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Researches for automated construction machinery have been conducted for labor-saving, improved work efficiency and worker's safety, where a tracking control function was proposed as one of the key control system strategies for highly automated productive hydraulic excavators. An optimized digging trajectory that assures as much soils scooped as possible and less energy consumption is critical for an automated hydraulic excavator to improve work efficiency. Simulation models that we used to seek an optimized digging trajectory in this study consist of soil models and front linkage models of a hydraulic excavator. We developed two types of soil models. One is called wedge models used to calculate reaction forces from soils acting on a bucket during digging operation, based on the earth pressure theory. The other is called Distinct Element Method (DEM) model used to analyze soil behaviors and estimate amounts of soils scooped and reaction forces quantitatively.

This paper presents a stability analysis of tandem riding on a motorcycle, focusing especially on the effects of the passenger's positional behaviors. Firstly we experimentally investigate the motorcycle and rider control behavior after a posture change by the passenger. This is done by measuring the motorcycle's responses to posture changes by the passenger during straight running at low speed. The results reveal some characteristic behaviors. Second, we construct a multi-body model for a human-motorcycle system for tandem riding. By comparing experimental and simulated results, we have confirmed the validity of the model. Finally, we conduct simulations on some situations in which passenger properties are varied, and obtain the effects of these passenger characteristics.

It’ll be expected that tandem riders increase in the future. So, there is a need to improve the motorcycle stability of tandem riding from the perspectives of safety and comfort. In this research, we focus on tandem riding at low speed because the motorcycle especially becomes unstable. In order to improve the stability of a motorcycle after disturbance is input by the passenger’s posture change, we design a front wheel steer control system that assists the rider’s driving operation. And we simulate it. It is necessary to consider cooperation with the rider’s driving operation. In this study, as a means to consider the cooperative control of the man-machine system, the fuzzy logic was applied to this system.

In a typical mechanical product such as an automobile or construction machinery, it is important to identify deformation modes, for which experiments and analyses can result in significant improvements. It is also important to consider how to improve the structure with high rigidity by using a technique such as the strain energy method in conventional design and development. However, the abovementioned method often generates conflicting results with regard to weight saving and cost reduction of development requirements. Transfer path analysis (TPA) using the finite element method (FEM) is an effective way to reduce noise and vibration in the automobile with respect to these issues. TPA can reveal the transfer path from the input to the response of the output point and the contribution of the path, and to efficiently consider improved responses.

In this research, we aim at the construction of a steering cooperation-type front-wheel steering control system to reduce the rider's steering load by stabilizing the behavior of the motorcycle when turbulence in the direction of a roll occurs during low-speed driving. Finally, a front-wheel steering control system that considers cooperation with a rider's steering based on the experimental result is constructed, and the utility is verified by simulation.

This paper describes the relationship between the rider's evaluation of feeling of pulse and the seat vibration of the cruiser-type motorcycle. A simulated running condition was created to measure the seat vibration and engine speed. Next, the seat vibration was reproduced on the hydrodynamic shaker. Finally, we examined the influence of which order of rotational speed effects evaluation of feeling of pulse in a forced vibration test. As a result, it is known that 0.5th and 1st orders of seat vibration contribute to evaluation of feeling of pulse near 1,500 to 2,000 rpm of engine rotation.