The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods
Excavator operations play a critical role in the productivity of earthworks, yet traditional methods often rely heavily on operators’ intuition and experience, which can lead to inconsistent outcomes. This study investigates how machine guidance (MG) providing real-time feedback relating to excavati...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/7/3729 |
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| author | Hyunsik Kim Jeonghwan Kim Bangyul An Taeseok Song Jaehoon Oh Minki Kim Seungju Lee |
| author_facet | Hyunsik Kim Jeonghwan Kim Bangyul An Taeseok Song Jaehoon Oh Minki Kim Seungju Lee |
| author_sort | Hyunsik Kim |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Excavator operations play a critical role in the productivity of earthworks, yet traditional methods often rely heavily on operators’ intuition and experience, which can lead to inconsistent outcomes. This study investigates how machine guidance (MG) providing real-time feedback relating to excavation depth and slope can modify operators’ actions and improve performance compared with conventional excavation methods. A controlled experiment was conducted at an active construction site, in which four footings were excavated using the two approaches under similar conditions. The results demonstrated that MG excavation reduced the total duration of the work from 3650 s to 2652 s and decreased the number of excavation cycles from 68 to 57, underscoring the impact of timely, precise guidance on efficiency. Moreover, the average fill factor improved from 3.04 under conventional methods to 3.47 with MG, suggesting more consistent and optimal loading of the bucket. These findings confirm that real-time feedback can enhance operator confidence, reduce unnecessary movements, and foster systematic excavation strategies. This study thus provides empirical evidence that MG can significantly optimize excavation performance, highlighting the need for broader adoption of this technology in modern construction practices. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cd9f52ce1361416a9dfd59d1568d3a32 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-cd9f52ce1361416a9dfd59d1568d3a322025-08-20T03:08:44ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-03-01157372910.3390/app15073729The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional MethodsHyunsik Kim0Jeonghwan Kim1Bangyul An2Taeseok Song3Jaehoon Oh4Minki Kim5Seungju Lee6Transportation Environmental Research Department, Korea Railway Research Institute, Uiwang 16105, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Civil Engineering, Korea National University of Transportation, Chungju 27469, Republic of KoreaKorea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, Goyang 10223, Republic of KoreaKorea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, Goyang 10223, Republic of KoreaKorea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, Goyang 10223, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Civil Engineering, Korea National University of Transportation, Chungju 27469, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Civil Engineering, Korea National University of Transportation, Chungju 27469, Republic of KoreaExcavator operations play a critical role in the productivity of earthworks, yet traditional methods often rely heavily on operators’ intuition and experience, which can lead to inconsistent outcomes. This study investigates how machine guidance (MG) providing real-time feedback relating to excavation depth and slope can modify operators’ actions and improve performance compared with conventional excavation methods. A controlled experiment was conducted at an active construction site, in which four footings were excavated using the two approaches under similar conditions. The results demonstrated that MG excavation reduced the total duration of the work from 3650 s to 2652 s and decreased the number of excavation cycles from 68 to 57, underscoring the impact of timely, precise guidance on efficiency. Moreover, the average fill factor improved from 3.04 under conventional methods to 3.47 with MG, suggesting more consistent and optimal loading of the bucket. These findings confirm that real-time feedback can enhance operator confidence, reduce unnecessary movements, and foster systematic excavation strategies. This study thus provides empirical evidence that MG can significantly optimize excavation performance, highlighting the need for broader adoption of this technology in modern construction practices.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/7/3729machine guidanceexcavatorexcavationearthworks |
| spellingShingle | Hyunsik Kim Jeonghwan Kim Bangyul An Taeseok Song Jaehoon Oh Minki Kim Seungju Lee The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods Applied Sciences machine guidance excavator excavation earthworks |
| title | The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods |
| title_full | The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods |
| title_fullStr | The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods |
| title_short | The Influence of Real-Time Feedback on Excavator Operator Actions in Footing Excavation: Machine Guidance and Conventional Methods |
| title_sort | influence of real time feedback on excavator operator actions in footing excavation machine guidance and conventional methods |
| topic | machine guidance excavator excavation earthworks |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/7/3729 |
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