Digital Data Processing Methods for Estimating Tractive Force of Tractors

Introduction. When carrying out an energy assessment of agricultural machines and traction tests of tractors, the most important indicator is the value of the tractive effort. The existing methods for determining the tractive effort of tractors imply the use of specialized measuring instruments, such as strain gauges and devices for processing and displaying information. The accuracy of determining the tractive effort is significantly influenced by the physical and mechanical properties of soil. To process the useful signal during the measurement of tractive effort, the data stream of the strain gauge sensor must be subjected to additional digital filtering taking into account the operating conditions of the agricultural unit. Materials and Methods. The functions of changing the tractive effort obtained on the K-744R2 tractor in various gears have been analyzed. An algorithm for digital processing of the signal of a strain gauge force meter based on a median filter has been developed that makes it possible to increase the measurement accuracy. The advantage of the proposed method is the ability to cut off sharp short-term impulse noise and sharp fluctuations in the amplitude of the measured value. Results. A method for determining the amount of tractive effort using median signal processing has been proposed. A device for determining the tractive effort during testing of agricultural tractors and units has been developed. The choice of the main components of the device for determining the magnitude of the tractive effort has been substantiated. As a result of the research, a device for measuring and digital processing of the signal of a force meter based on a microcontroller and specialized software for processing initial data in real time was designed and manufactured. Discussion and Conclusion. The developed method makes it possible to exclude the negative effect of impulse noise arising in the process of measuring the tractive effort of the tractor. The proposed device for measuring the tractive effort of tractors is compatible at the level of the exchange protocol with existing devices, has a high speed of operation in real time, multi-channel operation.