System and method for determining a reel weight on a reel-carrying unit
AssigneeAltec Industries, Inc.
InventorRobert Nichols
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A reel weight measurement system is shown and described herein. In some embodiments, the reel weight measurement system comprises strategically placed position and load sensors for measuring an orientation of a reel-carrying unit and measuring loads in the reel-carrying unit. The loads may be indicative of forces due to the weight of the reel when the reel is supported by a carriage of the reel-carrying unit. The weight of the reel may be determined by summing the forces and moments in the system while the carriage is in motion or static. Further, the weight of the reel may be determined by comparing the force measurements and orientation of the carriage to stored calibration data.
Claims20
A system for determining a weight of a reel when the reel is loaded, comprising:
- a reel-carrying unit, comprising:
- a chassis;
- a carriage supported by the chassis, the carriage comprising:
- a lifting arm configured to support the reel;
- a cylinder configured to rotate the lifting arm about a main pin;
- a reel weight measurement system, comprising:
- at least one first sensor disposed on the carriage and configured to measure at least one angle,
- wherein the at least one angle is indicative of an orientation of the carriage;
- at least one second sensor disposed on the carriage and configured to measure at least one force on the carriage,
- wherein the at least one force is indicative of the weight of the reel when loaded;
- one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, perform a method of determining the weight of the reel, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving at least one first signal indicative of the at least one angle from the at least one first sensor;
- receiving at least one second signal indicative of the at least one force from the at least one second sensor;
- and
- determining the weight of the reel when loaded based at least in part on the at least one first signal and the at least one second signal.
One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, perform a method of determining a weight of a reel when loaded onto a reel-carrying unit, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving at least one first signal from at least one first sensor,
- wherein the at least one first signal is indicative of an orientation of a carriage of the reel-carrying unit;
- receiving at least one second signal from at least one second sensor,
- wherein the at least one second signal is indicative of a force applied to the carriage by the weight of the reel when loaded,
- wherein the carriage is configured to support the reel when loaded;
- and
- determining the weight of the reel based on the orientation of the carriage and the force applied by the weight of the reel.
A system for determining a weight of a reel when the reel is loaded, comprising:
- a reel-carrying unit, comprising:
- a chassis;
- a carriage supported by the chassis, the carriage comprising:
- a lifting arm supporting the reel;
- a cylinder configured to rotate the lifting arm about a main pin;
- a reel weight measurement system, comprising:
- at least one first sensor disposed on the carriage and configured to measure at least one angle,
- wherein the at least one angle is indicative of an orientation of the carriage;
- at least one second sensor disposed on the carriage and configured to measure at least one force on the carriage,
- wherein the at least one force is indicative of the weight of the reel when loaded;
- one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, perform a method of determining the weight of the reel, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving, from the at least one first sensor, at least one first signal indicative of the at least one angle of the carriage;
- receiving, from the at least one second sensor, at least one second signal indicative of a load measurement on the carriage;
- determining, from the at least one first sensor, the orientation of the carriage;
- and
- determining the weight of the reel by comparing the orientation of the carriage and load measurement with stored data,
- wherein the stored data is indicative of a relationship between the orientation of the carriage, the load measurement, and the weight of the reel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.