Transversal Vibration Analysis of Vehicle Track System

Abstract The track is mainly composed of track shoes, track pins and rubber bushing elements. In order to suppress the transversal vibration of the upper track during the smooth running process of the tracked vehicle, it is necessary to study the important factors affecting the frequency characteristics of the kinematic chain and their interaction. Unlike the conventional chain drive system, the track in the natural state has a bending rigidity due to the action of the rubber bushing. Based on the dynamic theory of axially moving beam, the differential equation of transversal vibration of a beam element is established. The entire upper track is assumed to be a continuous multi-span axially moving Euler-Bernoulli beam with an axial tension. Based on the Transfer Matrix Method of Multibody System, the transfer equation is obtained. According to the boundary conditions, the natural frequency of the system is solved. The correctness of the beam model hypothesis is verified by experiments. The results show that the first-order natural frequency of the upper track increases with the increase of the tension and the decrease of the vehicle speed. Through frequency analysis, the main excitation source for the transversal vibration of the track is the polygon effect produced by the meshing of the track and the sprocket. This study provides a theoretical basis for the vibration analysis and stability control of the upper track on the tracked vehicle.