The Wirtgen Group has officially announced an updated version of its Autopilot solution, a version which will be used for stringless control of slipform pavers. According to certain reports, the new Autopilot system, marketed by the name of Autopilot 2.0, brings to the fore a base station, a tablet computer, and a control unit integrated directly into the paver. Owing to these components, it can eliminate the need for setting up and removing the stringline used for machine control. Furthermore, when in use, the system can guide you along a virtual stringline by satellite-aided navigation, thus supporting the paving of complex geometries, such as tight radii or S-bends. To understand the new solution’s application potential, we must take into account how slipform pavers can be used for paving monolithic concrete structures with the offset method. You see, curbs, gutter profiles, concrete safety barriers, cycleways and many other profiles can all be paved in one piece with wet concrete. Here, however, each project markedly requires right slipform mold and process parameters matched to the specific application. Fortunately enough, Wirtgen slipform pavers offer paving crew just the flexibility and adaptability they need to deliver results, and to do so in a wide spectrum of applications. This translates to how, in offset paving applications, it facilitates the transfer of wet concrete from the concrete mixer to the slipform mold by means of a feeding conveyor. Once transferred, the stated concrete is compacted and molded as the paver advances so to produce the desired form. At the given point, you can factor in various parameters to meet the specific requirements of the application and the profile to be paved. Such a detail showcases paving widths capacity of up to 4,000 mm, paving heights capacity of up to 3,000 mm, both served in conjunction with numerous customization options.
In the context of Wirtgen-powered slipform pavers, users can even come expecting a choice between belt and auger conveyors for feeding concrete from mixers to the slipform mold. Talk about the belt conveyors first, they can transfer large quantities of concrete mix in a short time, while simultaneously boasting different lengths. You can also leverage the potential of folding belt conveyors that are well-equipped to provide flexibility on the construction site and during transportation of the machines. Auger conveyors, on the other hand, are capable of remixing the concrete on the way to the mold and prevent segregation of the material. Another detail worth a mention here is the way in which the height, pitch and lateral positioning of a concrete feeding system can be manually adjusted on the conveyor or from the operator’s platform, indicating flexibility to adapt the same to actual conditions on a particular construction site. Among the other key components of a Wirtgen-powered paver, there is also the slipform mold, which is mounted on the machine with a height-adjustable and laterally-telescoping suspension. This mold can be mounted on either the left or the right side of all Wirtgen offset slipform pavers. This allows paving to be carried out in the direction of the flowing traffic. Not just that, it can also facilitate relocating of the mold from one side of the machine to the other.
Hold on, we still have a few bits left to unpack, considering we still haven’t dug into how Wirtgen delivers at your disposal a range of different vibration systems for compacting the wet concrete. Hence, either of hydraulic or electric vibrators can be used, depending on the application and requirements. To go along with the same, a combination of both systems can also be used on the same machine. Apart from that, the positioning of the track units makes a point to uphold the overarching flexibility, backed by various models offering different options for setting up the machine on a construction site. There are also available laterally telescoping rear track units to promote stability.
