US 6,263,595 B1 · Laser receiver and angle sensor mounted on an excavator

Abstract

An improved level indicating system is provided for use with excavating equipment based upon a family of laser light receivers. In a first embodiment, a laser receiver with a single “long” photocell is mounted directly on the dipperstick of an excavator in a position that is designed to intercept pulses of laser light being emitted by a rotating laser light transmitter, and an angle-sensing sensor is also mounted to the dipperstick. In a second embodiment, a laser receiver with two parallel “long” photocells is mounted directly on the dipperstick, in which the pair of photocells are of sufficient precision to determine the angle of the dipperstick. In a third embodiment, a laser receiver with two parallel photocells is mounted directly on the dipperstick on a “servo mast” that can be re-positioned along the length of the dipperstick. The movable photocells thus can be shorter in length than the “long” photocells used in the second embodiment. In a fourth embodiment, a laser receiver with two or more parallel photocells is mounted on an “electric mast” which can have its elevation changed. Rotation sensors are mounted to the pivot joints between the platform and boom, the boom and dipperstick, and the dipperstick and bucket, so as to provide a complete solution in detecting the digging level with respect to the laser plane of light.

Claims27

Dependent claims

A level sensing system comprising:

(a) a digging machine having a chassis, a pivotable boom, a pivotable dipperstick, and a pivotable bucket;
wherein said boom pivots with respect to the chassis at a first pivot joint, said dipperstick pivots with respect to the boom at a second pivot joint, and said bucket pivots with respect to the dipperstick at a third pivot joint;
(b) a first light receiving sensor and a second light receiving sensor both mounted to said dipperstick, each of said first and second light receiving sensors providing an indication as to a location of a moving beam of light impacting upon each of said first and second light receiving sensors, said impacting location for both said first and second light receiving sensors being indicative of a pathway of said moving beam of light, thereby providing both distance information and angular information between the pathway of said moving beam of light and an elevation of said third pivot joint, wherein both said distance and angular information are determined without any additional sensor inputs.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Laser receiver and angle sensor mounted on an excavator

Life of this patent

Laser receiver and angle sensor mounted on an excavator

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims27