APPLICATION OF THE COMPUTER-SIMULATION MODEL NTVPM-86 TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW VERSION OF THE INFANTRY FIGHTING VEHICLE ASCOD

In the past, the task of evaluating soft-ground mobility of off-road v ehicles has been carried out primarily using empirical methods (or mod els), such as the NATO Reference Mobility Model (NRMM) or the Rowland method based on the mean maximum pressure (MMP). The databases for the se empirical methods were mostly established decades ago. Consequently , in many cases, they cannot be used in evaluating new generations of vehicles with new design features, as the mobility of these vehicles s imply cannot be described within the limits of these empirical databas es. Since the 1980s, a series of comprehensive and realistic simulatio n models for design and performance evaluation of off-road vehicles ha s emerged. They are based on the detailed studies of the physical natu re of vehicle-terrain interaction, taking into account all major vehic le design features and pertinent terrain characteristics. This paper d escribes the application of one of these models, known as NTVPM-86, de veloped by Vehicle Systems Development Corporation, Canada, to the des ign and development of a new version of the ASCOD infantry fighting ve hicle, produced by a joint venture formed by Empresa Nacional Santa Ba rbara of Spain and Steyr-Daimler-Puch of Austria. The results of field tests performed by the Military Technology Agency, Ministry of Defenc e, Vienna, Austria and released recently confirm that, as predicted by the NTVPM-86 model, the new version of the ASCOD has much improved pe rformance than the original over soft terrain, including soft clay and snow-covered terrain. This is another example of the successful appli cation of the NTVPM-86 model to the design and development of a new ge neration of high-speed tracked vehicles.