# US 2021/0277610 A1 · Autonomous soil compactor front radar > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2021/0277610 A1 - Document ID: US20210277610A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 16/813,107 - Filed: 2020-03-09 - Published: 2021-09-09 - Earliest claimed: 2020-03-09 - Assignees: Caterpillar Paving Products Inc. - Applicants: Caterpillar Paving Products Inc. - Inventors: Todd A. Impola; John L. Marsolek; Timothy M. O'Donnell; Jacob J. McAlpine - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210277610A1 ## CPC - E01C 19/285: {with attachments for work other than rolling, e.g. dozer blades, shoes for conversion into plate vibrator; fitted to vehicles, road-construction or earth-moving machinery (E01C19/29, E01C19/4806, E01C19/488, E01C19/52, E01C21/00, E01C23/065 take precedence); vibrated or the like auxiliary rolls, e.g. for rolling road edges; provided with means for facilitating transport} - E01C 19/004: {Devices for guiding or controlling the machines along a predetermined path (for graders or bulldozers E02F3/841; for other soil-shifting machines E02F9/2045)} - E01C 19/006: {by laser or ultrasound} - E01C 19/26: self-propelled or fitted to road vehicles ({E01C19/231, E01C19/235} , E01C19/27 - E01C19/29 take precedence) - E01C 19/264: {with attachments for work other than rolling, e.g. grading, scarifying (rollers fitted to road-construction or earth-moving machinery E01C19/266)} - E02D 3/039: Slope rollers - E02D 3/026: by rolling with rollers usable only for or specially adapted for soil compaction, e.g. sheepsfoot rollers (rollers for soil working in agriculture A01B29/00; rollers for road paving, such rollers usable also for compacting soil E01C19/23) - E01C: CONSTRUCTION OF, OR SURFACES FOR, ROADS, SPORTS GROUNDS, OR THE LIKE; MACHINES OR AUXILIARY TOOLS FOR CONSTRUCTION OR REPAIR (forming roads or like surfaces by compacting or grading snow or ice E01H) - E02D: FOUNDATIONS; EXCAVATIONS; EMBANKMENTS (specially adapted for hydraulic engineering E02B); UNDERGROUND OR UNDERWATER STRUCTURES {(tunnels, tunnelling, mining E21)} ## Abstract A soil compactor machine can include a machine frame; at least one cylindrical roller drum rotatably coupled to the machine frame and rotatable about a drum axis oriented generally transverse to a direction of travel of the compactor machine; and a radar sensor mounted to a front portion of the machine frame and positioned forward of the roller drum, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame by a sensor bracket configured to directly mount to the machine frame for both a blade and a non-blade soil compactor machine configuration. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A soil compactor machine comprising: a machine frame; at least one cylindrical roller drum rotatably coupled to the machine frame and rotatable about a drum axis oriented generally transverse to a direction of travel of the compactor machine; and a radar sensor mounted to a front portion of the machine frame and positioned forward of the roller drum, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame by a sensor bracket configured to directly mount to the machine frame for both a blade and a non-blade soil compactor machine configuration. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The soil compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor is lower than a top surface of the roller drum. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The soil compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the soil compactor machine does not include a blade and the sensor bracket is mounted to a top surface of a front bumper of the soil compactor machine. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The soil compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the soil compactor machine includes a blade and wherein the sensor bracket is mounted to an upper portion of a blade cylinder mount. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The soil compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the sensor bracket includes a sensor holding portion including mounting apertures on first and second sides of the sensor holding portion configured to mount to a front bumper using bolts and the sensor bracket includes a removable angled bracket attachable to a lower surface of the sensor holding portion, the angled bracket including mounting apertures to mount to a blade cylinder mount. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The soil compactor machine of claim 5, wherein the removable angled bracket mounting apertures are open at a bottom of the removable angled bracket. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the sensor bracket is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor articulates with the soil compactor machine. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the sensor holding portion of the sensor bracket includes an open front window configured to allow the radar sensor to be exposed through the open front window. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The compactor machine of claim 1, wherein the soil compactor machine is configured to be an autonomous machine. ### Claim 10 A radar sensor assembly for autonomous soil compactor machine, the radar sensor assembly comprising: a radar sensor; and a sensor bracket mountable to a front portion of a machine frame of the soil compactor machine and positioned forward of a roller drum of the soil compactor machine, wherein the sensor bracket is configured to directly mount to the machine frame for both a blade and non-blade soil compactor machine configuration. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The radar sensor assembly of claim 10, wherein the sensor bracket includes a sensor holding portion including mounting apertures on first and second sides of the sensor holding portion configured to mount to a front bumper of the soil compactor machine using bolts and the sensor bracket includes a removable angled bracket attachable to a lower surface of the sensor holding portion, the angled bracket including mounting apertures to mount to a blade cylinder mount of the soil compactor machine. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The radar sensor assembly of claim 11, wherein the sensor holding portion of the sensor bracket includes an open front window configured to allow the radar sensor to be exposed through the open front window. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The radar sensor assembly of claim 12, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor is lower than a top surface of a roller drum of the soil compactor machine. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The radar sensor assembly of claim 12, wherein the soil compactor machine does not include a blade and the sensor bracket is mounted to a top surface of the front bumper. ### Claim 15 (depends on 12) The radar sensor assembly of claim 12, wherein the soil compactor machine includes a blade and wherein the sensor bracket is mounted to an upper portion of the blade cylinder mount. ### Claim 16 (depends on 12) The radar sensor assembly of claim 12, wherein the removable angled bracket mounting apertures are open at a bottom of the removable angled bracket. ### Claim 17 (depends on 12) The radar sensor assembly of claim 12, wherein the bracket sensor is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor articulates with the soil compactor machine. ### Claim 18 A method of mounting a radar sensor assembly to an autonomous soil compactor machine, the method comprising: providing a sensor bracket for holding a radar sensor, wherein the sensor bracket is configured to be mounted to a machine frame of the soil compacting machine for both a blade and a non-blade soil compactor machine configuration, the sensor bracket including a sensor holding portion and a removable angled bracket; and if the machine includes a blade, attaching the removable angled bracket to a lower surface of the sensor holding portion and mounting the angled bracket to a blade cylinder mount of the soil compactor machine; and if the machine does not have a blade, attaching the sensor holding portion directly to a front bumper of the soil compactor machine using bolts. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor articulates with the soil compactor machine ### Claim 20 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, wherein the radar sensor is mounted to the machine frame such that the radar sensor is lower than a top surface of the roller drum.