise device 30B (step S4). This first operation noise signal is output for each predetermined rotation amount based on the information regarding the amount of rotation acquired from the rotation detector 20B. Accordingly, the operation noise device 30B outputs the first operation noise by the number of times corresponding to the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM>. That is, the operation noise device 30B generates the first operation noise constituted by the buzzer sound produced whenever the first operation noise signal is received.

It is preferable that the worker knows the following (<NUM>) to (<NUM>) in advance.

In step S4, the worker can recognize that the swivel body <NUM> is rotating in the direction different from the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM> by hearing the first operation noise.

Subsequently, the controller <NUM> returns the swiveling direction informing process to step S1 while continuing to output the first operation noise signal (step S4). The output of the first operation noise signal is returned to step S1, and then the processes of steps S1 to S3 are continued. This process is similarly performed when the second operation noise signal of step S5 to be described later is output.

On the other hand, when the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> indicated by the information regarding the rotation direction coincides with the direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate acquired from the swiveling direction table <NUM> ("Yes" in step S3), the controller <NUM> determines that the swivel bodyswivel body <NUM> is swiveling in the direction coinciding with the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>.

Subsequently, the controller <NUM> outputs the second operation noise signal having a signal length shorter than that of the first operation noise signal to the operation noise device 30B by the number of times based on the rotation amount data (step S5).

Accordingly, the operation noise device 30B outputs the second operation noise constituted by the buzzer sound. As a result, the worker recognizes that the swivel body <NUM> is swiveling in the direction coinciding with the operation of the swiveling lever <NUM>. Subsequently, the controller <NUM> returns the swiveling direction informing process to step S1.

The swiveling direction informing process is performed until the swiveling brake <NUM> is switched to an ON state. Thus, while the swiveling brake <NUM> is in an OFF state, the controller <NUM> repeats the processes of steps S1 to S3 described above.

As a result, while the switch of the swiveling brake <NUM> is turned off, the controller <NUM> constantly compares the information regarding the operation direction (operation direction data) with the information regarding the rotation direction (operation direction data), and notifies the worker of the comparison result by the buzzer sound output by the operation noise device 30B. On the other hand, the swiveling direction informing process is ended when the switch of the swiveling brake <NUM> is turned on.

In step S5, the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> may be calculated based on the information regarding the amount of rotation (rotation amount data) acquired by the controller <NUM>. In this case, the controller <NUM> may clock a time from when the previous rotation amount data is acquired to when the next rotation amount data is acquired, and may calculate the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> from the clocked time and a fluctuation value of the amount of rotation.

When the calculated swiveling speed is a speed larger than a predetermined value, the second operation noise may be interrupted by stopping the output of the second operation noise signal in step S5. The above-mentioned predetermined value is set to be larger than the swiveling speed when the swivel body <NUM> slightly moves, and thus, only the slight swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> can be notified to the worker.

In other words, in step S3, the controller <NUM> may determine that the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> indicated by the information regarding the rotation direction coincides with the direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate acquired from the swiveling direction table <NUM>, and may output the second operation noise signal in step S5 when the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> satisfies a predetermined condition (for example, when the swiveling speed is equal to or less than the predetermined value).

In other words, in step S3, even though it is determined that the actual rotation direction of the motor <NUM> indicated by the information regarding the rotation direction coincides with the direction in which the motor <NUM> is to rotate acquired from the swiveling direction table <NUM>, when the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> does not satisfy the predetermined condition (for example, when the swiveling speed is larger than the predetermined value), the controller <NUM> may not output the second operation noise signal in step S5 (that is, step S5 may be omitted).

As described above, in the swiveling operation informing device 1B according to the second embodiment, the controller <NUM> determines whether or not the motor <NUM> is rotating in the same direction as the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> based on the rotation direction of the detection gear <NUM> of the motor <NUM> detected by the rotation detector 20B and the operation direction of the swiveling lever <NUM> detected by the operation direction detector <NUM>.

The operation noise device 30B outputs the first operation noise or the second operation noise based on the determination result of the controller <NUM>. Accordingly, the worker can recognize whether or not the swivel body <NUM> is swiveling as operated by the swiveling lever <NUM> by the type of the sound. Thus, the worker can operate the swiveling lever <NUM> after recognizing the actual swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM>. Accordingly, the swiveling operation informing device 1B can improve the operability of the swivel body <NUM>.

Since the rotation detector 20B detects the rotation of the motor <NUM> before being decelerated by the reducer <NUM>, the swiveling operation of the swivel body <NUM> can be detected with high accuracy as in the first embodiment.

Since the operation noise device 30B produces the buzzer sound for each predetermined amount of swiveling based on the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM>, the worker can easily recognize the magnitude of the swiveling speed of the swivel body <NUM> from the number of times of the buzzer sound as in the first embodiment.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. In the first and second embodiments, the operation noise devices 30A and 30B notify the work vehicle of the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> by outputting the sound.

However, the present invention is not limited thereto. In the present invention, it is only required that the swiveling operation informing devices 1A and 1B include the notification device that notifies the worker of the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM>. In the present invention, the notification device includes any notification means. Thus, the operation noise devices 30A and 30B may be replaced with a light emitting device (for example, a lamp or a liquid crystal display device) that notifies the worker by light emission. In this case, the light emitting device may blink by the number of times for each predetermined amount of rotation based on the amount of rotation detected by the rotation detectors 20A and 20B.

The swiveling operation informing device may notify the worker of the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM> by changing a lighting time of the light emitting device. When the notification device is the light emitting device, the information notified by the notification device is light. When the information notified by the notification device is light, the first notification information and the second notification information notified by the notification device may have different number of times of blinking of the light. The information notified by the notification device may be the vibration of the swiveling lever <NUM>. When the information notified by the notification device is the vibration of the swiveling lever <NUM>, the first notification information and the second notification information notified by the notification device may have different numbers of times of vibration.

The notification device of the present invention may have an on and off function of the notification means and a notification means adjustment function (for example, volume adjustment of the operation noise, lighting time adjustment of the light emitting device, and the like). The notification device may have a function for the worker to set the amount of rotation to be notified and the amount of rotation or the speed for stopping the notification (for example, mute) and to adjust the set value thereof to any amount. The notification device may have a function of issuing the notification only when the amount of rotation exceeds or falls below a certain threshold value, and a function of changing the number of times (frequency) of issuing the notification for each amount of rotation.

The operation noise devices 30A and 30B may be replaced with a vibration generation device provided at the swiveling lever <NUM> and notifying the worker. In this case, the vibration generation device may vibrate by the constant number of times for each predetermined amount of rotation based on the rotation amount data detected by the rotation detectors 20A and 20B. The vibration generation device may vibrate by the number of times of vibrations corresponding to the amount of rotation. The vibration generation device may notify the worker of the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM> by changing the intensity of the vibration.

In the first and second embodiments, the operation noise devices 30A and 30B generate the operation noise corresponding to the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>. However, in the present invention, it is only required that the operation noise devices 30A and 30B issue the notification regarding the swiveling of the swivel body <NUM> for each predetermined amount of rotation based on the amount of rotation of the motor <NUM>, and whether or not the operation noise devices 30A and 30B generate the operation noise corresponding to the rotation direction of the motor <NUM>, that is, the swiveling direction of the swivel body <NUM> is optionally determined. Accordingly, the same buzzer sound may be produced regardless of whether the swivel body <NUM> swivels right or left. In this case, the buzzer sound may be produced for each predetermined amount of rotation.

Although the swiveling operation informing devices 1A and 1B provided at the crane have been described in the first and second embodiments, the present invention can be applied to all construction machines including the swivel body <NUM> provided above the lower running body. For example, the present invention can be applied to cranes such as a rough terrain crane and a truck crane, and an aerial work vehicle.

Claim 1:
An informing device (1B) to be mounted on a work vehicle (C2) that includes a lower base body (<NUM>), and a swivel body (<NUM>) swivelably provided at the lower base body (<NUM>), the informing device (1B) comprising:
a first detection unit (20B) that detects an actual direction of rotation of a drive device (<NUM>) which swivels the swivel body (<NUM>) or a driven part driven (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) by the drive device (<NUM>);
characterized in that
the information device (1B) further comprises:
a second detection unit (<NUM>) that detects information regarding an operation input for instructing a rotation direction of the swivel body (<NUM>);
a determination unit (<NUM>) that determines, based on a detection value of the first detection unit (20B) and a detection value of the second detection unit <NUM>), whether or not the rotation direction instructed by the operation input corresponds to the rotation direction detected by the first detection unit (20B), and
a notification unit (30B) that issues a notification regarding information corresponding to the determination result of the determination unit (<NUM>).