Capital Equipment News October 2016

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS

OCTOBER 2016

TECHNOLOGY

could reach the equivalent of 70% of that of

a skilled operator’s productivity levels when

loading and unloading. This is not necessarily

based on theory; the machine has done some

real work at an asphalt plant in Sweden. With

an operator, the same loader managed 200 t

per hour, while the autonomous version of the

machine tipped in 210 t per hour, according to

research engineer Torbjörn Martinsson.

Electrification – future of industry

Scott Young, programme manager for

Electromobility at Volvo CE, says the

electrification of construction equipment

represents the future of industry. “Times

are changing, impacting the way we work.

We have seen electrification growing

around us, energy storage improving and

costs coming down dramatically. This

will impact the solutions we have for our

customers,” says Young. He reasons that

electrification is a great enabler from both

an operational and design perspective.

Volvo CE used the Xploration Forum to

present its prototype electric hybrid wheel

loader, the LX1, a machine that can deliver

up to 50% improvement in fuel efficiency.

The LX1 is also said to offer a significant

reduction in emissions and noise pollution

compared with conventional machines.

The LX1 is a series hybrid that incorporates a

driveline that consists of electric drive motors

mounted at the wheels, electric hydraulics, an

energy storage system, a significantly small-

er diesel engine and a new architecture. It’s

this combination that enables the substantial

gain in fuel efficiency. The prototype – which

has 98% new parts and a fundamentally new

machine design – is capable of doing the work

of a wheel loader that’s one size larger. At this

stage, the LX1 is part of a research project and

is not commercially available.

However, Volvo CE has already teamed

up with one of its biggest customers, Waste

Management, said to be the largest envi-

ronmental services and recycling company

in North America, to field test the LX1. After

Xploration Forum, the machine was due for

shipping to the company so that it can carry

out fuel efficiency and emission reduction

tests at its sites.

Site solutions

Volvo CE has also demonstrated the

advances it has made with its electric site

research project that aims to transform the

quarry and aggregates industry by reducing

carbon emissions by up to 95% and total

cost of ownership by up to 25%.

“Our experiments show that we can re-

duce the amount of carbon emissions by

95% on a site using electrified machines

and autonomous machines, while at the

same time raising the profitability by 25%,

or you could say reducing the total cost

of ownership by 25%,” says Dave Ross,

vice-president of Advanced Technology &

Verification at Volvo CE.

As part of its electric site solution, Volvo

CE presented a new concept HX1 autono-

mous, battery-electric, load carrier. The

project aims to electrify a transport stage in

a quarry – from excavation to primary crush-

ing and transport to secondary crushing. It

entails developing new machines, work

methods and site management systems.

As well as a fleet of HX1s, other prototype

machines that make up the electric site

system include the hybrid wheel loader and

grid-connected excavator. New technology

encompasses machine and fleet control sys-

tems, as well as logistic solutions for electric

machines in quarries.

“By using electricity instead of diesel to

power construction equipment in a quarry,

we have the potential to deliver significant

reductions in fuel consumption, CO

emis-

sions, environmental impact and cost-per-

tonne,” says Johan Sjoberg, technical spe-

cialist in site automation at Volvo CE. “The

electrification of construction equipment will

produce cleaner, quieter and more efficient

machines, and this represents the future of

our industry.”

“We have talked to customers and the key

demand is that the solution must be safe,”

says Uwe Muller, chief project manager for

the electric site. “They have stated quite

clearly: ‘our people need to be safe and to

feel safe’. It is an aim that has underpinned

the drive for greater efficiency and environ-

mental protection.”

Martinsson believes that safety can be

secured in different ways. “Since a con-

struction site or quarry can be a dangerous

working environment, what better approach

could there be than removing the need to

work there at all?” he asks, adding that this

is where autonomous machines come to the

fore. He, however, reiterates that this does

not mean worksites will be void of people,

but they can stay safely out of harm’s way

with electrification and automation bearing

the burden.

Volvo CE has unveiled a prototype autonomous wheel loader and articulated

wheel loader working together.

The hybrid wheel loader under

development at Volvo CE is powered

by batteries and a diesel engine that

can be operated in virtual silence.

The HX1 is Volvo CE’s concept autonomous,

battery electric, load carrier.