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The machines of the future
Earthworks machines have always been the first to be equipped with new technology.
- le tombereau = dumper
le chargeur = loader
la pelle en rétro = backhoe shovel
la décapeuse = scraper
Earthworks machines have always been the first to be equipped with new technologies.
In the 1950s the first turbocharged engines were fitted to dumpers used on the large projects of the time (the construction of large dams on the Rhône).
Nearer our time, in the 1970s, electronics were first used to control engines. Computers have been used for more than 15 years to control functions on each machine.
In the future, some manufacturers are going to introduce devices that are linked to GPS with a screen in the cab to inform the driver of the position of the machine and the job to be done.
Machines pollute less and less as consumption is reduced. Here too, computerization will produce enormous improvements. The machines will probably become even more powerful too, but this is not the most important thing - the prioirities are reliability and reducing operating costs.
The drawings at the top of the page show Caterpillar’s designs for the machines of the future.
