In this paper, a mathematical model of wheeled vehicle tractive or braking performance was developed and verified by experimental data. Then, various center of gravity and height of application force movement effects were analysed by simulation analysis. For a given set of vehicle dimensions and terrain wheel system constants, the simulation calculated effective tractive or braking effort and rear wheel sinkage, slip ratio or skid of a special designed wheeled robotic vehicle running over sloped weak sandy terrain for straight forward motion. For a 5.88 kN weight vehicle, the optimal eccentricity of center of gravity, the optimal application height and the maximum slope angle of terrain could be determined for rear-wheel drive (RWD), front-wheel drive (FWD), four-wheel drive (4WD) or rear-wheel brake (RWB), front-wheel brake (FWB), and four-wheel brake (4WB) travel systems. (C) 2000 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
