Numerical method for estimation of kinematical parameters for articulated rovers on loose rough terrain

Based on the study of passive articulated rover,a complete suspension kinematics model from wheel to inertial reference frame is presented,which uses D-H method of manipulator and presentation with Euler angle of pitch,roll and yaw.An improved contact model is adopted aimed at the loose and rough lunar terrain.Using this kinematics model and numerical continuous and discrete Newton's method with iterative factor,the numerical method for estimation of kinematical parameters of articulated rovers on loose and rough terrain is constructed.To demonstrate this numerical method,an example of two torsion bar rocker-bogie lunar rover with eight wheels is presented.Simulation results show that the numerical method for estimation of kinematical parameters of articulated rovers based on improved contact model can improve the precision of kinematical estimation on loose and rough terrain and decrease errors caused by contact models established based on general hypothesis.

Wheel slip-sinkage and its prediction model of lunar rover

In order to investigate wheel slip-sinkage problem, which is important for the design, control and simulation of lunar rovers, experiments were carried out with a wheel-soil interaction test system to measure the sinkage of three types of wheels in dimension with wheel lugs of different heights and numbers under a series of slip ratios (0-0.6). The curves of wheel sinkage versus slip ratio were obtained and it was found that the sinkage with slip ratio of 0.6 is 3-7 times of the static sinkage. Based on the experimental results, the slip-sinkage principle of lunar's rover lugged wheels (including the sinkage caused by longitudinal flow and side flow of soil, and soil digging of wheel lugs) was analyzed, and corresponding calculation equations were derived. All the factors that can cause slip sinkage were considered to improve the conventional wheel-soil interaction model, and a formula of changing the sinkage exponent with the slip ratio was established. Mathematical model for calculating the sinkage of wheel according to vertical load and slip ratio was developed. Calculation results show that this model can predict the slip-sinkage of wheel with high precision, making up the deficiency of Wong-Reece model that mainly reflects longitudinal slip-sinkage.

Shank Selection for Disc-Ripper

The new sustainable tillage system needs new machines which are the combination of well accepted disc harrow and cultivator or chisel/ripper. To find the type of ripper shank we have done a research program with 7 different shape and size tools. The geometrical parameters were determined in laboratory, the performance （loosening effect, depth etc） and draft requirements were measured on loamy soil stubble field （the speed range： 2.5-7.5 krrdh）. Developing a combined evaluation system-based on performance and draft data-to select the most favorable shank type for our condition was found one which has the following features： the size of the point： rake angle = 25°, length = 240 mm, width = 80mm; the equation of the shank curve： y = axb, where a = 2-3.5 and b = 0.04-0.05.