Kawasaki’s New Excavator System

Kawasaki will introduce a new hydraulic and control technology for the hydraulic excavators at IFPE. The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) system was developed jointly by Kawasaki Precision Machinery and the Kawasaki Technical Institute in Japan.

Kawasaki developed three new products to create the ICT excavator system. The first is an ICT-compatible multi-control valve (shown above) that incorporates a Kawasaki solenoid proportional control valve designed to deliver more precise hydraulic control.

The second new product is the new Kawasaki electric joystick, which the company said has the same feel as the hydraulic pilot valves that have been the industry standard for years. The third component is the KC-MC-20 controller, a high-performance electronic module that helps machines achieve greater fuel efficiency through high precision control.

With the excavator configured for 2D, the controller obtains operational information from the joystick input and various machine sensors and delivers that information to the controller in real time. The controller then regulates the high efficiency hydraulic pump and proportional main directional valve to realize various machine operations with high accuracy and efficiency.

There are two types of 2D machine control for semi-automatic operation, one that controls the boom and stick, the other controlling the boom, stick and bucket. In both types, the controller can be set to operate within specified ranges and preset with lower and upper limits.

The 3D configuration of the ICT machine control uses the 2D configuration along with additional sensors and communication devices, allowing automatic operation through the acquisition of current positioning information from GPS satellites, communication devices and HMI panels.

See Kawasaki at IFPE booth S-80907