Engine Power Required When Using a Tractor with a Technology Module

A shortage of class 2 and class 3 tractors was observed in peasant farms. As a solution to this problem, it was proposed to develop a technological module that would increase the versatility of class 1.4 tractors by transferring them to a higher traction class. (Research purpose) The authors aimed to substantiate the nominal operating power of the engine for a tractor with a technological module. (Materials and methods) To calculate the required power, the authors proposed a method that takes into account the design features of the modular construction of a machine-tractor unit. (Results and discussion) The authors showed that for a modular power unit with a 6K6 wheel arrangement, it is necessary to consider a number of additional factors having an impact on the accuracy of the calculation: firstly, the tractor’s traction and coupling properties depend on the number of driving axles; secondly, the wheel slippage along individual axes is not the same and occurs due to a constructively conditioned kinematic discrepancy in their drive; thirdly, the three-axle transmission efficiency can be determined only as a total indicator of three transmission branches, that is, to drive the tractor front and rear wheels and, separately, to drive the wheels of the technological module. The authors compared the required engine power when using a tractor with ballast and that with a technological module.  (Conclusions) It was determined that in order to achieve the maximum traction force of adhesion on the hook when moving to the next higher traction class, it is necessary that the tractor, that the technological module is joint to, has the energy saturation of 2.00-2.41 kilowatts per kilonewton, which corresponds to traction and energy concept tractors whose engine power cannot be realized through traction. It was found that the power saturation of the tractor with the technological module will be equal to 1.59-1.65 kilowatts per kilonewton, which corresponds to the tractor of the traction concept and allows realizing the built-in engine power through traction.