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In order to improve the applicability and prediction accuracy of the existing simulation test methods of vehicle tractive performance on sandy soil, the off-road tire model using the discrete element method (DEM) under each operating condition is separately established in this paper. The contact parameters of DEM model are calibrated by rubber-sand friction test and soil bin test combined with corresponding simulation test. On this basis, the tire-sand simulation model is calculated under straight and inclining driving conditions, and the variation law of drawbar pull, torque, tractive efficiency and sinkage is obtained. This paper proves the feasibility of DEM simulation in studying vehicle tractive performance, and also provides a systematic parameter calibration method for improving the accuracy of DEM simulation, which is of great significance to enrich vehicle testing methods.

The interaction between off-road tires and granular terrain has a great influence on the tractive performance of off-road vehicles. However, the finite element method or the discrete element method cannot effectively study the interaction between off-road tires and granular terrain. The three-dimensional combined finite element and discrete element method is applied to handle this problem. In this study, a calibrated finite element method–discrete element method model is established, in which the finite element model of off-road tire is validated by stiffness tests, while the discrete element model of gravel particles is validated by triaxial compression tests. The calibrated finite element method–discrete element method model can describe the structural mechanics of the off-road tire and the macroscopic mechanical properties of the gravel road. Tractive performance simulations of the off-road tire on gravel road under different slip conditions are performed with the commercial software LS-DYNA. The simulation results are basically corresponded with the soil-bin test results in terms of granular terrain deformation and tractive performance parameters versus the slip rates. Finally, the effects of tread pattern, wheel load, and tire inflation pressure on tractive performance of off-road tire on granular terrain are investigated. It indicates that the calibrated finite element method–discrete element method can be an effective tool for studying the tire–granular terrain interaction and predicting the tractive performance of off-road tire on granular terrain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research on the interaction between off-road tires and soft ground is of great significance to improve the travel performance of off-road vehicle on soft ground. The interaction between tire and soft ground can not be described by the finite element method or the discrete element method effectively. A FEM-DEM model in which the off-road tire is modeled by the finite elements and the gravel road is modeled by the discrete elements was established based on the indoor single wheel soil bin test. The proposed model can be used to accurately describe the complex mechanical properties of off-road tire and the granular features of gravel road. The tractive performance of off-road tire on gravel road at different slip rates is simulated by using the combined finite element-discrete element method in LS-DYNA. The tractive performance parameters of off-road tire, such as tire tractive force and rim sinkage, at different slip rates were obtained and investigated. The numerically simulated results are basically corresponded with the experimental results, which verifies the validity of the combined finite element and discrete element method in studying the interaction between tire and soft ground. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]