Earthmoving Evaluation

1
Evaluation of Earthmoving Technology
Travis A. Mann Airfields and Pavements
Branch Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory
FY03 FY04 232K 100K
2
Project Description

• Objective
• Determine the requirements for an enhanced
  earthmoving system that will meet contingency
  airfield construction efficiency goals by
  evaluating available systems under realistic
  airfield construction conditions.
• Scope
• Investigate mature products that incorporate GPS
  and/or laser technology to provide survey/grade
  control during airfield construction projects.

3
Plan/Progress/Approach

• Tasks
• Evaluate Enhanced Earthmoving Systems
• Productivity
• Accuracy
• Manpower Requirements
• Situational Awareness
• Determine Accuracy Requirements for Contingency
  Airfield Construction
• New Construction
• Repair/Upgrade
• Ensure System/Software Compatibility
• Site Selection
• Design

4
Plan/Progress/Approach

• Currently Available Systems
• Caterpillars Computer Aided Earthmoving System
  (CAES) (Mar-Apr 01)
• Trimbles Site Vision GPS (Oct-Dec 02)
• Trimbles Blade Pro 3-D (Oct-Dec 02)
• Topcons 3D-GPS (FY04)

5
Plan/Progress/Approach

• Additional Efforts
• Visit to Caterpillar to view upgrades and changes
  to the Computer Aided Earthmoving System (CAES)
• Purchase of Trimble RTK GPS Reference Station
  with Site Calibration Kit
• Investigation of Tow behind scrapers

6
Product

• Description
• Prioritized list of proposed system requirements
  with specifications
• Written documentation of each systems evaluation
• Connectivity to other Work Units
• Receives information from Site Selection and
  Design processes
• Transition Medium
• Input for Operational Requirements Document(s)
  (ORD)
• Evaluation reports