Cat Soil Compaction Technology Automates Process

Caterpillar says its Cat Command for Compaction assists operators achieve quality compaction through an automated process that controls propulsion, steering, and vibration of a soil compactor. The package is available as a dealer-installed kit on B Series soil compactors.

Operators use a touchscreen interface to set up the system, which connects to common base stations and requires no back office or design. The operator maps the boundaries of the area to be compacted, enters the parameters, and places the machine in “auto.”

An integrated object-detection system alerts the operator if an object is in the compactor’s path, and the operator can turn the system on and off if it enters an area that does not require compaction.

The system will be available in the first quarter of 2020.