ABSTRACT

According to the trafficability perfomance of the tracked vehicle, the eccentricity of the vehicle was analysed and calculated quantitativeally by prime grounding area theory of the grounding track.Four typical gounding pressure distribution functions of the vehicle, rectange linear distribution, trapezia linear distribution, right-angled triangle linear distribution and multi-peak sinusoidal non-linear distribution, were obtained to calculate its traction forces. The trafficability performance of the vehicle on soil is best under grounding pressure linear trapezia distribution, then multi-peak sinusoidal non-linear distribution and lastly right-angled triangle linear distribution.The traction force of the vehicle increases under the gounding pressure trapezia linear distribution and right-angled triangle linear distribution when its working center of gravity is forward to its geometry. On the contrary, it decreases under the gounding pressure trapezia linear distribution, right-angled triangle linear distribution and multi-peak non-linear distribution when the working center of gravity is behind of its geometry center.The eccentricity of the vehicle should be designed to be L/12 to L/6 behind of its work center of gravity and the number of the bearing wheels should be increased properly.

INTRODUCTION

The trafficability perfomance of the tracked vehicle was usually expressed by its traction force on terrain.The track interacted with soil that track sheared soil and in turn soil drived track. According to the mathematical equation for shearing strength and displacement, Bekker, Z. Janosi and Wong (Bekker, 1978; Wong, 1989) deduced the traction force equation and the equation was used to calculate the traction force of the vehicle on terrain.It was shown that the traction force was not only related with the shearing strength of soil but also with the grounding pressure distribution of the vehicle. The paper researched the effects of three typical grounding pressure distribution functions on the traction force of the vehicle so as to afford the theoretical basis for the design of grounding pressure and optimization design of the seabed tracked vehicle.

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