Analysis of Off-road Performance for a Tracked Vehicle

Suspension system is one of the most important factors in provision of ride comfort and dynamic stability in any vehicle. However, the suspension system for the tracked vehicle has more particular specifications in compare with the other vehicles. Due to its continuous track, these specifications can help the tracked vehicles possess an improved dynamic stability in off-road maneuvers compared to the vehicles with discrete tiers. In this paper, off-road performance of the tracked vehicle has been thoroughly investigated. In this regard, firstly the mathematical model of a tracked vehicle suspension system with governing dynamic equations are derived and the state-space representation are represented. After on, the off-road inputs such as hill inputs, passing over Belgian block and irregular terrain are applied to the dynamic model and the system outputs, especially body hull vertical acceleration as one of the most important criteria of stability, are reviewed. The results show that the responses are in range of acceptable overshoot and there suggest the related critical speed of the vehicle. Furthermore, for model validation the results are compared with ACMP reference model in response to the standard off-road inputs and the results are satisfactory. 

Keywords:

Belgian block , Critical speed , Dynamic stability , Irregular terrain , Off-road performance , Suspension system , Tracked vehicle