About this event
This talk will explore how the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center - ERDC (previously known as WES) approaches mobility for ground vehicles operating in adverse conditions. In particular, this presentation talks about mobility research on soft soils and cold regions.
Soft soil mobility research: Soft soil mobility has remained a vital research area for military vehicles. The Vehicle Cone Index (VCI) testing procedure developed by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, is used to evaluate the ability of ground vehicles to traverse soft soils. The simple and robust methods for testing and data collection, with soft soil mobility enhancers provide exceptional utility for the US Army during acquisitions and performance predictions.
Cold region mobility research: Cold region mobility is of growing concern with the Arctic, providing more opportunities for mineral and natural resources harvesting. In recent years, this has captured the interest of more and more countries, bringing more traffic to the Arctic regions. This has led to the U.S. Military to focus more on defending the Arctic and the US from a possible northern threat. This talk will discuss areas of active research in cold regions modeling, mobility, and autonomy at a high level.
Speakers: Dr. Bradley Hansen, ERDC-GSL and Michael Parker, ERDC-CRREL
Hosted by
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Guest speaker
Brad Hansen U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)G
Bradley Hansen is a Research Civil Engineer for the US Army Corps of Engineers at the Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg, MS. His research focuses on Army vehicle mobility as well as other geotechnical topics. His current research focus includes (1) Real-time and high-fidelity validated terramechanics models, (2) Physical testing of military platforms for requirements development, (3) and expedient mechanical/chemical solutions for increasing ground bearing capacity.
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Team member
Jenna Dixon digital operations @ ISTVST
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Guest speaker
George MasonG
Dr. George Mason worked for 33 years as a research engineer in the Mobility Systems Branch, Engineering Systems and Materials Division, Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory, as the Army’s lead researcher for studies on vehicle mobility. Later, he joined the Center for Advanced Vehicle Systems (CAVS) at Mississippi State University as a Research Civil Engineer. His work in mobility research was related to military areas, encompassing geospatial analyses, discrete element modeling of soils, and investigating vehicle/terrain interaction. The research required the application of advanced theories of soil physics and soil mechanics to quantify complex physical phenomena associated with the science and engineering of off-road vehicle mobility and the study of changes in associated surface geology.
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Team member
Varsha SwamyT
Varsha S. Swamy is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech, under the guidance of Dr. Corina Sandu and Dr. Alba Yerro-Colom. Her Ph.D. research deals with the numerical modeling and experimental validation of tire-mud interactions, supported by the Automotive Research Center, a university-based U.S. Army Center of Excellence for modeling and simulation of military and civilian ground systems. Additionally, she received the SMART scholarship from the DoD and works with U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) at Vicksburg, Mississippi.
ISTVS
ISTVS is an international organization that focuses on advancing the knowledge in terrain vehicle systems for improvements in engineering practice and innovation. They promote the transfer of advanced knowledge to the user for the benefit of society in...
