EP-4737132-A1 - WORK VEHICLE

EP4737132A1EP 4737132 A1EP4737132 A1EP 4737132A1EP-4737132-A1

Abstract

Provided is a working vehicle to adjust the distance between left and right traveling devices according to the situation around the vehicle. A working vehicle (1) includes a vehicle body (2), left and right traveling devices (3L, 3R) to support the vehicle body (2) such that the vehicle body (2) is allowed to travel, a first detector (70) to detect a situation in a surrounding area of the vehicle body (2), and a distance changing mechanism (80) to change a distance between the left and right traveling devices (3L, 3R). The distance changing mechanism (80) is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to a detection result from the first detector (70).

Inventors

SAKANO TOMOYOSHI
SASABE TAKASHI
TAKEDA KAZUYA
FUKUDA RYOSUKE
YOSHIDOME KAZUHIRO

Assignees

KUBOTA CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date: 20260506
Application Date: 20240621

Claims (15)

A working vehicle comprising: a vehicle body; left and right traveling devices to support the vehicle body such that the vehicle body is allowed to travel; a first detector to detect a situation in a surrounding area of the vehicle body; and a distance changing mechanism to change a distance between the left and right traveling devices; wherein the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to a detection result from the first detector.
The working vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the situation in the surrounding area of the vehicle body, road information including a value relating to a road travelable by the left and right traveling devices; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the road information.
The working vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the road information, a width of a travelable road; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the width of the travelable road.
The working vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the width of the travelable road, a width of a ridge on a ground surface; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the width of the ridge.
The working vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the first detector is configured to detect the width of the ridge which is located in front of the vehicle body in a direction of travel of the vehicle body; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance during or before travel of the vehicle body to reach an area above the ridge located in front of the vehicle body in the direction of travel of the vehicle body.
The working vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the first detector is configured to, while the vehicle body is traveling along a first ridge, detect a width of a second ridge adjacent to the first ridge; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance while the vehicle body which has finished traveling along the first ridge is turning to start traveling along the second ridge.
The working vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the width of the travelable road, a width of an obstacle on a ground surface that hinders travel; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the detected obstacle is located between the left and right traveling devices while the vehicle body is traveling.
The working vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the left and right traveling devices include the left traveling device located leftward of the vehicle body and the right traveling device located rightward of the vehicle body; the distance changing mechanism includes: a left changing mechanism to change a position of the left traveling device in a lateral direction; and a right changing mechanism to change a position of the right traveling device in the lateral direction; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to actuate the left changing mechanism and the right changing mechanism independently of each other based on the detection result from the first detector.
The working vehicle according to claim 8, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the situation in the surrounding area of the vehicle body, an inclination of a ground surface in the lateral direction; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to, based on the detected inclination, move one of the left and right traveling devices that is located lower than the other away from a widthwise center of the vehicle body.
The working vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the left and right traveling devices include the left traveling device located leftward of the vehicle body and the right traveling device located rightward of the vehicle body; the left traveling device includes a left front wheel and a left rear wheel; the right traveling device includes a right front wheel and a right rear wheel; the distance changing mechanism includes: a first changing mechanism to change a position of the left front wheel in a lateral direction; a second changing mechanism to change a position of the left rear wheel in the lateral direction; a third changing mechanism to change a position of the right front wheel in the lateral direction; and a fourth changing mechanism to change a position of the right rear wheel in the lateral direction; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to, based on the detection result from the first detector, actuate the first changing mechanism, the second changing mechanism, the third changing mechanism, and the fourth changing mechanism independently of each other.
The working vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a second detector to detect the distance between the left and right traveling devices.
The working vehicle according to claim 11, wherein the left and right traveling devices include the left traveling device located leftward of the vehicle body and the right traveling device located rightward of the vehicle body; the distance changing mechanism includes: a left changing mechanism to change a position of the left traveling device in a lateral direction; and a right changing mechanism to change a position of the right traveling device in the lateral direction; and the second detector is configured to detect the distance between the left and right traveling devices by detecting the amount of extension or retraction of each of the left and right changing mechanisms.
The working vehicle according to claim 11, wherein the first detector is configured to detect, as the situation in the surrounding area of the vehicle body, a width of a ridge on a ground surface; and the distance changing mechanism is configured to, based on the width of the ridge and the distance between the left and right traveling devices, change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the width of the ridge.
The working vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the first detector includes: a camera to capture an image of a ridge located ahead of the vehicle body in a direction of travel, the camera being provided in or on the vehicle body; and a calculator to calculate a width of the ridge based on the image captured by the camera.
The working vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the first detector includes: a sensor to detect a ridge located ahead of the vehicle body in a direction of travel, the sensor being provided in or on the vehicle body; and a calculator to calculate a width of the ridge based on detection data from the sensor.

Description

Technical Field The present invention relates to working vehicles to perform work such as agricultural work. Background Art The working vehicle disclosed in PTL 1 has been known. The working vehicle (management machine) disclosed in PTL 1 includes a vehicle body (machine body), a traveling device, and a working device (spreader). The traveling device is located leftward and rightward of the vehicle body. Citation List Patent Literature PTL 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2020-103233 Summary of Invention Technical Problem The above-described working vehicle may perform work (spraying of an agricultural chemical and the like), for example, while traveling with a ridge on an agricultural field located between the left and right traveling devices. Here, the width of a ridge on an agricultural field may differ depending on the type of planted crop and the planting method. However, the above-mentioned working vehicle cannot change the distance between the left and right traveling devices. Thus, when the width of a ridge is greater than an expected width, the working vehicle may be unable to travel with the ridge located between the left and right traveling devices. The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described problem, and it is an object to provide working vehicles each of which can adjust the distance between the left and right traveling devices according to the situation in the surrounding area. Solution to Problem A working vehicle according to an example embodiment of the present invention includes a vehicle body, left and right traveling devices to support the vehicle body such that the vehicle body is allowed to travel, a first detector to detect a situation in a surrounding area of the vehicle body, and a distance changing mechanism to change a distance between the left and right traveling devices, wherein the distance changing mechanism is configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to a detection result from the first detector. The first detector may be configured to detect, as the situation in the surrounding area of the vehicle body, road information including a value relating to a road travelable by the left and right traveling devices. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the road information. The first detector may be configured to detect, as the road information, a width of a travelable road. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the width of the travelable road. The first detector may be configured to detect, as the width of the travelable road, a width of a ridge on a ground surface. the distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance such that the changed distance corresponds to the width of the ridge. The first detector may be configured to detect the width of the ridge which is located in front of the vehicle body in a direction of travel of the vehicle body. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance during or before travel of the vehicle body to reach an area above the ridge located in front of the vehicle body in the direction of travel of the vehicle body. The first detector may be configured to, while the vehicle body is traveling along a first ridge, detect a width of a second ridge adjacent to the first ridge. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance while the vehicle body which has finished traveling along the first ridge is turning to start traveling along the second ridge. The first detector may be configured to detect, as the width of the travelable road, a width of an obstacle on a ground surface that hinders travel. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to change the distance such that the detected obstacle is located between the left and right traveling devices while the vehicle body is traveling. The left and right traveling devices may include the left traveling device located leftward of the vehicle body and the right traveling device located rightward of the vehicle body. The distance changing mechanism may include a left changing mechanism to change a position of the left traveling device in a lateral direction, and a right changing mechanism to change a position of the right traveling device in the lateral direction. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to actuate the left changing mechanism and the right changing mechanism independently of each other based on the detection result from the first detector. The first detector may be configured to detect, as the situation in the surrounding area of the vehicle body, an inclination of a ground surface in the lateral direction. The distance changing mechanism may be configured to, based on the detected inclination, move one of the left and right traveling devices that is loc