Caterpillar’s D3-series skid steers and compact track loaders can soon be equipped with Cat Command. The line-of-sight or non-line-of-sight remote operation system, which is already available on many of Cat’s excavator, wheel loader and dozer models, offers both safety and workforce development benefits. Attendees at World of Concrete in Las Vegas were able to test the technology by remotely operating a skid steer located at Cat's Clayton, North Carolina facility.
With the operator pool getting smaller, the technology enables contractors to hire employees who are physically unable to get into the machine. It also keeps existing employees out of harm’s way when operating in challenging or hazardous environments such as stevedoring, steel mill blast furnaces, industrial and waste, demolition, and site decommissioning.
"The operator actually has better visibility with cameras than he does from the cab. You don't have all the posts and obstructions that structure of the machine gives you, especially on a machine like a skid steer where it's very blind to the rear," says Cat Market Professional Brad Van De Veer.
The Command of Loading kit can be easily installed by a dealer.
The line-of-sight system includes:
The antennas are installed on the cabin roof, with the Command activation switch mounted behind a lockable door with ground-level access. The shoulder harness control console allows the operator to control machine startup/shutdown, bucket rack/dump and lift/lower, rpm, horn, creep control, and auxiliary hydraulic functionality from a distance of up to 984 feet.
