CES: Construction Equipment Show?

This year’s CES exhibition – formerly known as the Consumer Electronics Show but famously became one of the world’s biggest car shows in recent years – included a surprising amount of earthmoving equipment among the transparent televisions, artificial intelligence toilets (no, really) and other gadgets.

Held annually in Las Vegas, CES is where companies debut impressive technological breakthroughs and products as one of the largest and most influential innovation events, with more than four thousand companies from around the world unveiling countless market-ready or near-ready products this year.

Automotive industry exhibits included Honda’s latest electric vehicle announcement, VinFast’s Australian-designed ute, Kia’s modular electric commercial vehicle line-up, and, extraordinarily, Hyundai’s plans for an airborne taxi service.

The event also highlighted the increasing importance of technology in vehicles, with artificial intelligence making its way into voice control interfaces and helping to advance autonomous driving.

Bosch shared its plans for a hydrogen-combustion engine, a powertrain with similarities to today’s diesel engines but with near-zero emissions, thanks in part to the US Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Hub Initiative, which has helped drive investment in this area.

Another prominent trend at CES was the growing interest in heavy equipment used in various industries, such as construction, agriculture, and mining.

Exhibitors showcased innovative machinery, including John Deere’s automated cotton picker, Kubota’s autonomous tractor prototype, and HD Hyundai’s AI-powered excavators and dozer concepts. Here are some of the highlights:

Doosan Bobcat

Doosan Bobcat, a leader in the compact construction equipment sector, unveiled a range of new technology offerings at CES. This included their all-electric skid-steer loader, which showcased a prototype OLED windscreen that could provide the driver with a head-up display of the job site, including task layouts as well as underground grid network maps, helping to improve safety and efficiency. 

Bobcat also showcased the driverless RogueX concept, which combines electric and autonomous capabilities and was specifically produced to push the boundaries of Bobcat’s future roadmap.

The Bobcat SX7

Headlining Bobcat’s CES presence was the SX7, said to be the world’s first all-electric skid-steer wheeled loader. It will build on the success of the Bobcat T7X electric tracked loader, which was specifically designed to tackle rough and uneven terrain. The S7X, in contrast, has been engineered for manoeuvrability on hard surfaces.

Like its tracked counterpart, the SX7 eliminates hydraulics, significantly reducing maintenance requirements.

These have been replaced by electric drive motors and ball screw actuators for lift and tilt functions. This cutting-edge design offers a unique power curve, delivering instantaneous torque that can be up to three times greater than that of a regular machine.

Doosan Bobcat vice president of global innovation Joel Honeyman said: “As the inventor of the original skid-steer loader, we are excited to take the machine that created the industry and reinvent it all over again. 

“The S7X is an incredible product with real-world application that can support operators on environmentally sensitive sites, in noise-restricted areas, and for indoor operation.”

Mr Honeyman also highlighted one of the significant advantages of electric vehicles: Elimination of idle time.

The S7X’s motor only runs during active work, providing operators with more than a full day’s worth of productivity from a single charge. Operators also benefit from reduced fatigue-causing vibrations and noise when compared to diesel models.

While sharing a similar design to Bobcat’s conventional S76 wheeled loader, the S7X is slightly heavier due to the batteries and motors. Charging the S7X’s 60.5kWh lithium-ion battery can be done using standard EV charging ports and typically takes around 10 hours for a full charge, meaning most operators can do so overnight.

Initial prices are expected to be significantly higher than the diesel version until production numbers increase.

Caterpillar 

Caterpillar, renowned for construction and mining equipment, had a large presence at CES, where the company presented its future vision for electrification. 

The Caterpillar stand included a gigantic electric underground mining loader and mini excavator, complete with their respective charging systems. Its CES exhibit also focused on a range of power storage and generator systems that ran on renewable fuels, solar panels, and hydrogen fuel cells.

Caterpillar Electrification and Energy Solutions division senior vice president Rod Shurman described CES as “the proving ground for breakthrough technologies and global innovators”, which he said “makes it the ideal place for us to showcase our leadership in power systems and integrated service solutions to help our customers in the energy transition”.

 “We’re putting our expertise to work on multiple advanced power technologies to enable the energy transition solutions that our customers need to be successful in a reduced-carbon world.”

Caterpillar’s electric mining loader

The centrepiece of Caterpillar’s exhibit was the Cat R1700 XE underground electric loader, a heavy-duty vehicle specifically designed for underground mining.

Boasting a payload capacity of 16.5 tonnes and top speed of 18km/h, one of its standout features is the onboard battery that Caterpillar claims is an industry first and eliminates the need for battery handling or exchanges.

To complement this loader, Caterpillar offers the MEC500, a purpose-built mobile charging system. This 500kW charger is equipped with a proprietary connector that allows for 700 amps of charging without the need for any active cooling. It uses a 715-volt architecture, contains a 213kWh battery pack, and is compact enough to be lowered down a mine shaft.

Impressively, when the R1700 is connected to two MEC500 chargers simultaneously, it can be fully charged from 10-100 per cent in just 18 minutes. This rapid charging capability typically provides operators with 4-6 hours of emission-free run time while delivering instant performance, as there is no waiting for an engine to rev up.

Caterpillar’s electric mini excavator

Another machinery standout at CES was the Cat 301.9 mini excavator, which debuts Caterpillar’s own 32kW battery technology with integrated telematics 48-volt architecture. This was designed from the ground up to give the excavator 6-8 hours of run time, which is a typical day of operation.

To accompany this excavator, Caterpillar offers the MEC009, a portable 48-volt DC mobile equipment charger. With a 9kW output, this charger is designed for on-site use when a slow overnight AC charge is insufficient.

Another featured product at the Caterpillar exhibit was the XEX60 portable power unit that can be charged using 12 solar panels. It has a capacity of 60kWh, which is enough to charge the 301.9 electric mini excavator twice, giving the operator three days of use when on-site charging is not available (if arriving with the onboard battery fully charged). The XEX60 also can be conventionally charged and transported to the site as an electric version of the traditional portable fuel tank.

Although Caterpillar’s machines are not currently available for sale, they will soon be introduced into rental fleets in North America and Europe.

The company says this strategy enables customers to test and evaluate the technology before making a purchase, ensuring that electric is the right fit for their needs, as Caterpillar acknowledges that diesel may still be the better option in certain scenarios.