Optimal Sensor Package Selection for Off-road Vehicle Mass Estimation

Principal Investigator
Jeffrey L. Stein (U. of Michigan)

University Researcher
Hosam K Fathy (U. of Michigan)

Government
Dave Gunter (TARDEC)

Student
Ben Pence (U. of Michigan)

This project is motivated by the need for military vehicles that can carry very significant payloads, potentially in excess of their original designs, while remaining mobile, safe, and dynamically stable. Such vehicles, exemplified by the up-armored High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), may be able to adapt to increased loading if their mass is estimated online. Ideally, such online mass estimation should be possible both on-road and off-road, and should be performed using a minimal instrumentation package that can potentially be retrofitted onto existing vehicle fleets.

With the above motivation in mind, this proposed project has three main objectives. First, it will optimally select a sensor package for off-road vehicle mass estimation. Second, it will develop a targeted vehicle mass estimator that utilizes this sensor package. Finally, it will validate this mass estimator using an off-road simulation of the HMMWV. Future work may extend these results to other (e.g., future) off-road military vehicles, such as the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected vehicle (MRAP), or unmanned off-road vehicles. This research will furnish an off-road vehicle mass estimator that can then be used as an integral part of military, and civilian, vehicle safety systems, including active safety systems.