Komatsu defines its strategic vision as a “collaborative partner committed to optimizing safe, productive, and clean workplaces.” Recognizing that improving safety at customer worksites where our products operate is a significant social issue, we have positioned the planning, development, and market introduction of safety equipment and solutions as one of our key KPIs for addressing such challenges, and we continue to actively promote their advancement.
In 2013, Komatsu introduced ICT bulldozers with automated work equipment control, followed by ICT hydraulic excavators in 2014. These not only enhance productivity in civil engineering worksites through Smart Construction, but also contribute to worksite safety by eliminating the need for manual staking and surveying.
In the mining equipment sector, Komatsu was the first to bring the Autonomous Haulage System (AHS) to market. By combining advanced technologies such as communications satellites, radar, and sensors, we continue to meet customers' needs for safe, productive, and clean sites free of human intervention.
Komatsu has developed "KomVision," a system that uses onboard cameras and vehicle control technology to detect and alert operators when a person approaches a machine in operation. Since 2019, the system has been standard equipment on hydraulic excavators, and obstacle detection systems have since been introduced to dump trucks, wheel loaders, and motor graders.
The hydraulic excavator PC200i-12, launched in December 2024, features an upgraded KomVision with a new "human + object detection mode" that detects not only people but also objects such as forklifts and vehicles. The addition of a quasi-millimeter wave radar has significantly improved detection accuracy.
When a person or object is detected near the machine during travel or turning, the system alerts the operator via the in-cab monitor and controls machine operations, stopping the machine during low-speed travel to help prevent collisions at the work site.
The system, offered as an option on the new WA380-8 and WA475-11 wheel loaders, detects nearby people, cargo, or vehicles while reversing, warns the operator, and automatically engages the brakes to decelerate or stop the machine when a collision risk is identified. It is designed to suit the unique structure and use conditions of wheel loaders, predicting movement direction based on steering angle. It also disables ground detection alerts automatically when performing tasks such as shoveling on uphill slopes to prevent false alarms from terrain near the machine's rear.
This system is not designed to prevent collisions under all conditions and has performance limitations.
The PC200i-12 hydraulic excavator is also equipped with a new geofencing system that sets a virtual work restriction area around the machine. If the body or equipment approaches the restricted zone during operation, the machine automatically stops. Since the system incorporates elevation data, there is no need to reset the restriction area even when moving onto embankments. This helps avoid damage to overhead power lines, walls of nearby homes, and underground pipes, while also eliminating the need for monitoring personnel, thereby improving worksite safety.
Articulated dump trucks are primarily used to transport earth and other materials at construction sites with uneven or rough terrain. Because the vehicle’s center of gravity can shift while traveling over uneven ground or during dumping operations, reducing the risk of rollover is a critical safety concern. The HM460-6, launched in 2026, is equipped with a rollover prevention system designed to help reduce this risk. The system continuously monitors vehicle speed and operating conditions. When it detects conditions that may increase the risk of rollover during turning or dumping operations, it provides warnings to the operator and automatically controls vehicle speed and dumping functions. These features help enhance operational safety and reduce the likelihood of rollover incidents.
At construction jobsites, where conditions change daily as work progresses, workers from many different trades and construction equipment often operate in the same area, and the risk of contact between people and construction equipment is always present. The KomVision machine surround camera system uses four cameras installed at the front, rear, left, and right sides of construction equipment to display a bird's-eye view including the area around the vehicle on a large monitor in the operator's seat. This system has also been installed on two models: the WA470-11/WA480-11 wheel loaders launched in 2025 and the HM460-6 articulated dump truck launched in 2026. Both models have cab designs that reduce blind spots from the operator's seat. By supplementing forward visibility when starting, left and right visibility when turning, and rear visibility when reversing, this function further reduces blind spots and contributes to safe operation by helping operators avoid contact with people and objects and understand the surrounding terrain.