Loaders

F-35 shown obsolete in previous posts

   The driver caqb position on heavy equipment is positioned based upon old clutches and cables with hydraulic lines, electrical controls allow for better and more flexible design.

   In A, a backhoe is shown with a cab at the elbow joint allowing the operator to see\ downwards when excavating.  At B, is shown the same providing the advantage of actually being able to see the loading of a dump truck instead of guessing.  The conventional cab position can be left, the conventional on the left of the hoe the elbow on the right.  The cab should be made to position itself either at a low setting, l, to reduce the overall vehicle height when being transported and a high position, h, for operating.
    Backhoes are sometimes filled with earth and then used as a battering ram to break up asphalt.  For that reason the cab should be mounted on hydraulic shock absorbers to protect the operator when used to slam down as a breaking tool.
   The one danger is that backhoes operate close to excavations and if the operator is on the hoe elbow he might loose track of his position and drive over the edge.  It would be a good idea to have a warning system based on radar or sonar at the front and rear ends of the chassis, since they are used in both directions, to warn of drop offs and override the operator's movement commands when too close to an edge.
   This design applies as well to the giant equipment used in open pit mines, where the operator being able to see should increase the efficiency of the operations   At C, is shown a bulldozer with a cab on parallel arm supports.  This allow the operator 3 positions;

1. The traditional back position of the cab which allows the operator to see the slope and cut of the soil removal.
2. Forward over the blade which allows for the direct control of the amount of material being removed and adjustment to the amount of cutting.
3. An elevated perch which should only be used when the vehicle is stopped because it is less stable but allows for a full field of view of the overall work site.

      For a front end loader, D, the cab should be mounted on parallel arms attached to the loader arms to allow for viewing placement into dump trucks and, similar to the bulldozer, being able to see what is happening and the amount of material accumulating at the blade.
   All of these modifications should make the vehicles more efficient.