This project has been carried out in cooperation with Volvo Construction Equipment. A new control intended to give an intuitive understanding for the new generation of operators of how to handle the motor grader has been developed. The project includes parts of the development process, idea to finished concept.
The project started with a thorough study of the functions of motor graders not only those built by Volvo but also those from the biggest competitors. Interviews were made with operators about today’s and future controls of graders. In comparison the competitors seem to offer better controls both from ergonomic and cognitive points of view.
Hitherto too little interest has been focused by design engineers in problems of the operators. Operators are exposed to wear and tear when driving the graders and they also have difficulties driving the machines all because of the design of the manoeuvring device.
From the start to the final concept a great variety of people has been involved in this project e.g. young and old operators, scientists and constructors resulting in a large spread of ideas. The final concept is a new thinking control with respect to the combination of functionality, ergonomics and intuitivety.
Source: University of Skövde
Authors: Forsell, Hanna | Åkebäck, Malin