Theoretical Model for Prediction of Turning Resistance of Tracked Vehicle on Soft Terrain

Abstract EN

Skid-steered tracked vehicles are commonly used in soft agricultural terrain due to its low ground pressure between vehicle tracks and the ground.

However, the sliding and sinkage of the track during a turning maneuver causes considerable turning resistance, which reduces the vehicle's turning ability.

Therefore, we constructed a theoretical model that predicts the turning resistance of tracked vehicles—under steady-state conditions on soft terrain—accounting for track sinkage effects and track slip and skid.

The results demonstrate that the moment of turning resistance decreases with increased track slip and skid ratio but increases with track sinkage depth.

The model-predicted moments of turning resistance for the outer and inner tracks—at a given track sinkage depth and track slip and skid ratio—are in reasonably close agreement with available experimental data.

This theoretical model can be employed as a predictor for testing the turning resistance of tracked vehicles operating on a wide range of soils.