A Method for Determining Offtracking of Multiple Unit Vehicle Combinations
Authors
T. W. Erkert
Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, U.S.A.
J. Sessions
Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, U.S.A.
R. D. Layton
Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, U.S.A.
Abstract
The required road width around curves on forest roads is largely determined by the difference in wheel paths between the inside front tractor wheel and the inside rear trailer wheel. This difference, known as offtracking, is a function of the vehicle and road geometry. This paper presents a method for determining the offtracking of fixed and variable length multiple unit vehicle combinations travelling over forest roads. The computational method numerically integrates the differential equations which compute the path (tractrix) that the rear of a vehicle follows from a given steering curve. A unique three-point solution method is used to determine the instantaneous center of rotation for trailers in the vehicle combination. The method is shown to have good agreement with experimental data. It is suitable for use on microcomputers for single and multiple curves. A microcomputer program, OFFTRACK, was developed using this methodology.
