A Control Method for the Differential Steering of Tracked Vehicles Driven Independently by a Dual Hydraulic Motor

Abstract

It is well known that tracked vehicles can adapt well to all kinds of terrain. However, the safety of tracked vehicles should be considered during steering on sloped terrain. This paper focuses on the differential steering control of tracked vehicles independently driven by a hydraulic motor. Firstly, the dynamic model of hydrostatic drive system was built and the kinematics and dynamics of differential steering driving were analyzed theoretically. Secondly, in order to prevent rollover of the tracked vehicle, the method of vehicle speed constraint was proposed. The constraint conditions of vehicle speed and steering angular velocity were analyzed under different slope conditions. Thirdly, based on the analysis results, differential steering control rules for tracked vehicles were formulated. To verify the effectiveness of the control rules, the models of vehicle driving dynamics and Fuzzy PID control simulation were established in MATLAB/Simulink. Longitudinal steering simulation was carried out on a slope (0°, 30°), and an analysis of the simulation of lateral steering along the contour line was carried out. The simulation results showed that this steering control strategy was able to automatically adjust the target vehicle speed to avoid rollover while the driver was inputting steering signals.