Evaluation of Turnability of Tracked Vehicle (Part 2)

Effect of Pivot Turn System with Contact Length Controlled

Abstract

The authors proposed a practical method for improving the turnabillty of tracked vehicle, in which the braked track was pivoted with the control of contact length by concentrating the load on the central part of the track. It was proved that the proposed pivot turn system could reduce the turning motion resistance effectively and drastically, and perform the smooth and less energy consuming turning. However, the additional mechanism will lead to the rising of the machine cost. This paper deals with the evaluation of the proposed pivot turn system, by comparing with the conventional one, from the viewpoint of the work consumed while turning.