A dynamic terramechanic model for small lightweight vehicles with rigid wheels and grousers operating in sandy soil

This paper presents a validated dynamic terramechanic model for rigid wheels with grousers that may be used for planetary and terrestrial mobile robots operating in loose sandy soil. The proposed model is based on established analytical terramechanic theories and incorporates two new dimensionless empirical coefficients. The additional terms in the model are based on existing soil mechanic theories that vary as a function of soil properties, slip conditions, and vehicle loading. The proposed model was able to capture and predict the dynamic oscillations observed in experimental data from a single-wheel testbed for the sinkage, drawbar pull and normal load. For the operating conditions tested in this research the simulation results using the proposed model show an improvement over traditional terramechanic models for capturing the dynamic effects of grousers. (C) 2011 ISTVS. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.