6540 - KRC BEVAMETER DEVELOPMENT AND MOBILITY DATA COLLECTION

Paper presented at ISTVS 2025 | 55th Conference of the International Society for Terrain-Vehicle Systems https://doi.org/10.56884/M0DWTB9K

Authors: Russell Alger, Peter Alger

Keywords: Bevameter; Bekker-Wong; Vehicle Mobility; Traction; Sinkage

Abstract:

The Keweenaw Research Center (KRC) at Michigan Tech University has designed and built an automated Bevameter to measure in-situ soil strength and derive Bekker-Wong mobility parameters. Testing has been performed in a number of soils including high organic soils (peat), silts, sands, gravels, and lunar regolith at various moisture contents. A data set containing derived strength parameters is being built and results that are non-proprietary and non-controlled are shared with permission on the KRC website.

KRC has also performed several vehicle mobility tests both in the field and in the lab on the KRC single wheel tire tester. A large amount of this collected data is also available on the website with permission. All testing includes cone penetrometer, nuclear density, moisture, and surface friction when possible.

This paper will be an overview of the Bevameter and the data collected to date, as well as an overview of other mobility testing that has been performed.