Trimble has developed an array of smart solutions for GPS machine control applications, which can now be installed on a wide variety of machines from different manufacturers. The company has long had a close relationship with Caterpillar but can also install units on machines from a range of manufacturers including Case, John Deere, Komatsu, Liebherr, Roadtec and Volvo. The firm's range has developed beyond just the GPS hardware though and includes sophisticated software, which can be loaded onto a hand-hel
GPS specialist Trimble continues to advance its package of construction solutions - Mike Woof reports
The company continues to develop its Connected Community portfolio, which is intended to boost efficiency on-site through better communications from all sectors of a project. This is a platform the firm can use to connect the assets on a customer's jobsite and allow improved communications and data transfer. Project designers and engineers can deliver files from the office directly to equipment, while data can be received from working machines showing work carried out, which is then placed in digital files relating to the job.
Work orders can be overlaid on a plan and a user can even download data onto a smartphone.
Cameras can even be installed on the system that views all the machines operating on a site, so that a construction firm can identify all of the plant and determine when equipment was delivered. This data is presented in a format that is said to be easy to understand and use.
Specific construction operations such as road building are benefiting from new application specific tools. The director of marketing for the firm's heavy and highway sector said that the firm is pushing hard in various areas to broaden its portfolio. "The value of 3D milling is something we're pushing pretty hard as well," he said.
He said that milling contractors used to be specialists who would just carry out the planing operation but this is now changing, with firms carrying out the entire milling, paving and compaction operations. In this instance, 3D machine control systems on milling machines offer considerable benefits for the contractor as a firm can meet required tolerance and specifications more easily and provide a good surface for subsequent paving work. Combined with 3D paving tools, this allows a road construction project to be carried out to grade while delivering material savings. He said, "They need to understand the added value. With a 3D system, we can build a road to the design. It's a great opportunity in the US as lots of roads are 30-40 years old. They need repairing and with this system you can mill and fill to an accurate specification." New tools are also available for the earth-moving sector, where the firm first made its impact on the construction machine control sector.
Trimble is offering new features for GPS tools that fit into graders, excavators and soil compactors.
These units now show true sea level for instance, taking into account tiny gravity changes across the earth's surface. The benefits will be substantial and a company product manager said, "Your GPS readings will be more accurate." The MS992 is a smart antenna unit and he added, "We get position with this antenna much faster and the faster you can get that, the faster you can control the blade.
The unit comes with a more powerful processor and reduces initialisation times to less than 10 seconds in most applications. Meanwhile the firm's new generation hardware is said to be more reliable and allows auto-positioning of the blade. A new dynamic blade roll tool is available that can adjust the roll or pitch of the blade as the machine is moving. He said, "We've figured out how to do it reliably." This package offsets measurement errors from this blade action and the product manager said, "If you want to roll the blade you need very accurate measurements." Meanwhile the compaction product comes with in-field reporting and also allows the installation of a printer. In addition, the firm is boosting its dozer offering. Special functions are available for use with Caterpillar's innovative D7E, which allow an operator to dig in with the tip of the blade to steer the machine rather than using the tracks (which can reduce power to the blade). And the company is also now able to offer factory-fitting option for some Komatsu bulldozer models such as the D155AX-6, with a dual GPS package.
