Heavy equipment machinery

If you own a compact tractor and have any hills or slopes on your property, you know that one of the scariest feelings is when the tractor loses its stability.

All compact tractors can tip at some point, if operated on a slope too steep for the tractor to handle. The "angle of danger" will depend on many factors, but especially the tractor’s center of gravity.

The center of gravity on each tractor is different, and can sometimes be lowered by adding weight close to the ground, like wheel weights, or having certain implements mounted. Also keep in mind that on smaller tractors, a 150-200 lb. operator will raise the center of gravity considerably, and can decrease stability further.

Compact tractor roll-overs and tip-overs are one of the leading causes of tractor-related deaths in America. In fact, a person is twice as likely to be killed from a tractor roll-over from the next leading cause of death associated with tractor usage  (Source: National Safety Council Injury Facts, 1999). In most cases, tip and roll-overs are caused by operator error or inexperience.

So how can one operate your tractor on slopes safely?

While there is no one safety device that can physically stop your tractor from tipping over when operated on a slope that is too steep, the tractor operator can use common sense, and a slope degree indicator, to decrease the chances of tipping over.

The first safety precaution all tractor owners should take is to read and apply the advices in the tractor owner’s manual regarding safe operation. Be sure to note in that manual suggested maximum loads for implements, operating conditions, and other issues. (See free safety report offer below.) And always, never operate a tractor without ROPS, or without the folding ROPS in the secure upright position.

One excellent device that we and many experienced operators recommend that every compact tractor be equipped with, is the Tilt Meter, made by R&B Manufacturing.

The Tilt Meter works like a level, but with degree indicators to show the angle of operation.

Knowing the operating angle will reveal how close one is to the danger zone, and when the operator needs to return to safer, more level ground.

Think of a Tilt Meter as you think of a fuel gauge. Just as a fuel gauge won’t prevent you from running out of fuel, a Tilt Meter won’t prevent you from tipping over. But, it will tell you when you need to take that hill from a different angle, or back off it altogether.

Many users have reported on TractorByNet.com being very satisfied with the presence of their Tilt Meter in front of them at all times of operation. Although no one can guarantee that an accident will be avoided, it is true that many people have reported that they avoided accidents and even saved lives by having the Tilt Meter on board.

As one might expect, rural highway departments mow on some of the steepest slopes there are, and face some of the most dangerous tip-over hazards. You’ve probably seen them yourself on the highway and thought, "Sure glad I’m not in that seat!"

Well, among these most experienced operators who face the issue of safety and tip-overs all day long, more than 7,000 highway department tractors and vehicles are equipped with Tilt Meters from R&B Manufacturing, the leading manufacturer of Tilt Meters in America.

The results after installing Tilt Meters? According to the manufacturer, not a single tip-over has been reported from any of the highway departments!

In addition to highway departments, road districts, park & recreation departments, landfills, military, municipal & county governments, USDA forestry and major equipment manufacturers —all are users of and firm believers in the value of Tilt Meters.

Literally thousands of individuals have equipped their tractors with Tilt Meters, and again, not once has a tip-over been reported by an R&B Tilt Meter user!

If you have a tractor and operate it on slopes, we highly recommend you get a Tilt Meter and always keep safety in mind.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/articles/02tm.htm

Volvo Trucks North America has earlier announced that in the second quarter of 2007, the automaker’s upcoming truck lineup will be equipped with I-Shift, an automated mechanical transmission that tenders two-pedal operation.

Scott Kress, senior vice president of sales and marketing of Volvo said, "We believe customers will immediately recognize the advantages I-Shift offers for productivity, lower cost of operation, driver recruitment and retention, and safety. The combination of I-Shift with Volvo’s new engine family gives our customers a complete vehicle and drivetrain solution. Customers can always get the perfect ratio at the right time for optimal engine and vehicle performance, which means a higher degree of productivity, fuel economy and reliability."

I-Shift will be initially offered on trucks with brand new engines - D11, D13 and D16. Truck models which will be equipped with the groundbreaking I-Shift are VT and VN highway tractors and the VHD vocational truck. All-new engines are designed to handle top rating 600 hp/2,050 lb.-ft. torque input. Further, it will be integrated to other Volvo vehicles for added power and performance.

Volvo I-Shift is new to North America. In fact, it was only introduced in chosen parts around the world in early 2002. However, in other markets across the globe, Volvo has already sold approximately 80,000 units of vehicles with I-Shift.

Improving fuel economy was one of the core reasons why Volvo is integrating I-Shift to its vehicles. The integration of engines and transmission paved way for higher efficiency and rating. Moreover, using I-Shift and several sensors, the transmission is able to calculate acceleration, speed, weight, torque demand, air resistance and road grade. As a result, the driver can choose the most proficient use of engine.

Another quality feature of I-Shift is Eco-Roll. The latter is intended for operation in rolling hills. It works by automatically disengaging the engine when the vehicle calls for the same. The aftermath is the reduction of parasitic losses by about 30hp.the road grade sensor, on the other hand, helps resolve which gear to start off in and when the transmission can skip-shift. This is done to provide better fuel economy.

With this innovation, car fanatics are anticipating that I-Shift will also be integrated with Volvo V40 parts as well as other Volvo parts to augment Volvo’s appeal.

http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=294499

TTControl has developed a steer-by-wire prototype for agricultural tractors in cooperation with ognibene, a leading manufacturer of high-quality hydraulic products.

The demonstrator is a fully functional steer-by-wire driving control unit for a tractor. The project’s goal is to demonstrate that steer-by-wire can fulfill all legal obligations for the use on the road. Fundamentally, this means that the steer-by-wire system will be able to tolerate any single failure. This kind of fault tolerance is required in order to obtain permission to operate the equipment on the road. Many conditions have to be taken into account, but the most important feature of a steer-by-wire system is the ability to tolerate any single fault in the system in order to avoid any dangerous situation.

In case of a failure the system must remain operational. As with all safety-critical applications, the system contains redundant electronic control units and redundant sensors and actuators. A TTP architecture is used for data communication. Single failures were injected into the system in order to verify that the redundancy level introduced was enough to satisfy the R79 regulation for steering systems.

The valves in the hydraulic circuit of the vehicle are controlled by the electronic system that receives the movements of the joysticks via sensors. As all movements are controlled by the electronics, the system is highly flexible, and it can manage an extensive range of functions. With such a system, the failure of one sensor, one actuator, one bus line, or even one whole ECU has no critical consequences; it does not influence the behavior of the control system at all.

http://www.ttcontrol.it/applications/tractors.htm