Tank steering - The Dupuy Institute Forum

The Dupuy Institute Forum

Tank steering

profile | register | preferences | faq | search

UBBFriend: Email This Page to Someone!

next newest topic | next oldest topic

Author	Topic: Tank steering
Tim Hughes Member	posted 01-31-2005 06:48 AM I'm interested in how fast tanks can turn, looking at most data sources only a single figure the "turning radius" is given. What does this number mean? How is it related to turning at various speeds/gears? IP: Logged
Rich Moderator	posted 01-31-2005 09:22 AM quote: Originally posted by Tim Hughes: I'm interested in how fast tanks can turn, looking at most data sources only a single figure the "turning radius" is given. What does this number mean? How is it related to turning at various speeds/gears? Tim, there were many different types of tank steering, most using some form of controlled braking or transmission (some very early tanks tried actually "turning" or "twisting" the track, but that had very practical limitations). In the simplest system the driver would brake one track while the other track remained unbraked and since the tracks then moved at a different rate the "faster" track would serve to turn the tank. Of course that was hard on the brakes, transmission and engine. A system that allowed a variable power output from the transmission to each track did less wear to the brakes, but was more complex. And there were many variations. So the speed of a turn was highly variable. IP: Logged
Tim Hughes Member	posted 01-31-2005 09:54 AM Rich, that's what I thought and it's why I'm interested in how one can use the single "turning radius" figure to determine the actual radius of a turn at different speeds. Presumably the radius of the turn will be greater at higher speeds? How much greater? Is this speed dependent? What is/are the limiting factor(s)? If it's not possible to extrapolate from the single figure, then why is it of interest? IP: Logged
LWD Senior Member	posted 01-31-2005 01:01 PM Well your truning radius will probably be pretty consistent at low speeds. Once you get past a soil/vehicle critical speed the radius will likely increase. However by looking at turning radius and keeping things like ground pressure and speed in midn you can probably get a decent idea of the relative maneuverability of various tanks. One place where turning radius becomes critical is in cities especially those with narrow streets and basements as this can have some very signigicant impacts on operating there. You can of course broden the questio as in of what use is any one statistic in isolation? (ie does knowing the armor thickness help if you don't know the slope? or how much of the vehicle is covered?) IP: Logged
Tim Hughes Member	posted 02-01-2005 06:03 AM Is the implication here that the turning radius figure given is an absolute minimum? Is this limited by the mechanical properties of the transmission? Or by the tracks coming off? Or the centrifugal force simply causing the tank to skid? Or what? Is it measured on earth? Asphalt? Dry? Wet? If it's a "standard" figure, presumably it has standard conditions associated with it? Wouldn't a vehicle with double differential steering (say a PzKpfw V Panther) have different turn radii in different gears? So there'd need to be, what, 7 different turning radius figures? I'm interested to know what this single figure of "turning radius" means and how it relates to actual turns under various conditions of gear/speed/ground conditions. IP: Logged

All times are ET (US)	next newest topic \| next oldest topic
Administrative Options: Close Topic \| Archive/Move \| Delete Topic
	Hop to:

Contact Us | The Dupuy Institute

Powered by Infopop www.infopop.com © 2000
Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47e