Analysis And Research On The Steering Of Tracked Vehicles

Steering analysis is an important section for force calculation and structural design of vehicles. Due to the complex interaction between the crawler and the ground, the sliding phenomenon happens at the crawler-ground contact region is not taken into account in traditional methods, which results in the variation between the results of traditional theoretical calculation and the results of actual situation. Therefore proposing a more accurate calculating method of steering process for crawler vehicle, figuring out the relationship between the sliding speed and the steering resistance torque of the tracked vehicles is of great importance to guiding type selection of traveling mechanism of crawler tracked vehicles and improving the controlling and operating performance of the crawler tracked vehicles.In this paper, the concept of sliding speed is introduced based on the analysis of steering speed of crawler tracked vehicles. The sliding speed direction of an arbitrary point in the crawler tracked vehicle can be determined according to the steering principle of the crawler tracked vehicle. The value and direction of the friction force causing the steering resistance torque can be determined based on the fact that the friction direction of an arbitrary point between the ground and the crawler tracked vehicle is opposite to the direction of the sliding speed of the same point. The steering resistance torque can be obtained when the steering center is determined. According to the steering conditions of the crawler tracked vehicle, the analysis formula of the sliding speed of the crawler tracked vehicle is deduced. The main results of this study paper are as follows:1) Analysis formulas of the driving force, steering resistance torque, steering radius and sliding speed of the crawler tracked vehicle are derived when the position of the centroid and position of the geometric center coincide or do not coincide.2) Results of the steering radius, the steering speed of the crawler track on two sides obtained from test and calculation of the algorithm proposed in this paper respectively are compared and the validity of the method is proved.3) The 3D dynamic model of the chassis of the crawler tracked vehicle is established by applying the dynamics analysis software RecurDyn/Track-HM. Various simulation models with different steering characteristics like the speed and the centroid position are analyzed. By comparing the data of theoretical calculation and that of simulation, the correctness of the model is verified. The contents researched in this paper are of great guidance importance for a profound understanding of the steering characteristics and trial adjustment strategy of the crawler tracked vehicle, which can help to shorten the manufacturing cycle, reduce the manufacturing cost as well as provide a new way of thinking for further research of crawler tracked vehicles.