Excavators are heavy construction equipment primarily consisting of a boom, dipper (or stick), bucket, and cab on a rotating platform known as the "house".[1]
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The modern excavator's house sits atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels, being an evolution of the steam shovel (which itself evolved into the power shovel when steam was replaced by diesel and electric power). All excavation-related movement and functions of a hydraulic excavator are accomplished through the use of hydraulic fluid, with hydraulic cylinders and hydraulic motors,[2] which replaced winches, chains, and steel ropes.[3] Another principle change was the direction of the digging action, with modern excavators pulling their buckets toward them like a dragline rather than pushing them away to fill them the way the first powered shovels did.
Excavators are also called diggers, scoopers, mechanical shovels, or 360-degree excavators (sometimes abbreviated simply to "360"). Tracked excavators are sometimes called "trackhoes" by analogy to the backhoe.[4] In the UK, wheeled excavators are sometimes known as "rubber ducks".[5]
Excavators are used in many ways:
Modern hydraulic excavators come in a wide variety of sizes. The smaller ones are called mini or compact excavators.[7] For example, Caterpillar's smallest mini-excavator weighs 2,060 pounds (930 kg) and has 13 hp;[8] their largest model is the largest excavator available (developed and produced by the Orenstein & Koppel, Germany, until the takeover by Caterpillar, named »RH400«), the CAT , which weighs in excess of 2,160,510 pounds (979,990 kg), has hp, and a bucket as large as 52.0 m3.
Hydraulic excavators usually couple engine power to (commonly) three hydraulic pumps rather than to mechanical drivetrains. The two main pumps supply oil at high pressure (up to psi, 345 bar) for the arms, swing motor, track motors and accessories while the third is a lower pressure (≈700 psi, 48 bar) pump for pilot control of the spool valves; this third circuit allows for reduced physical effort when operating the controls. Generally, the three pumps used in excavators consist of two variable displacement piston pumps and a gear pump. The arrangement of the pumps in the excavator unit changes with different manufacturers using different formats.
The three main sections of an excavator are the undercarriage, the house and the arm. The boom, the front part that is attached to the house itself and holds the arm, is also used. The undercarriage includes tracks, track frame, and final drives, which have a hydraulic motor and gearing providing the drive to the individual tracks. The undercarriage, especially frequently for a mini-excavator, can also have blade similar to that of a bulldozer. The house includes the operator cab, counterweight, engine, fuel and hydraulic oil tanks. The house attaches to the undercarriage by way of a center pin. High-pressure oil is supplied to the tracks' hydraulic motors through a hydraulic swivel at the axis of the pin, allowing the machine to slew 360° unhindered and thus provides the left-and-right movement.[9] The arm provides the up-and-down and closer-and-further (or digging movement) movements. Arms typically consist of a boom, stick and bucket with three joints between them and the house.
The boom attaches to the house and provides the up-and-down movement. It can be one of several different configurations:
Attached to the end of the boom is the stick (or dipper arm). The stick provides the digging movement needed to pull the bucket through the ground. The stick length is optional depending whether reach (longer stick) or break-out power (shorter stick) is required. Most common is mono stick but there are also, for example, telescopic sticks. The largest form ever of an excavator, the dragline excavator, eliminated the dipper in favor of a line and winch.
On the end of the stick is usually a bucket. A wide, large capacity (mud) bucket with a straight cutting edge is used for cleanup and levelling or where the material to be dug is soft, and teeth are not required. A general purpose (GP) bucket is generally smaller, stronger, and has hardened side cutters and teeth used to break through hard ground and rocks. Buckets have numerous shapes and sizes for various applications. There are also many other attachments that are available to be attached to the excavator for boring, ripping, crushing, cutting, lifting, etc. Attachments can be attached with pins similar to other parts of the arm or with some variety of quick coupler. Excavators in Scandinavia often feature a tiltrotator which allows attachments rotate 360 degrees and tilt ±45 degrees, in order to increase the flexibility and precision of the excavator.
Before the s, all excavators had a long or conventional counterweight that hung off the rear of the machine to provide more digging force and lifting capacity. This became a nuisance when working in confined areas. In Yanmar launched the world's first Zero Tail Swing excavator,[10] which allows the counterweight to stay inside the width of the tracks as it slews, thus being safer and more user friendly when used in a confined space. This type of machine is now widely used throughout the world.
There are two main types of control configuration used in excavators to control the boom and bucket, each distributing the four primary digging functions across two x-y joysticks. This allows a skilled operator to control all four functions simultaneously. The most popular configuration in the US is the SAE controls configuration while in other parts of the world, the ISO control configuration is more common. Some manufacturers such as Takeuchi have switches that allow the operator to select which control configuration to use.
Hydraulic excavators now perform tasks well beyond bucket excavation. With the advent of hydraulic-powered attachments such as a breaker, a cutter, a grapple or an auger,a crusher and screening buckets[11] the excavator is frequently used in many applications other than excavation. Many excavators feature a quick coupler for simplified attachment mounting, increasing the machine's utilization on the jobsite. Excavators are usually employed together with loaders and bulldozers. Most wheeled, compact and some medium-sized (11 to 18-tonne) excavators have a backfill (or dozer) blade. This is a horizontal bulldozer-like blade attached to the undercarriage and is used for leveling and pushing removed material back into a hole.
As of July , current excavator manufacturers include:
An excavator is an extremely useful piece of machinery. Part of the reason excavators are so popular is because they come in a wide variety of types, each with its own advantages and disadvantages.
That variety can also make it difficult to choose which type of excavator is right for you. Here is a brief overview to help you decide.
Also known as standard excavators or track excavators, crawlers run on two treads instead of wheels. Although they are slower than wheeled excavators, their tracks make them better suited for rough or uneven terrain. As the standard, crawler excavators can be found on most construction sites. They’re most commonly used in mining operations, trench digging and landscape grading.
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Also known as compact excavators, they’re considerably smaller than other kinds of machinery. It is because of this that most mini excavators have reduced — or, in some cases, zero — tail-swing. This makes them optimal for jobsites that require delicate work or have many obstacles that need to be avoided. Part of their popularity can be attributed to their ability to work indoors. However, their small size limits the load capacity and digging depth.
As the name suggests, long-reach excavators feature a long, extendable boom and stick. The two together can range from 40 to 100 feet in length. With a wider reach, these excavators are well-suited to reach long distances and hard-to-reach places. Unfortunately, their long reach also makes them difficult to use in small spaces or tight corners. They’re commonly found at heavy-duty digging sites and demolition projects — particularly dangerous projects where they allow people to work far from danger.
Unlike other kinds of excavators, dragline excavators use a hoist rope and dragline system to maneuver the bucket instead of the usual boom and stick. They’re larger than other types of excavators, and because of that they are usually assembled on-site. Their size also makes them especially good at deep digging, with a maximum digging depth of 65 meters. The dragline system makes it especially useful when working underwater, like at dock jobsites. Other common uses for dragline excavators include deep pile driving and road excavations.
Suction excavators, also called vacuum excavators, are best known for their suction capabilities. They are fitted with a suction pipe and a water jet to create a suction power of 200 mph. Suction excavators have very specific purposes, but they’re extremely useful in those cases. Its pipe is usually around 30 centimeters in diameter, making it ideal for underground work, delicate terrain or precise operations. On larger operations, however, they are not particularly useful.
Hydraulic shovels are considered the most powerful type of excavator. They’re very large and have powerful engines, making them useful for lifting or moving heavy objects. They can usually be found at mining operations or heavy digging projects. Their large size makes them a hindrance on smaller jobsites.
Several factors should be considered when choosing an excavator, since finding the best fit for your project will maximize its use.
Jobs have specific needs, like suctioning or long horizontal reach.
Choose the right size excavator to get the job done efficiently.
Excavators vary in their ability to move through rough terrain or in tight spaces, so consider your jobsite’s condition.
Picking the right excavator for the job can be a serious challenge. Ask a construction equipment expert at your local EquipmentShare branch. Our staff can help you with all of your construction equipment needs.
Backhoes do some of the same work as an excavator, but there are some key differences.
A backhoe looks like a tractor with an excavator arm on the back and a loader on the front. Backhoes are versatile machines, but their digging ability can be limited compared to excavators because of their generally smaller size and inability to rotate their arm 360 degrees.
The anatomy of excavators all follow the same general structure, but each type of excavator will have different specifications.
Attachments are important parts of your machine, and theft is common. If you want to keep track of everything in your fleet and maximize your efficiency, check out our T3 telematics hardware for all of your equipment and tools.
Your excavator’s parts will deteriorate and eventually will need to be replaced. Some common parts you can expect to replace include:
Not sure where to find replacement parts? EquipmentShare’s excavator parts shop has a large catalog of replacement parts from dozens of manufacturers, whether you need to replace a filter or an entire window.