Military terrain vehicles

The author gives a survey of the historical background, current developments and future aspects of the most important wheeled and tracked military terrain vehicle systems focusing, in particular, on their automotive technological performance as well as on their tactical features. Weapon systems, radio and other military equipment are not part of this survey.This paper does not cover niche products such as over-snow and amphibious vehicles which are also used for military purposes. However, hybrid propulsion systems are included.     

The development of the turntable combine harvester for improving turnability and operation efficiency

A turntable combine harvester was constructed based on theoretical computations and its performance in saving time for turning during harvesting operations was evaluated. Theoretical discussion was developed with a comparison between the prototype combine harvester and a commercial one from the view points of the total required time for completing the harvesting operation per unit area of the field with any shape ratio of the length to the width, and the total required distance which the combine travels. The cutting width, travelling speed, specification of the combine harvester and the shape ratio of the paddy field were chosen as the variables to estimate the total required time and distance. Both the time and distance were used to evaluate how the turntable combine harvester is superior to a commercial one. Automatic steering control was developed and tested in the experiment. The recommended shape and the function as a rice combine harvester were proposed.     

A method of torque control for independent wheel drive vehicles on rough terrain

Our previous research has revealed that, for vehicles with independently driven wheels, a torque distribution based on the ratio of the vertical load of each wheel to the total vehicle load is efficient for driving on flat ground. In this research, this method of torque distribution was extended to electric off-road vehicles driving on rough ground. In order to examine the driving efficiency of these vehicles, a numerical vehicle model was constructed in the pitch plane. Simulations using the numerical vehicle model on rough ground were conducted with a proposed torque distribution and control method. The numerical results from these simulations were compared with those of a conventional vehicle to evaluate the driving efficiency and trafficability on ground with various profiles. A comparison between the simulations demonstrated that the proposed method of torque distribution to the front and rear wheels based on the ratio of the vertical load is efficient for driving on rough ground.     

Practical method of reducing turning motion resistance of tracked vehicles

A practical method of reducing the resistance of a tracked vehicle to turning or steering motion is discussed. The torque of the sprocket shaft for driving the crawler was measured and used to evaluate how the resistance varied compared with the existing method to turning. There are two ways of reducing the turning resistance by decreasing the contact area of track; one is to decrease the width of the braked track and the other is to shorten its contact length during turning or steering motion. The former is practically impossible to control, but the latter is comparatively easy to do, even under that condition. Applying this mechanism, the resistant force (evaluated by measuring the driving torque of the sprocket shaft) could be reduced about 20% when the contact length of the braked track was shortened to form a small pivot area at its center. It was also reduced more than 50% when the contact length of both tracks was shortened to a pivot during turning motion.     

Prediction of impacts of wheeled vehicles on terrain

Traffic of off-road vehicles can disturb soil, decrease vegetation development, and increase soil erosion. Terrain impacts caused by wheeled off-road vehicles were studied in this paper. Models were developed to predict terrain impacts caused by wheeled vehicles in terms of disturbed width and impact severity. Disturbed width and impact severity are not only controlled by vehicle types and vehicle dimensions, but also influenced by soil conditions and vehicle dynamic properties (turning radius, velocity). Field tests of an eight-wheeled vehicle and a four-wheeled vehicle were conducted to test these models. Field data of terrain–vehicle interactions in different vehicle dynamic conditions were collected. Vehicle dynamic properties were derived from a global position system (GPS) based tracking system. The average prediction percentage error of the theoretical disturbed width model is less than 20%. The average absolute error between the predicted impact severity and the measured value is less than an impact severity value of 12%. These models can be used to predict terrain impacts caused by off-road wheeled vehicles.     

Modeling of terrain impact caused by tracked vehicles

Analytical models that can predict the terrain impact caused by tracked vehicles on a horizontal plane were developed and tested. The models included a disturbed width model and an impact severity model. Inputs of the terrain impact models included vehicle static properties, vehicle dynamic properties, and terrain properties. The tested vehicles included an M1A1 tank, an M577 Armored Personal Carrier (APC), and an M548 cargo carrier. The models were verified with field tests conducted in Yakima Training Center in Yakima, WA, Fort Riley, KS, and Camp Atterbury, Indiana. The average percentage errors of the disturbed width model for the M1A1, M577, and the M548 were 10.0%, 27.3%, and 8.5%, respectively. The average percentage errors of the impact severity model of the M1A1 and M577 were 25.0% and 21.4%, respectively.     

Online terrain estimation for autonomous vehicles on deformable terrains

In this work, a terrain estimation framework is developed for autonomous vehicles operating on deformable terrains. Previous work in this area usually relies on steady state tire operation, linearized classical terramechanics models, or on computationally expensive algorithms that are not suitable for real-time estimation. To address these shortcomings, this work develops a reduced-order nonlinear terramechanics model as a surrogate of the Soil Contact Model (SCM) through extending a state-of-the-art Bekker model to account for additional dynamic effects. It is shown that this reduced-order surrogate model is able to accurately replicate the forces predicted by the SCM while reducing the computation cost by an order of magnitude. This surrogate model is then utilized in an unscented Kalman filter to estimate the sinkage exponent. Simulations suggest this parameter can be estimated within 4% of its true value for clay and sandy loam terrains. It is also shown in simulation and experiment that utilizing this estimated parameter can reduce the prediction errors of the future vehicle states by orders of magnitude, which could assist with achieving more robust model-predictive autonomous navigation strategies.     

Optimal control of the dynamic stability for robotic vehicles in rough terrain

In this paper, we mount semi-active suspensions between the wheels and platform of a robotic vehicle to absorb the vibrations caused by movement over rough terrain. The semi-active suspension consists of a spring and a magneto-rheological damper. By combining the dynamic model of the suspended robotic vehicle and the control model of the damper, we propose a new methodology to evaluate the dynamic stability of the vehicle. The model considers the configuration of semi-active suspensions and the road-holding ability of robotic vehicles. Based on the stability criterion, we use the particle swarm optimization method to search the optimum semi-active damping characteristics. The control model of the semi-active damper is checked by sinusoidal response analysis. To verify the dynamic stability criterion and the control method, we evaluate the proposed methodology by simulating a rough pavement condition and comparing the effectiveness of the method to a passive suspension. The results show that the proposed stability criterion is feasible, and the optimal control method yields a substantially improved dynamic stability when the vehicle moves through rough terrain.     

Track-terrain modelling and traversability prediction for tracked vehicles on soft terrain

Skid-steered tracked vehicles are the favoured platform for unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) in poor terrain conditions. However, the concept of skid-steering relies largely on track slippage to allow the vehicle to conduct turning manoeuvres potentially leading to overly high slip and immobility. It is therefore important to predict such vulnerable vehicle states in order to prevent their occurrence and thus paving the way for improved autonomy of tracked vehicles. This paper presents an analytical approach to track-terrain modelling and a novel traversability prediction simulator for tracked vehicles conducting steady-state turning manoeuvres on soft terrain. Traversability is identified by predicting the resultant track forces acting on the track-terrain interface and the adopted models are modified to provide an analytical generalised solution. The validity of the simulator has been verified by comparison with available data in the literature and through an in-house experimental study. The developed simulator can be employed as a traversability predictor and also as a design tool to test the performance of tracked vehicles with different vehicle geometries operating on a wide range of soil properties.     

改进力法计算的研究

针对传统力法的缺点, 利用VBA进行了Excel电子表格的编制, 对传统力法 进行了改进. 在保持传统力法的基本原理和计算过程的基础上, 解决了力法计算繁琐的问题, 提高了计算速度和学习效率, 增强了结构力学课程与实际的联系, 对工科课程的教学具有一 定的指导意义.     

On the impact of cargo weight, vehicle parameters, and terrain characteristics on the prediction of traction for off-road vehicles

A realistic prediction of the traction capacity of vehicles operating in off-road conditions must account for stochastic variations in the system itself, as well as in the operational environment. Moreover, for mobility studies of wheeled vehicles on deformable soil, the selection of the tire model used in the simulation influences the degree of confidence in the output. Since the same vehicle may carry various loads at different times, it is also of interest to analyze the impact of cargo weight on the vehicle’s traction.This study focuses on the development of an algorithm to calculate the tractive capacity of an off-road vehicle with stochastic vehicle parameters (such as suspension stiffness, suspension damping coefficient, tire stiffness, and tire inflation pressure), operating on soft soil with an uncertain level of moisture, and on a terrain topology that induces rapidly changing external excitations on the vehicle. The analysis of the vehicle–soil dynamics is performed for light cargo and heavy cargo scenarios. The algorithm relies on the comparison of the ground pressure and the calculated critical pressure to decide if the tire can be approximated as a rigid wheel or if it should be modeled as a flexible wheel. It also involves using previously-developed vehicle and stochastic terrain models, and computing the vehicle sinkage, resistance force, tractive force, drawbar pull, and tractive torque.The vehicle model used as a case study has seven degrees of freedom. Each of the four suspension systems is comprised of a nonlinear spring and a viscous (linear or magneto-rheological) damper. An off-road terrain profile is simulated as a 2-D random process using a polynomial chaos approach [Sandu C, Sandu A, Li L. Stochastic modeling of terrain profiles and soil parameters. SAE 2005 transactions. J Commer Vehicles 2005-01-3559]. The soil modeling is concerned with the efficient treatment of the impact of the moisture content on relationships critical in defining the mobility of an off-road vehicle (such as the pressure–sinkage [Sandu C et al., 2005-01-3559] and the shear stress–shear displacement relations). The uncertainties in vehicle parameters and in the terrain profile are propagated through the vehicle model, and the uncertainty in the output of the vehicle model is analyzed [Sandu A, Sandu C, Ahmadian M. Modeling multibody dynamic systems with uncertainties. Part I: theoretical and computational aspects, Multibody system dynamics. Publisher: Springer Netherlands; June 29, 2006. p. 1–23 (23), ISSN: 1384-5640 (Paper) 1573-272X (Online). doi:10.1007/s11044-006-9007-5; Sandu C, Sandu A, Ahmadian M. Modeling multibody dynamic systems with uncertainties. Part II: numerical applications. Multibody system dynamics, vol. 15, No. 3. Publisher: Springer Netherlands; 2006. p. 241–62 (22). ISSN: 1384-5640 (Paper) 1573-272X (Online). doi:10.1007/s11044-006-9008-4]. Such simulations can provide the basis for the study of ride performance, handling, and mobility of the vehicle in rough off-road conditions.     

一种结合地形和环境特征的水下导航定位方法

为了实现水下潜器长时间高精度导航定位,同时考虑到传统地形辅助导航系统在先验地形图不可得或者是地形变化不明显的海域(地形不可匹配区域),无法用来修正惯性导航位置误差的问题,提出了一种结合地形和环境特征的水下导航定位方法。在先验地形图可得且地形高程变化明显的可匹配区域,采用地形辅助导航系统来修正惯导位置误差,在先验地形图不可得或者是地形高程变化不明显的不可匹配区域,采用基于海洋环境特征的同步定位与构图算法来修正惯导位置误差。仿真结果表明,该方法在地形可匹配区域以及地形不可匹配区域得到的航迹都比纯惯导得到的轨迹更接近于理想航迹,因此可以用来修正惯导位置误差。     

提高飞机着陆气动性能的一种新方法探索研究

提出了一种新型气动技术,其主要原理是:将机翼上表面的一部分翼面设计为活动翼面,当飞机进入降落阶段、迎角较大时,适当抬高该活动翼面,从而在该活动翼面后形成一个台阶,通过台阶中产生的稳定驻涡来控制机翼上表面的流动;与此同时,打开安装在机翼上的Gurney襟翼,可达到同时提高机翼升力和失速迎角的目的。将该技术在DLR-F4上应用,数值模拟结果表明:机翼的最大升力系数提高了17.37%;失速迎角从11°提高到13°,提高了18.18%。本文为提高飞机的着落性能探索出一种具有发展潜力的方法。     

针对高动态载体应用的高精度捷联惯导姿态算法优化方法

提高高动态条件下捷联惯导姿态算法的解算精度和解算实时性是提高高精度捷联惯导系统实用性能的重要基础。特别是针对高超飞行器等高速高动态载体的高精度实时导航需求,需要采用较高的惯性器件采样率,以提高高动态条件下的姿态解算精度。由于传统捷联指北姿态算法中器件采样率的增加会导致算法运算量的大幅增加,影响算法的实时性。基于此,提出了基于捷联算法优化编排原理的双速姿态解算方法和工程实现编排方法。该方法在增加惯性器件采样率的同时并不会显著增加计算量,能有效满足高速高动态载体的实时性导航解算需求。仿真试验结果表明,在高动态仿真条件下,双速优化姿态编排算法与传统指北算法相比,更能有效满足高动态下捷联惯导算法的实时性和高精度解算要求。     

An efficient method for increasing the accuracy of mobility maps for ground vehicles

This paper presents an efficient method for increasing the accuracy of one key step regarding the process of determining a mobility map. That is, the interpolation of the original Digital Elevation Model (DEM) to a finer resolution before running multi-body-dynamics simulations. Specifically, this paper explores the use of fractal dimension and elevation range metrics for increasing the accuracy and reducing the computation time associated with the spatial interpolation ordinary kriging method. The first goal is to ensure the stationary variogram requirement. The second goal is to reduce kriging error or variance in the new predicted values. A novel segmentation-based approach has been proposed to divide the regions of interest into segments where stationarity is ensured. Empirical investigation based on real DEMs indicates the generality of the segmentation approach when natural and man-made terrains are considered. The proposed method leads to a more efficient computation burden and to more accurate results than the traditional approach.     

提高能量法确定压杆临界荷载精度的一种方法

通过杆件的弯矩位移关系消去能量法确定压杆临界荷载公式中的位移导数项,大大地提高了其计算精度,文后给出的两个算例证明了这一结论.     

陡峭山坡风场数值模拟方法研究

地形起伏是造成山地风场复杂多变的主要原因,其风场特性与基于均匀粗糙平面的风场有很大的区别.为准确模拟山坡地形风场,以坡角45°的简化陡峭山坡为研究对象,采用CFD数值模拟方法进行了流场分析,通过与风洞试验和各国规范对比,详细分析了网格分辨率、湍流模型和坡顶局部光滑处理等因素对数值模拟风场精度的影响.结果 表明,采用基本网格尺度布置以及Realizable k-ε湍流模型,在坡顶位置的风压系数值与风洞试验存在一定偏差;在坡顶分离点处采用具有二阶连续性的曲线进行局部光滑,可使得数值模拟所得风速比和风压系数与试验结果更好地吻合,且光滑曲线的过渡段水平距离越短,模拟效果相对越好,坡顶位置的地形加速效应模拟结果与文献试验、中国以及澳大利亚规范具有更好的一致性.     

改进的地形熵算法在地形辅助导航中的应用

地形辅助导航是水下航行器导航技术的一个发展新方向,但它并不能够在任何地形区域都可以工作,比如在平坦区域的导航效果很差。通过计算不同区域的水深标准差,选择地形特征独特的区域作为适配区域。基于熵的算法对于地形复杂区域的匹配分析是快速有效的,但传统的地形熵算法匹配精度不高,本文引入了地形差异熵的概念并对其进行改进,在选定的地形区域使用MATLAB软件进行了仿真研究。仿真结果表明,改进的地形熵算法在选定的地形区域位置误差在250m左右,可以满足水下航行器的导航要求。