Design of a Six-Swing-Arm Wheel-Legged Chassis for Forestry and Simulation Analysis of its Obstacle-Crossing Performance

Abstract

Obstacle-crossing performance is an important criterion for evaluating the power chassis of forestry machinery. In this paper, a new six-swing-arm wheel-legged chassis (SWC&F) is designed according to the characteristics of forest terrain, using herringbone legs to control the ride comfort and stability of the chassis in the process of crossing obstacles. First, the kinematic model of the SWC&F is established, the coordinate analytical expression of each wheel centre position is derived, and the swing angle range of each wheel leg of the chassis is calculated according to the installation position of the hydraulic cylinder. Next, the control model of the system is constructed, and the obstacle-crossing performance of the SWC&F is analyzed by ADAMS/Simulink co-simulation using the PID control method and conventional control method, respectively. The results show that the maximum obstacle crossing height of the SWC&F can reach 411.1 mm, and the chassis with PID control system has good dynamic response characteristics and smooth motion, which meets the requirements of forest chassis obstacle crossing design. The study can provide the foundation for the practical laws of the physical prototype of the forest vehicle chassis.