Overview
Large agricultural, railroad, and mining equipment needed to be transported on rail to user sites for operation. These large, expensive systems can be cumbersome to move from production sites or to new areas for maintenance. This equipment had large boom arms, augers, and conveyor systems that were being damaged during transport and while the equipment was operating. The system lacked collision avoidance radar to reduce accidents.
Challenges
Integrating a collision avoidance radar detection system that warns of impending impact with a obstacle. Reliability, redundancy, and ruggedness were critical for this project.
Solution
A dual image proximity radar was selected to create a “safety bubble” surrounding the equipment while in use or in transport. If an object approached the bubble a microcontroller would trigger an early warning in the operating cab of the equipment. If the collision was determined to be imminent by the microcontroller, the circuit would trigger the emergency brake on the train and stop the entire machine from moving forward.
Results
The collision avoidance radar enhanced proximity awareness, which eliminated impact incidents. The system also dramatically reduced the number of unwanted collisions of rigged equipment by vehicles. Safety and efficiency monitoring statistics were improved to exceptional levels.