The sensor you can trust for challenging environments

SUNCAR: Pioneering industrial excavator solutions for off-highway vehicles

SUNCAR develops energy-efficient, autonomous system solutions for off-highway vehicles, with a particular focus on industrial excavator applications.

One of SUNCAR’s key innovations is their MOVASYST excavator assistance system. This modular and sophisticated system supports machine operators in performing precise work processes, from grade control to bucket positioning. Since it is modular, it allows customizable installation and expansion.

It comes with an intuitive touch display operation, and can have installed individually or combined the following modifications: MOVLIMIT, MOVLIMIT GNSS, MOVIEW and MOVCONTROL.

The result is significantly increased safety and efficiency on construction sites. That’s why they required an Attitude and Heading Reference System (AHRS) capable of reliably detecting rotatory movements on industrial excavators.

The key technical requirement was extremely stable and low-drift heading determination, as even minor drift errors would negatively impact the accuracy of the entire assistance system.

The challenge lay in reliable motion detection

The challenge was compounded by the harsh operating environments typical of construction sites. Industrial excavators often work near high-voltage power lines, railway installations, and other infrastructure that create challenging electromagnetic interference conditions. Traditional positioning solutions struggled to maintain accuracy in these scenarios, threatening the viability of SUNCAR’s excavator assistance system concept.

Additionally, the sensors needed to withstand the severe vibrations inherent to industrial excavator operation, a demanding requirement that would test both the hardware robustness and integration approach.

After evaluating SUNCAR’s specific requirements for their system, we recommended the Ellipse-A, our compact and robust IMU perfectly suited for demanding industrial excavator environments.

The best and custom solution: Ellipse-A

Our Ellipse-A serves as a central component of the MOVASYST’s sensor chain, mounted directly on the industrial excavator. It continuously provides high-precision motion data crucial for rotatory motion detection within the system.

“A key advantage of SBG Systems’ AHRS is its outstanding precision, which enables us to reliably detect rotatory movements in our MOVASYST excavator assistance system. Multiple hundred Ellipse-A units are currently in use for this application,” explains Severin.

What our Ellipse-A solved:

• High-precision heading determination: Exceptionally stable heading output with minimal drift, essential for accurate rotatory motion detection on industrial excavators. 

• Robust electromagnetic immunity: Reliable operation near high-voltage power lines, railway installations, and other sources of electromagnetic interference. 

• Compact integration: Small form factor enables seamless integration into SUNCAR’s sensor chain without compromising excavator functionality. 

• Industrial-grade reliability: Designed to withstand the harsh vibrations and environmental conditions typical of construction sites. 

The Ellipse-A’s combination of precision, reliability, and compact design made it the ideal choice for SUNCAR’s MOVASYST, enabling accurate performance where other solutions would fail.

A partnership to guide you through all the phases

During the integration phase, SUNCAR could count on our support team that went beyond what the market typically offers.

“During the integration phase, we received excellent support from SBG Systems. Especially in the early stages, we faced challenges with the longevity of the sensors: some units failed relatively early due to vibrations on the excavators. However, together with the SBG team, we were able to identify suitable dampers that filter out critical frequencies,” says Severin when praising the SBG System’s support team.

This collaborative problem-solving approach proved highly effective. Since implementing the optimized vibration damping solution, the failure rate of the sensors has decreased significantly, ensuring reliable long-term operation in demanding excavator assistance system applications.

Conclusions and results obtained

Our inertial sensor enabled SUNCAR to develop a solution that performs reliably in challenging environments where competing technologies struggle.

Key benefits achieved:

• Operational reliability in challenging environments: The excavator assistance system functions precisely near high-voltage power lines and railway installations, environments that would compromise GNSS-dependent systems.  

• Precise rotatory motion detection: Stable, low-drift heading determination ensures the MOVASYST system maintains accuracy throughout extended work cycles.  

• Market differentiation: The robust performance enabled by the Ellipse-A helped SUNCAR successfully sell substantial volumes of their solution to dealers and construction companies. 

• Long-term field reliability: With proper vibration management, sensors deliver maintenance-free operation over extended periods. 

SUNCAR distributes their excavator assistance systems through a dealer network that serves construction companies and excavator owners worldwide.

The reliability and precision enabled by the Ellipse-A IMU has been crucial to building trust with these end users who demand dependable performance on their industrial excavators.