Abstract

Rubber-tracked vehicles are becoming increasingly popular in agriculture. Rubber-tracked undercarriage systems are typically fitted instead of tyres on heavy agricultural vehicles, with the aim of e.g. decreasing soil stress and soil compaction risks. Therefore, accurate prediction of soil stresses below rubber-tracked systems is important. Here, we present a model for prediction of vertical stress distribution at the rubber track soil interface. In the model, the rubber-tracked undercarriage system consists of a front and rear wheel (idler and drive wheel) and a number of support rollers. The stress distribution in the longitudinal direction under a wheel or roller is described by harmonic oscillation, with the dynamic contact length being a function of wheel or roller diameter. In the lateral direction, the stress distribution is modelled by a linear function, with the maximum stress under the centre line of the track. Model input parameters include the load on the track, track width, track length (distance between front and rear axles), number of support rollers and wheel and roller diameter. The model, which is written in Visual Basic and implemented as a macro in an Excel spreadsheet, then computes the vertical stress at the rubber track soil interface based on these inputs and the stress distribution generated in the contact area can be used to simulate soil stresses. The model provides realistic estimates of the vertical stress at the contact between rubber track and soil, thereby improving predictions of soil stress and the compaction risks of rubber-tracked agricultural vehicles. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords

Soil compaction; Modelling; Contact stress; Soil stress; Tracks

Published in

Soil and Tillage Research
2016, Volume: 155, pages: 116-123
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

SLU Authors

• Keller, Thomas

  • Department of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • Agroscope

• Arvidsson, Johan

  • Department of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG15 Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss


UKÄ Subject classification

Soil Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2015.07.014

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/69585