The Integration of Mechanical Energy Absorbers into Rollover Protective Structures to Improve the Safety of Agricultural Tractors in the Event of Rollover

José R. Alfaro-Lopez, Amaya Perez-Ezcurdia, Juan-Ignacio Latorre-Biel (), Ignacio Arana-Navarro, Marta Benito-Amurrio and Pedro Villanueva-Roldán
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José R. Alfaro-Lopez: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Tudela, 31500 Tudela, Spain
Amaya Perez-Ezcurdia: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Arrosadía, 31006 Pamplona, Spain
Juan-Ignacio Latorre-Biel: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Tudela, 31500 Tudela, Spain
Ignacio Arana-Navarro: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Tudela, 31500 Tudela, Spain
Marta Benito-Amurrio: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Arrosadía, 31006 Pamplona, Spain
Pedro Villanueva-Roldán: Department of Engineering, Public University of Navarre, Campus Arrosadía, 31006 Pamplona, Spain

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 7, 1-22

Abstract: The combination of safety belts and rollover protective structures (ROPSs) is key in improving the safety of agricultural tractors in the event of rollover. However, we also have the opportunity to enhance the security provided by each ROPS; one such example is the combination of this safety device with adequate mechanical energy absorbers (MEAs). Inexpensive disc-shaped MEAs can be included in the anchoring points of a ROPS onto the chassis of a tractor. Three configurations of ROPS combined with MEAs were tested during the application of loads that simulated the effects of side rollover in the vehicle. The tested configurations included a blank MEA as a reference case alongside a single MEA and a stack assembly containing both elements. The results of the tests show that both the deformation of the ROPS itself and the strain energy are larger in the case of blank MEAs; thus, there is also a risk that the clearance zone will be infringed upon and that the protective structure will collapse. We can conclude that the implementation of an appropriate MEA in ROPS reduces the deformation of the ROPS itself and its strain energy in cases of vehicle rollover; hence, the safety provided by such protection systems may be improved at a low cost.

Keywords: ROPS; mechanical energy absorber; tractor overturn; strain energy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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