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Volvo unveils hybrid power system for heavy
equipment
 Volvo Group has announced the development of a
prototype hybrid diesel/electric power system for heavy vehicles that it says will improve fuel economy up
to 35% for construction machinery, over-the-road trucks, and
other heavy vehicles. The system is expected to be on the market
in a few years. Designated as I-SAM within Volvo, the hybrid concept
consists of a combined starter motor, drive motor, and alternator, along
with an electronic control unit.
I-SAM interacts with Volvo’s newly developed I-Shift
automatic gear-shifting system. The batteries are recharged by the diesel
engine and by braking energy created whenever the brakes are applied.
In a truck application, the electric motor provides
all the power for low-speed acceleration and gives way to diesel-engine
power as speed rises. Volvo says this promotes lower fuel consumption, lower
emissions, and lower noise levels.
Volvo Group is also participating in the development
of a new type of battery, Effpower, which is based on lead-acid technology
used in today’s start batteries. Volvo says the new battery has twice as
much power output as a conventional lead-acid battery and can be
manufactured very cost efficiently.
“The hybrid is a long-term and highly interesting
solution for efficient and environmentally adapted transport activities,”
says Leif Johansson, president and CEO of AB Volvo. “We are aware that oil
prices for our customers will rise, and therefore, all solutions that reduce
fuel consumption are highly attractive.” Johansson added that the diesel
engine in Volvo’s hybrid can also be operated using bio-fuels.
Volvo Group includes Volvo Construction Equipment,
Volvo Trucks, and Mack Trucks, along with several other business units.
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Compact grader conversion
Equipment Resources has improved the Mini-Might
Patrol, an attachment that combines the front end of a small motor grader
with a skid-steer loader to create what the company now calls a “full blown”
compact motor grader. The design allows the operator to sit outside of the
loader, above the moldboard, for excellent visibility. It comes equipped
with certified ROPS and a safety shutdown system and weighs about 4,000
pounds. Options include a 10-foot moldboard (8-foot is standard), blade side
shift, front scarifier, and a quick-attach front blade to the scarifier.
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Fast cutting shears
BTI says its SH series of hydraulic shears feature a
large bore hydraulic cylinder combined with an exclusive speed/regeneration
valve to achieve maximum cutting forces and fast cycle times. Other features
include a guide slide that reduces jamming, and a front blade that increases
cutting capactiy and eliminates wear inside the lower jaw.
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Gravity-fed paver upgrade
 Bomag
introduced its redesigned gravity-fed 3313
asphalt paver at the World of Asphalt in March. Designed to handle
driveways, parking lots, and asphalt repair work, the 50-horsepower machine
can pave up to 13-foot widths. Its exclusive hydrostatic drive system has a
new single-speed drive motor that provides propel speeds up to 250 feet per
minute.
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New series earthmovers
 Doosan Infracore has continued its upgrade of the
earthmoving machines formerly marketed under the Daewoo brand by adding four
excavators and two wheel loaders to the line. The new DX series excavators
include the 300LC, 340LC, 420LC, and 480LC. The new loaders are the DL300
and DL400.
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Modified highway paver
 Caterpillar Paving
has installed a Tier 3 C7 engine
in its wheel-type AP-1000D asphalt paver, along with several other upgrades,
too. The high-production 10-foot paver now features a 224-net horsepower
engine, as well as the dual swing-out operator stations first featured on
Cat’s AP-655D. When precise control is required, the operator can position
himself beyond the machine frame for a better view. Also new is a higher
horsepower onboard generator option.
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Tracks costs and assets
Congistics designed its ControlBoard software to
allow owners and managers to see jobs, crews, equipment, and schedules at a
glance and change them in seconds using a spreadsheet-style interface and
drag and drop features. Version 2.1 of the program, introduced at World of
Asphalt last March, adds a new cost tracking feature that enables management
to measure the profit on a job and reallocate resources where they can best
be utilized. Time sheets can be generated, transmitted to field managers,
and returned electronically for integration into back-office systems.
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Trial by Muck and Mud
 A Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources team
that specializes in restoring trout stream habitat was able to dramatically
reduce service and maintenance requirements for the jaw bucket on their
20-ton excavator by replacing their traditional cylinder-style bucket with a
jaw bucket design that is ideally suited to working in muddy, wet
conditions.
Operations team supervisor Bill Ryan says his
group’s work involves bringing back the natural features of a stream such as
riffles, pools, meanders, and woody debris. Often, the habitat around the
stream must also be restored, requiring difficult bank sloping and
vegetation removal and replacement — applications many highway department
machines also face.
In replacing their cylinder-style jaw bucket, Ryan
liked the uptime potential of
Helac’s PowerGrip, a design that uses an
enclosed actuator-style mechanism to open and close the bucket jaws. After a
year of use, Ryan is impressed. “Due to the enclosed actuator hinge
mechanism,” he says, “we haven’t had to do anything with it except complete
the tasks on hand.”
The Helac design puts all moving parts of the
actuator in a sealed housing that is integrated into the bucket shell,
eliminating exposed cylinders and rods that can become contaminated with
debris and cause malfunctions.
For Ryan’s Wisconsin DNR team, the bottom line is a
jaw bucket that the team has used for a full year that has not required
maintenance or repair yet. “PowerGrip has proven to be safer, more reliable,
and extremely durable,” says Ryan.
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Automated equipment management
 OEM Controls has developed a system that captures
detailed equipment information at the jobsite, transmits it to secure
storage, and integrates it with back office systems for use in scheduling
and billing. Its Tracking module collects data such as equipment hours and
usage, and fuel and oil consumption.
The Capture module is a robust PDA
which accepts bar code or infrared data input. And the Delivery mode
automatically downloads, encrypts, and securely transmits data to a secure
data vault each night.
The Managing module is customized to each company,
with software tailored to optimize operations and equipment assets.
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Free equipment inspections
Roadtec is offering free inspections of older paving
and stabilizing equipment at its nine rebuild centers around the United
States to help owners evaluate repair/rebuild/replace options. The centers
repair and rebuild all brands of pavers, milling machines, material transfer
vehicles, and soil stabilizers.
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Temperature gauge for aggregate
Land Instruments has developed an infrared
thermometer for measuring aggregate temperatures at the drier chute exit.
Four stand-alone RT8A models cover a range of temperatures from 0 to 1000
degrees F and are easy to install. The company says its infrared system
lasts longer than thermocouples, and provides accurate readings faster.
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Improved rubber-track paver
 Roadtec has improved the track system of the RP-195
paver, said to be the largest rubber-track paver on the market. The new
system includes wider tracks, for the largest footprint in the class,
according to Roadtec. Rubber-coated oscillating front bogies provide even
pressure along the track footprint, and a hydraulic tensioning system
provides constant band traction and increased maneuverability.
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Road products reborn
 Five Star Industries has purchased the designs for a
Barber Greene road widener and for an asphalt elevator and gone into
production with both products under the Weiler brand name. The Weiler W730
Road Widener is a 10-foot-wide, self-propelled machine that can widen roads
from 12 inches to 12 feet with a working depth ranging from 12 inches above
grade to 12 inches below grade.
The Weiler E650 Asphalt Elevator has a 118-inch-wide
throat and a 58-inch-wide slant entry position conveyor which allows the
unit to accept tall windrows on high-production and wide-width projects.
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New excavator series
 Caterpillar has launched its D-Series excavator line
with the introduction of three models. The 54,660-pound 324D, the
64,460-pound 325D, and the 79,700-pound 330D all feature Tier 3 engines and
more horsepower than their C-series predecessors. Other improvements include
increased hydraulic pressure for greater breakout and lift forces, improving
cycle times and productivity. Also new: a variety of factory-installed
auxiliary hydraulic systems to cover everything from hammers to
hydra-mechanical work tools like thumbs.
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Tier 3 loader debuts
 The 8.3-cubic-yard WA600-6 is the first Komatsu
wheel loader equipped with a Tier 3 engine. The 118,385-pound machine has a
502-horsepower engine with an electronic control system and a high-pressure
fuel injection system.
The machine has two working modes — Economy and Power
— and a breakout force of more than 87,000 pounds. Its closed-load sensing
system allows maximum bucket control during single and simultaneous bucket
movements.
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Easy blade changer
Zero Gravity Tools says its BH-1000 makes it easy
for one person to change grader blades safely and efficiently. The tool
mounts on the moldboard and takes all the lifting out of lowering the old
blade and raising the new one into position. It works with all standard
graders.
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New motor grader line
 Terex has added four motor graders to its family of
earthmoving equipment. The four-model line ranges in weight from 25,353 to
46,297 pounds and includes tandem or all-wheel drive. Power ranges from 132
to 220 horsepower.
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Reprinted from Better Roads Magazine
June 2006 |
