Translating Caterpillar Readouts /Controls to English

check · Aug 24, 2015

I find the New World Order international symbol controls quite perplexing on my recently acquired Cat 236B2. I haven't hooked up any auxiliary attachments yet, but when I rent one I'm worried that I won't be able to get it to operate correctly, or even know if I have an electrical problem or a personal problem.

Has anyone attempted to put English translations of those symbols in print for us internationally-challenged individuals? It seems that if Cat sells these loaders to an English-speaking customer base they should simply put the switches and controls in English.

I've checked ebay several times to see if I could get an owners/operators manual but all they ever have is manuals for 236B and 236B3. I kinda hate to pay 40 or 50 bucks for something that may not be applicable to a 236B2.

Does anyone know if 2 speed travel was standard or optional on this model? I can't get it to work.

lantraxco · Aug 24, 2015

You didn't get the operator's manual with the machine? That sucks.

I hate those stupid symbols, they're supposed to be universal in that everybody looks at the picture and knows what it means... I think universally they're just confusing, but manufacturers love them because they don't have to make thirty versions with different languages. Touch screens are good because it's not that big a deal to program another language and flash it into the stack to select from.

Nige · Aug 24, 2015

As Lantraxco says, get used to pictographic symbols. It means the manufacturer only has to produce one version of the machine. Don't simply assume that because you speak English the rest of the World should or does.

It's a pain when you buy a used machine and there is no O&M Manual in the back pocket of the seat - I assume yours is used BTW because there's no way a new one would come without one. If the Serial Number of your machine is higher than HEN06750 you will need Cat Publication reference SEBU8385. It'll cost about $50 from your Cat dealer. If it's not in that range post the S/N of your machine and I'll check which is the correct publication for it.

lantraxco · Aug 24, 2015

For a while there CAT and DEERE I think it was were attaching a cable to the manual so it was FOR SURE in the cab of the machine when it sold, it was a liability issue they were doing their best to cover. Manual had to be in and remain in, the cab of the machine so the operator could consult it any time the need arose.

Great world we live in, eh? :tong

check · Aug 24, 2015

Thanks for the replies. I did buy it used. very used. It was made after HEN06750. I'll get one at the dealer.

If I did not speak or read English, the pictographs would not help me one bit. I imagine over half their products are sold to English-speaking customers. For the rest, finding an English-Swahili or English-French dictionary would be much easier than reading pictographs. As a matter of fact, I wish it was in Italian or French or German. At least then I could look it up on the net. There is apparently no way to look up pictographs other than buying the genuine Cat manual.
Maybe Cat is trying to be "politically correct" and sensitive to non-English reading personnel already in English speaking countries.

Nige · Aug 24, 2015

Your answer surprises me somewhat, because in many years of experience all over the world I've never heard complaints from operators in either English or non English-speaking countries about not being able to understand pictographic symbols. It's not as if Cat are the only manufacturer that uses them, and they are an International ISO Standard.

I do have a copy of the Dictionary of Pictographic Symbols in Adobe pdf format if it will be of any help to you. If you drop me a PM with your email address I'll gladly send it to you.

lantraxco said:
For a while there CAT and DEERE I think it was were attaching a cable to the manual so it was FOR SURE in the cab of the machine when it sold, it was a liability issue they were doing their best to cover. Manual had to be in and remain in, the cab of the machine so the operator could consult it any time the need arose.

Even the cable won't stand up to a pair of side cutters .......

John C. · Aug 24, 2015

The paper manuals always end up as rain goo or rodent tooth sharpening devices. Some kind of plastic laminate like what used to be put in telehandlers for load charts would be best. But then again that would likely cost a lot more than $50.

I have to say I don't much care for the symbols either. Which switch turns on the high flow function in a skid steer. The symbols do not provide an intuitive solution to that question. Which switch releases pressure on the hydraulic quick couplers so you can hook up an attachment? How would you know by the symbol?

kshansen · Aug 24, 2015

Nige said:
As Lantraxco says, get used to pictographic symbols. It means the manufacturer only has to produce one version of the machine. Don't simply assume that because you speak English the rest of the World should or does.

We had about the opposite problem years ago. Boss got a deal on two of what I guess would be called "Grey Market" 966D's. All the labels on gauges and warning decals were in German! Pressures and temperatures were all in metric figures. I replaced most all the critical warning labels with English language ones and made my own labels for the few gauges. Did not worry about the actual readings as the red/green zones still made sense to the operators.

One slightly off topic thing about one of these machines is while checking it over noticed an oil drip coming out of the belly pan under transmission. A close look and I see a large wade of newspaper soaked in oil. When I pulled it out noticed that it too was also printer in German! Not sure if that was a factory approved repair for a leaking output yoke seal or just a last minute fix as it was being loaded on the boat.

TriHonu · Aug 24, 2015

Take a look at Dictionary of Pictograph Symbols.pdf from Safety.Cat.com

lantraxco · Aug 25, 2015

Right.

It's all well and good, but having passed 50 a while back, most of these idiot lights are smaller than a postage stamp, are under plastic that's scratched and smeared and wearing a layer of ground in dust, and if that light comes on and the beeper goes off, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING WITHOUT CONSULTING OVER 75 FREAKING PAGES OF ROSETTA STONE HIEROGLYPHICS TO FIGURE IT OUT!

Some of them of course are obvious, but every machine has different systems and different warnings, I can't remember every variation. I accept it's something I have to live with, but I don't have to be happy about it.

Cheers!
Lanway

seatwarmer · Aug 25, 2015

Ok I dont want to be nasty, but remembering a 82 page pdf with about 20 symbols each page is like learning Mandarin (Chinese)

Nige · Aug 25, 2015

I would point out that if you have the Operator Manual (which the OP didn't and is where we came in) then you have access to all the symbols that you need for the particular machine you are operating at the time.

IMHO it ought to be against the law to sell a used machine without the Operator Manual being in the pocket behind the seat.

seatwarmer · Aug 25, 2015

Its still a challenge when you are in a 3rd world country with no literacy skills
That means if you cant read the Operator Manual is useless

Nige said:
I would point out that if you have the Operator Manual (which the OP didn't and is where we came in) then you have access to all the symbols that you need for the particular machine you are operating at the time.

IMHO it ought to be against the law to sell a used machine without the Operator Manual being in the pocket behind the seat.

Nige · Aug 25, 2015

Been there - done that. We used to take people out of the bush in places like Angola, Mozambique, & Zambia who had never operated anything more complex than a bicycle and teach them how to operate heavy equipment. I must admit I found it quite strange initially (but not after I'd been there a while) that anyone who went on their 30-day annual leave had to go through a re-training course on their return before being allowed to operate a machine on their own .........

check · Aug 25, 2015

seatwarmer said:
Ok I dont want to be nasty, but remembering a 82 page pdf with about 20 symbols each page is like learning Mandarin (Chinese)

If you're looking up a French word in a French-English dictionary, you look it up alphabetically. If you're looking up a pictograph, you look for the pictograph from cover to cover until you find it. This is why I think Cat customers would have been better served to have controls labeled in any common alphabet language.

When I finally do get a grasp on these readouts, I will spend some cab time with my dymo labelmaker tagging them for future reference. Forget about me trying to memorize all those pics.

BillG · Aug 25, 2015

Even worse than the pictograph issue is a machine that is poorly maintained. The hot sun with no protection for the switch / gauge panel can make for a lousy experience for a new operator or even a mechanic that is not familiar with the machine. I have spent more hours than I care to admit trying to determine what the faded or completely missing symbol is, just to troubleshoot an issue.

kshansen · Aug 25, 2015

check said:
When I finally do get a grasp on these readouts, I will spend some cab time with my dymo labelmaker tagging them for future reference. Forget about me trying to memorize all those pics.

Most of Cat pictographs can be figured out with a few clues.

If it has a picture of a gear with a little thermometer in the center-That's transmission temp.

Picture of a gear with two arrows pointing at each other-That's transmission pressure.

Picture of a gear with a broken line across it-That's transmission filter plugged

Now the same thing but a little picture of a hydraulic cylinder, same things but that would refer to they hydraulic system.

A wavy line with the thermometer in the center, key word wavy, wave means water so that is coolant temp.

Once you take the time to dissect the picture into it's parts for the most part they are easy.

Forgot one, (0) something that looks like that, the ( is meant to look like a brake shoe and would probably have the little thermometer to say brake oil is too hot. Don't try to over think the fact you have disc brake!

I will agree that a machine in poor condition especially one with no cab could be a problem. But then even if the indicator or gauge had been in the Queen's English the wording would be gone so what good would that be?

digger doug · Aug 25, 2015

lantraxco said:
Right.

It's all well and good, but having passed 50 a while back, most of these idiot lights are smaller than a postage stamp, are under plastic that's scratched and smeared and wearing a layer of ground in dust, and if that light comes on and the beeper goes off, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING WITHOUT CONSULTING OVER 75 FREAKING PAGES OF ROSETTA STONE HIEROGLYPHICS TO FIGURE IT OUT!

Please, don't hold back man...tell us how you really feel about it....

lantraxco · Aug 25, 2015

Well, couple more years it will be a moot point, we'll have autonomous machines without seats going about their business. Even the ones with operators will have satellite links, they'll decide for themselves if there's a problem, to shut down or derate or keep working, and phone in the fault information for a central computer to decide which service to dispatch or schedule.

What will we do with all the people though, when the machines operate themselves and learn to repair themselves? Hmm? They won't need near as many of us poor folk anymore and may well do away with us. Sweet dreams.

kshansen · Aug 25, 2015

lantraxco said:
Well, couple more years it will be a moot point, we'll have autonomous machines without seats going about their business. Even the ones with operators will have satellite links, they'll decide for themselves if there's a problem, to shut down or derate or keep working, and phone in the fault information for a central computer to decide which service to dispatch or schedule.

And to some extent that day is already here. The last two machines we got where I worked would send me an email if someone shifted them wrong or some other parameter was triggered.

Translating Caterpillar Readouts /Controls to English

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Well-Known Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member