Abstract
The demand for greater mobility on unprepared terrain in all seasons by agriculture, construction, and the military has stimulated interest in the study of off-road vehicles. Thus the use of automobiles for cross-country movements and the potential for building more efficient automobiles and vehicles with high off-road mobility has also increased significantly.
The engineers and designers of off-road vehicles face a lack of generally recognized theories. Usually, the concept of terrain vehicles are developed very empirically and are based on principles of mechanics and land locomotion.
The author presents a general overview on models and considerations for wheeled off-road vehicle concepts. First vehicle and soil are defined, then the interaction between these two elements is discussed. Based on these models, methods to predict and measure traction of off-road vehicles are evaluated. The relevant elements of off-road vehicles and their influence on mobility are presented. At last the human factors and future developments are shown.