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Komatsu Begins Worldwide Launches of the World's First intelligent Machine Control Hydraulic Excavators
10/29/2014 |
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Komatsu Ltd. (President and CEO: Tetsuji Ohashi) (hereinafter "Komatsu") has begun launches of the PC200i-10 and PC210LCi-10 intelligent Machine Control (iMC)*1 hydraulic excavators, starting in Europe and Japan*2 in October. With a plan to introduce them to the United States in November, Komatsu is working to aggressively promote them in advanced countries which lead ICT-based construction.
For these iMC hydraulic excavators, Komatsu has achieved the world first*3 iMC technology which controls their boom, arm and bucket without damaging the target surface by checking the position data of their bucket teeth received by their GNSS (GPS and GLONASS) antenna and the GNSS base station on their jobsite against the design data. Following the iMC dozers launched last year, these iMC hydraulic excavators represent the second iMC machines for Komatsu which makes the construction easier, quicker and safer.
When the bucket teeth of the PC200i-10 and PC210LCi-10 reach the target surface, their boom, arm and bucket automatically stop movements or the teeth move along the target surface, thanks to their assistance function. Therefore, the operator can continue excavating without worrying about overcutting. As both iMC models can eliminate a considerable amount of work, such as staking and surveying, which are required for conventional construction, they can help customers not only improve their production efficiency but also enhance safety at jobsites by reducing the number of surveyors who work near the machines on conventional jobsites.
Komatsu is also promoting the "visualization" of construction work by integrating KOMTRAX (Komatsu Machine Tracking System) and the construction management system. In the near future, Komatsu is going to achieve effective unified management of information concerning both the operating conditions of the machines and the progress of construction, such as the volume of hauled soil, through web services. By deploying iMC construction equipment at construction jobsites, Komatsu will become able to incorporate a lot of accurate jobsite information into this system.
Komatsu is well prepared to create innovation for new values by accelerating the pace of the business model shift from conventional sales and service of construction equipment to provision of total solutions for ICT-based construction.
*1 "iMC" is short for Komatsu's intelligent Machine Control.
*2 In Japan, Komatsu has started launching the iMC hydraulic excavators to Komatsu Group rental companies and Komatsu Rental Ltd.
*3 They are based on Komatsu's research concerning crawler- and wheel-type hydraulic excavators available on the marketplace.
[PC200LCi-10 hydraulic excavator (including some optional attachments)]
[Main features]
1. Outstanding improvement of productivity
Cutting-edge machine control technologies offer Auto grade assist, auto stop control and minimum distance control functions. Both iMC models help the operator perform rough to finished excavation without worries about overcutting.
2. Integrated Machine Control components
The main components, such as a GNSS antenna, IMU+ (inertial measurement unit), stroke sensing cylinder and control box, are installed at Komatsu's plant. As a result, Komatsu's iMC hydraulic excavators offer high reliability. With these integrated sensors, iMC excavators can achieve the real-time position detection of the bucket teeth, which enables Machine Control.
Information in the news releases is current on the date of the announcement and is subject to change without notice.
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