New control system for forestry machines

Usevolt Oy has carried out a development project to create a control system upgrade for forestry machines. The project has received co-funding from the European Union.

Project details

Objective

The aim of the project was to develop a control system upgrade for forestry machines in order to extend the service life of machines already in use. Many mechanically sound machines are withdrawn prematurely because their control systems cannot be updated.

Servicing these machines is also difficult, as they operate in remote areas and a mechanic has to travel to the site to diagnose a fault.

Activities

The project was carried out as three work packages.

• Product development and technology testing. A control system upgrade was developed, consisting of a display unit permanently installed in the machine and a secure remote connection. Operation was first verified in a simulated environment and then on real equipment.
• Piloting and customer testing. The solution was put into test use in five forestry machines in real working conditions. Testing verified that the solution complements the existing control system without compromising its operation.
• Commercialisation preparation. A revenue model and a launch strategy for the Nordic market were defined.

Results

• The upgrade solution has been taken into use and is delivered to all new customers.
• Service personnel can diagnose faults, adjust settings and update the software version remotely without travelling to the machine. The remote connection is established only by an action of the machine operator and is encrypted end to end.
• The solution is not tied to any machine brand, so it can be installed in other work machines besides forestry machines.
• The solution was demonstrated in real working conditions in five forestry machines, and the demonstration showed that it works to extend machine service life.
• Remote maintenance and remote fault diagnosis improve the company’s readiness to begin exporting.

Impact and sustainability

The main objective of the project is to extend the service life of forestry machines. When the control system can be updated and faults diagnosed remotely, mechanically sound machines no longer have to be taken out of use because their electronics have become obsolete.

Extending service life reduces the need to manufacture new machines, along with the raw material consumption and emissions that manufacturing causes. Remote diagnostics and remote updates reduce service visits and service traffic, particularly in remote areas. The solution brings the circular economy into the maintenance and use of forestry machines.

Next steps

Deliveries of the solution to new customers will continue and the installed base will be expanded. The tool intended for service partners will be developed further for customer-specific management of software versions and automatic updates.

On the basis of the commercialisation work, the company is moving into the Nordic market. In addition, the development of a bus extender based on local wireless data transfer is being explored as a new product.

Contact

Usevolt Oy answers questions concerning the project. See our contact details.