JP7741704B2 - Remote control device for heavy machinery - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a remote control device for heavy machinery, and more particularly to a remote control device for heavy machinery that can remotely control multiple pieces of heavy machinery from a remote control room.

Remote control systems are known in which an operator wirelessly controls multiple pieces of heavy machinery, such as bulldozers, power shovels (backhoes), and road rollers, from a remote control room using a control device. Patent Document 1 proposes a remote control device that can remotely control multiple pieces of heavy machinery from a remote control room located at a distance using a simple radio and a relay vehicle.

In addition, various remote control systems have been proposed for remotely operating heavy machinery, in which an operator wirelessly controls the machinery from an input device in a remote control room while viewing images captured by a camera (see Patent Document 2).

Remote control of heavy machinery makes it possible to operate construction sites and other facilities unmanned. This reduces labor at work sites and enables work to be carried out at dangerous construction sites.

When an operator remotely controls multiple pieces of heavy machinery, it is assumed that the heavy machinery being remotely controlled is in a state where it can be used for work.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-117391 JP 2010-53609 A

The above-mentioned Patent Documents 1 and 2 assume that multiple heavy machinery units are in a state where they can perform work, and do not take into consideration heavy machinery that is unable to perform work due to engine stoppage or other reasons.

In order to ensure work efficiency, it is desirable for operators in the remote control room to know whether each piece of heavy machinery is in a state where it can be used for work.

The objective of this invention is to provide a remote control device for heavy machinery that allows an operator in the remote control room to know whether each piece of heavy machinery is ready for work.

The inventors have found that when remotely operating multiple heavy machinery, the order in which the heavy machinery starts work, based on factors such as work efficiency, can vary depending on the work site. In such cases, if the engine of the heavy machinery that is about to start work is stopped, it takes time to start the engine, necessitating a wait time. If the operator can determine in advance which heavy machinery is ready to work from the remote control room, it may be possible to perform the work using other heavy machinery that is ready, thereby improving work efficiency without requiring wait time.

The inventor therefore devised a configuration that would allow an operator in the remote control room to know whether each piece of heavy machinery is ready for work.

After extensive research, the inventor came up with the following configuration.

A heavy equipment remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a heavy equipment remote control device that is connected to multiple heavy equipment via a network and remotely controls at least one heavy equipment to be remotely controlled from a remote control room. The heavy equipment is equipped with, as onboard equipment, a vehicle communication device, a vehicle control device connected to the communication device, and an operation device that operates in response to control signals from the vehicle control device. The remote control room is equipped with a network communication device connected to the vehicle communication device via the network, a remote operation control device connected to the network communication device, an input device connected to the remote operation control device and that inputs remote operation control signals, and a display device connected to the remote operation control device. The remote operation control device determines the status of multiple heavy equipment connected to the network and displays heavy equipment that is ready for work on the display device.

With a heavy equipment remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention, heavy equipment that is ready for work is displayed on a display device, allowing the operator to immediately identify which heavy equipment is ready for work. This allows the operator to perform work with less or no waiting time, thereby improving work efficiency.

From another perspective, it is preferable that a heavy equipment remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes the following configuration: each of the heavy equipment has a drive engine, the vehicle control device detects the state of the drive engine, a status signal indicating the state of the drive engine is sent from the communication device to the remote operation control device via the network and the network communication device, and the remote operation control device determines the status of multiple heavy equipment based on the status signal and displays heavy equipment that is ready for work on the display device.

If the heavy equipment has a drive engine, a status signal indicating the status of the drive engine is sent from the communication device to the remote operation control device via the network and the network communication device, allowing the remote operation control device to determine the status of multiple heavy equipment based on the status signal. This allows the display device to display heavy equipment that is ready for work.

From another perspective, a heavy equipment remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention preferably includes the following configuration: it has an overhead camera that photographs the work area, each of the heavy equipment has a drive engine, and each of the heavy equipment has a light that indicates when the drive engine is operating, and the remote operation control device recognizes the light of each of the heavy equipment based on images from the overhead camera, distinguishes between the states of multiple heavy equipment, and displays heavy equipment that is ready for work on the display device.

With the above configuration, the remote control device can determine the status of multiple pieces of heavy equipment based on the status signal, using the status of lights such as PATLITE (registered trademark) installed on the heavy equipment. This allows the display device to display heavy equipment that is ready for work.

From another perspective, a heavy machinery remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention preferably includes the following configuration: The remote control device remotely controls multiple heavy machinery simultaneously.

With the above configuration, when performing the same work, multiple heavy machinery can be remotely operated simultaneously, thereby shortening the work time.

From another perspective, a heavy machinery remote control device according to one embodiment of the present invention preferably includes the following configuration: The remote control device controls the drive engine of a heavy machinery whose drive engine is stopped to operate.

With the above configuration, all heavy machinery at the work site can be put into standby mode, eliminating waiting time.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.

Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be construed to have a meaning consistent with the relevant art and the context of this disclosure, and should not be construed in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly defined herein.

It is understood that a number of techniques and processes are disclosed in the description of this invention, each of which has distinct advantages and may be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques.

Therefore, for the sake of clarity, this description of the invention refrains from unnecessarily repeating every possible combination of the individual steps. However, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that all such combinations are within the scope of the present invention.

This specification describes an embodiment of a remote control device for heavy machinery according to the present invention.

In the following description, numerous specific examples are provided to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific examples.

Accordingly, the following disclosure should be considered as an example of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention to the specific embodiments illustrated in the following drawings or description.

[Heavy machinery]
In this specification, heavy machinery includes construction machinery, such as hydraulic excavators, backhoes, mini hydraulic excavators, wheel loaders, road rollers, bulldozers, dump trucks, skid steer loaders, earthmoving vibratory loaders, track loaders, compactors, motor graders, and crane trucks.

The heavy machinery remote control device of this invention allows the operator in the remote control room to know whether each piece of heavy machinery is ready for work.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a remote control device for heavy machinery according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a heavy machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a remote control room according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a remote control room according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display on the display device 120 indicating the state of the heavy machinery. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example in which the operation input and switch states of the selected heavy machinery are displayed on the display device. Figure 7 is a time chart showing the remote operation of three heavy machinery units, where (a) is a time chart when only manual operation is performed, and (b) is a time chart when work is performed by manual operation and automatic operation. Figure 8 is a time chart showing the state in which two heavy machinery units are remotely operated, where (a) is a time chart when only manual operation is performed, and (b) is a time chart when work is performed by manual operation and automatic operation.

Each embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. Please note that the dimensions of the components in each drawing do not faithfully represent the actual dimensions of the components or the dimensional ratios of each component.

The heavy machinery remote control device according to an embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 1 includes a remote control room 10, multiple heavy machinery 30 (30a, 30b, 30c) to be remotely controlled, and a network 20 connecting the remote control room 10 and the multiple heavy machinery 30.

The network 20 is composed of a high-speed wireless communication LAN and connects the remote control room 10 and multiple heavy equipment 30 (30a, 30b, 30c). For example, a network conforming to the fifth generation mobile communication system (5G) standard is used for the high-speed wireless communication, and data is sent and received between the remote control room 10 and multiple heavy equipment 30 (30a, 30b, 30c) via the network 20 in accordance with the 5G standard, for example. The heavy equipment 30 to be remotely controlled in the embodiment shown in Figure 1 is a backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c. The heavy equipment 30 is not limited to backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c, and other construction machinery can also be remotely controlled.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c are connected to a remote control room 10 via a network 20. The backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c operate various devices, such as control equipment, through operation from the remote control room 10. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c are capable of automatic operation for predetermined operations through automatic control, and transition to automatic operation control operation is achieved by transmitting an automatic control command from the remote control room 10. Automatic operation involves, for example, repeatedly performing predetermined operations, storing a program such as an operating procedure in memory in advance, reading the program from memory, and controlling each device on the heavy equipment 30 so that the vehicle control device 300 of the heavy equipment 30 performs the predetermined operation.

The configuration of heavy equipment 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 2. In this embodiment, the heavy equipment 30 is a backhoe 30a, a bulldozer 30b, and a road roller 30c. Each heavy equipment 30 is operated by remote control. Operations vary depending on the type of heavy equipment, but the operation of each heavy equipment is performed by the operation of the operation device 301. For example, in the case of backhoe 30a, the operation of the operation device 301 is controlled by remote control, and operations such as crawler operation, rotation of the rotating body, and boom operation are performed. Similarly, the operation of the operation device 301 for bulldozer 30b and road roller 30c is controlled by remote control, and operations specific to each heavy equipment are performed.

In this embodiment, the control configuration for remote operation of the backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c is basically the same. The configuration of the heavy equipment 30, including the backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c, will be described below.

As shown in Figure 2, each heavy machine 30 is equipped with a vehicle control device 300, a vehicle communication device 310, an operating device 301, and a drive engine 302 as onboard equipment. The vehicle control device 300 is composed of a processing unit, reads necessary data and software from a storage device such as a memory, performs calculations on the data in accordance with the software, and controls the operation of various devices.

The vehicle control device 300 is connected to the vehicle communication device 310. The vehicle communication device 310 is connected to the network communication device 110 in the remote control room 10 via the network 20.

The vehicle control device 300 transmits and receives data to and from the vehicle communication device 310. The vehicle communication device 310 transmits and receives data to and from the network communication device 110 in the remote control room 10 via the network 20.

The vehicle control device 300 is connected to an operating device 301, an engine 302, a camera 303, and a light 304, and controls the operation of these devices.

The vehicle control device 300 controls the operation of the operating equipment 301, drive engine 302, etc. based on control data that controls the operation of the heavy equipment sent from the remote control room 10 via the network 20 and received by the vehicle communication device 310.

The drive engine 302 functions as a drive source that drives, for example, hydraulic devices (not shown) and drives various equipment of the heavy equipment 30, such as a shovel and boom, and drives the rotating body to rotate. The drive engine 302 also functions as a drive source that drives the crawlers to move the heavy equipment 30. The drive engine 302 also drives a generator. The output voltage and output current of the electricity generated by the generator are converted to predetermined values and supplied to equipment requiring power, such as the vehicle control device 300, vehicle communication device 310, and operation device 301. In this embodiment, the heavy equipment 30 is configured so that when the drive engine 302 is running, the power required by the heavy equipment 30 is met by the power generated by the generator driven by the drive engine 302.

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) 305 is connected to the vehicle control device 300. As described above, when the drive engine 302 is running, the vehicle control device 300 is supplied with power generated by a generator driven by the drive engine 302. However, when the drive engine 302 is stopped, power is supplied from the UPS 305. When the drive engine 302 is stopped, the UPS 305 also supplies power to devices such as the vehicle communication device 310 that can send and receive control data from the remote control room 10, and is configured to be able to start the drive engine 302 in response to instructions from the remote control room 10.

The vehicle control device 300 controls the camera 303 and provides image data captured by the camera 303 to the remote control room 10 via the vehicle communication device 310 and the network 20.

The vehicle control device 300 controls the drive engine 302. The vehicle control device 300 detects the state of the drive engine 302. The vehicle control device 300 detects the detected state of the drive engine 302, for example, a state in which the drive engine 302 is running, a state in which the drive engine 302 is in an idling stop state, or a state in which the drive engine 302 is stopped. The vehicle control device 300 generates a state signal corresponding to the detected state of the drive engine 302, and transmits the generated state signal from the vehicle communication device 310 to the network communication device 110 in the remote control room 10 via the network 20.

The heavy equipment 30 is equipped with a camera 303, which can capture images of the work site and work operations. Image data from the camera 303 is provided to the vehicle control device 300. The image data from the camera 303 is sent from the vehicle communication device 310 to the network communication device 110 in the remote control room 10 via the network 20. The image data from the camera 303 is displayed on the display device 120 in the remote control room 10. This allows the operator in the remote control room 10 to visually check the conditions around the heavy equipment 30, the work status, etc. Multiple cameras 303 may be installed and configured to capture images of the area around the heavy equipment 30.

The camera 303 has functions for camera 303 operation, such as pan (rotation left and right), tilt (rotation up and down), and zoom, and the vehicle control device 300 controls the operation of these functions of the camera 303. Camera operation signals from the remote control room 10 are sent to the vehicle control device 300 via the network communication device 110, the network 20, and the vehicle communication device 310. This allows the operator in the remote control room 10 to control functions of the camera 303, such as starting and stopping recording, pan (rotation left and right), tilt (rotation up and down), and zoom.

The heavy equipment 30 has a light 304 that indicates whether the drive engine is running, and the vehicle control device 300 controls the illumination of the light 304 according to the detected state of the drive engine 302.

The heavy equipment 30 may be of any type or control method as long as it can be remotely controlled. For example, the heavy equipment remote control device described in Japanese Patent No. 6641211 may be applied.

The heavy equipment 30 is equipped with a main switch (not shown). When the main switch is turned off, the vehicle control device 300 of the heavy equipment 30 is turned off, the connection to the network 20 is cut off, and the operation of the operating devices 301, including the drive engine 302, is cut off, and the heavy equipment 30 is put into a stopped state. For example, when work on the heavy equipment 30 is finished, the main switch is turned off, keeping the heavy equipment 30 stopped. When the main switch is turned on, the vehicle control device 300 is turned on, the network 20 is connected, and the heavy equipment 30 is put into a standby state.

The configuration of a remote control room 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 3. The remote control room 10 is equipped internally with a remote control control device 100, a network communication device 110, multiple display devices (monitors) 120 such as LCD panels, and an operation unit 130 as an input device for remote control.

The remote control control device 100 is configured with an arithmetic processing device, reads the necessary data and software from a storage device such as a memory, performs arithmetic processing on the data in accordance with the software, and controls the operation of various devices. The remote control control device 100 can be configured, for example, with a personal computer.

The remote operation control device 100 is connected to a network communication device 110. The network communication device 110 is connected to the vehicle communication device 310 of the heavy equipment 30 via the network 20.

The remote operation control device 100 transmits and receives data to and from the network communication device 110. The network communication device 110 transmits and receives data to and from the vehicle communication device 310 of the heavy equipment 30 via the network 20.

The operation unit 130 is composed of an operation touch panel, left and right joystick-type operation levers, etc., and is used to operate the work operations of the corresponding heavy equipment 30 to be remotely operated, and provides a control signal based on this operation to the remote operation control device 100. The remote operation control device 100 provides a control signal for the work operation to the network communication device 110. The control signal is transmitted from the network communication device 110 to the heavy equipment 30 via the network 20.

Based on the control signal sent, the vehicle control device 300 controls the operation of the operation device 301, and the heavy equipment 30 performs work by remote control.

The remote operation control device 100 receives status signals indicating the status of the drive engine transmitted from the vehicle control device 300 of the heavy equipment 30 via the network 20 and the network communication device 110. The remote operation control device 100 has the function of a status determination unit 100a that determines the status of multiple heavy equipment based on the status signals. The status determination unit 100a determines the status of multiple heavy equipment based on the status signals transmitted. Then, based on the determination results, the remote operation control device 100 displays on the display device 120 the heavy equipment 30 that are capable of performing work.

As shown in FIG. 1, this embodiment is equipped with an overhead camera 40 that captures an overhead view of the entire work site. The overhead camera 40 captures images of the entire work site and the status of each heavy machine 30. The captured image data is provided to the remote control room 10 via the network 20. The remote control device 100 in the remote control room 10 receives image data from the overhead camera from the network communication device 110 and displays the overhead image on the corresponding display device 120.

The remote operation control device 100 can also be configured to recognize the lights 304 of each heavy machine 30 based on images from the overhead camera 40, determine the status of multiple heavy machines 30, and display on the display device 120 the heavy machines 30 that are ready for work.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing an example of the interior of a remote control room. As shown in Figure 4, levers 130L and 130R of the control unit 130 are located to the left and right of the seat 130a on which the operator sits. By operating the levers 130L and 130R, the operation of the heavy equipment 30 can be remotely controlled. Multiple display devices 120 are located in front of and to the left and right of the operator.

The front display device 120 is configured, for example, as a multi-window device, with various images displayed in multiple windows 120a, 120b, 120c, and 120d. For example, window 120a displays an image from the overhead camera 40, window 120b displays an image from the camera 303 mounted on the heavy equipment 30, window 120d displays an image corresponding to the heavy equipment 30's actions, and window 120c displays an image of the front of the heavy equipment 30. Furthermore, window 120e of the display device 120 on the operator's left side displays an image of the left side of the heavy equipment 30, and window 120f of the display device 120 on the operator's right side displays an image of the right side of the heavy equipment 30. This allows the operator to remotely control the heavy equipment 30 with the feeling that they are actually driving it.

In addition, an operation touch panel 120g is provided near the operator's right side. This touch panel 120g is used to select the heavy equipment 30 to perform work, etc.

The number and display format of the display devices 120 in the remote control room 10 described above can be selected appropriately as needed.

As shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment of the heavy machinery remote control device, multiple heavy machinery 30 and a remote control room 10 are connected via a network 20. The remote control room 10, network 20, and multiple heavy machinery 30 are connected, for example, via a VPN connection, so that communication control can be exercised only between the multiple heavy machinery 30 to be remotely operated and the remote control room 10.

The remote operation control device 100 in the remote control room 10 displays on the display device 120 which heavy equipment 30 is ready for work based on the status signal of the drive engine 302 transmitted from each heavy equipment 30.

Figure 5 shows an example of the display screen of the display device 120, indicating the status of heavy equipment. In the example shown in Figure 5, the backhoe 30a, bulldozer 30b, and road roller 30c are in the ONLINE state. The backhoe 30a and road roller 30c's drive engines 302 are shown operating, while the bulldozer 30b's drive engine 302 is stopped. Furthermore, when heavy equipment 30 is OFFLINE, the ONLINE display in Figure 5 changes to OFFLINE, informing the operator that it is OFFLINE. In the example of Figure 5, backhoe 30a is ONLINE and is currently the remotely controlled equipment. Heavy equipment selected as the remotely controlled equipment is configured, for example, to be surrounded by a frame, as shown in Figure 5, so that the operator can recognize it as the remotely controlled equipment. As long as the operator can recognize it as the remotely controlled equipment, various display methods, such as changing the text color, can be used in addition to frame display. In this state, the heavy equipment 30 that can be switched over to and is ready to work immediately is the road roller 30c. The drive engine 302 of the bulldozer 30b is stopped. When switching over to the bulldozer 30b, the drive engine 302 is started, and then the bulldozer 30b is remotely controlled. Furthermore, if there is a heavy equipment 30 that is operating automatically, the display device 120 can be configured to display on its screen that it is operating automatically.

You can select the heavy equipment 30 to use by pressing "Switch" as shown in Figure 5. If there are multiple cameras, you can switch between cameras by pressing "Switch" for the camera.

Figure 6 shows an example of the operation input and switch status of the selected heavy equipment displayed on the display device. Figure 6 is an example of the display in window 120d on the display device 120 when backhoe 30a is selected as the remotely operated object. The backhoe 30a can be operated by referring to the display in window 120d. When switching heavy equipment 30, the operation input and switch status corresponding to the switched heavy equipment 30 are displayed on the display device 120.

The remote operation control device 100 also controls the driving engine 302 of any heavy equipment 30 whose driving engine 302 is stopped to operate. This allows the driving engine 302 of the heavy equipment 30 connected to the network 20 to operate, and for heavy equipment 30 connected to the network 20, work can begin immediately after switching.

Furthermore, if the heavy equipment 30 being remotely controlled is capable of automatic operation, the automatically operated heavy equipment 30 and the heavy equipment 30 remotely controlled by an operator can work simultaneously. Furthermore, if the heavy equipment 30 repeats a predetermined operation, the operator can remotely control multiple heavy equipment 30.

Next, an example of remote operation of multiple heavy machinery will be described with reference to Figure 7. In the example shown in Figure 7, three heavy machinery 30 are remotely operated. Heavy machinery 1 performs task 1, heavy machinery 2 performs task 2, and heavy machinery 3 performs task 3. Task 1 is a complex task that requires manual operation by an operator, while tasks 2 and 3 are simple tasks that can be automatically controlled.

Work A refers to a series of tasks performed in cooperation by heavy equipment 1 to 3 in designated work area A. Work A is completed by performing work 1, then work 2, and then work 3 in that order. Once work A is completed, the equipment moves to work area B and work B is performed in sequence.

Figure 7(a) is a time chart when only manual operation is performed. Task 1 (A1) is performed manually, the operation is switched, and then task 2 (A2) is performed manually. Time is required to switch operations between tasks.

Figure 7(b) is an example time chart when task 1 is performed manually, and tasks 2 and 3 are performed automatically. As shown in (b), when task A1 is completed and switching to task B1 is made, an automatic control command for task 2 is sent to heavy equipment 2, and automatic control work begins. Tasks B1 and A2 can be performed in parallel. When task B1 is completed and switching to task C1 is made, an automatic control command for task 2 is sent to heavy equipment 2, and an automatic control command for task 3 is sent to heavy equipment 3, and automatic control work begins for each task. Task C1, task B2, and task A3 can be performed in parallel. In this way, performing manual and automatic control work in parallel allows for efficient work and reduces work time.

Next, another example of remote control of multiple heavy machinery will be described with reference to Figure 8. In the example shown in Figure 8, two heavy machinery 30 are remotely controlled. Heavy machinery 1 performs three tasks: task (1), task (2), and task (3), with task (2) being a task that can be automatically controlled. Heavy machinery 2 performs three tasks: task (1), task (2), and task (3), with tasks (2) and (3) being tasks that can be automatically controlled.

In the work area, heavy equipment 1 and heavy equipment 2 each perform a series of tasks (1) to (3).

Figure 8 (a) is a time chart when only manual operation is performed. Work (1), work (2), and work (3) are performed manually on heavy equipment 1, then the operation is switched, and work (1), work (2), and work (3) are performed manually on heavy equipment 2. Time is required to switch operations between the different operations.

Figure 8(b) is an example of a time chart when heavy equipment 1 performs tasks (1) and (3) manually and tasks (2) automatically, and heavy equipment 2 performs task (1) manually and tasks (2) and (3) automatically.

As shown in (b), after performing work (1) on heavy equipment 1, the system switches to automatic operation work (2) on heavy equipment 1 and performs manual operation of work (1) on heavy equipment 2. Once the automatic control work for work (2) on heavy equipment 1 is completed, the system waits for manual work (1) on heavy equipment 2 to be completed, and once that work is completed, the system switches to manual work (3) on heavy equipment 1 and performs automatic control work for work (2) on heavy equipment 2. Once work (3) on heavy equipment 1 is completed, the system switches to automatic control work (3) on heavy equipment 2 and also switches back to manual work (1) on heavy equipment 1. In this way, manual operation work and automatic control work can be performed in parallel. Performing manual operation and automatic control work in parallel allows for efficient work and reduces work time.

This invention can be used in remote control devices that remotely operate multiple heavy machinery at construction sites, etc. This allows operators to perform work with less or no waiting time, thereby improving work efficiency.

10: Remote control room 20: Network 30: Heavy equipment 40: Bird's-eye view camera 100: Remote control control device 110: Network communication device 120: Display device 300: Vehicle control device 301: Operation device 302: Driving engine 302: Engine 303: Camera 304: Light 310: Vehicle communication device

Claims (3)

A heavy machinery remote control device that is connected to a plurality of heavy machinery via a network and remotely controls at least one heavy machinery to be remotely controlled from a remote control room,
The heavy machine includes, as on-board equipment, a vehicle communication device, a vehicle control device connected to the communication device, and an operating device that operates in response to a control signal from the vehicle control device;
The remote control room is provided with a network communication device connected to the vehicle communication device via a network, a remote operation control device connected to the network communication device, an input device connected to the remote operation control device and for inputting a remote operation control signal, and a display device connected to the remote operation control device,
Each of the heavy machines has a drive engine, the vehicle control device detects whether the drive engine is running or not, and a status signal indicating whether the drive engine is running or not is given from the communication device to the remote operation control device via the network and the network communication device,
The remote operation control device is a heavy equipment remote operation device that determines whether the drive engines of multiple heavy equipment connected to the network are running based on the status signal , and displays heavy equipment that is in a state where it can perform work on the display device. The heavy machinery remote control device according to claim 1, wherein the remote control device remotely controls multiple heavy machinery simultaneously. 3. The heavy machinery remote control device according to claim 1 , wherein the remote operation control device controls the driving engine of a heavy machinery whose driving engine is stopped to operate.