Dana Corp. has developed Spicer suspended axles for improved safety, driver comfort, component life, and traction for 105- and 200-kW (140- and 270-hp) agricultural tractors.
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At Agritechnica 1999, the Off-Highway Systems Group of Dana Corp. introduced Spicer suspended axles to meet the safety, driver comfort, component life, and traction needs of agricultural vehicle manufacturers and end-users. The new axle designs include integrated systems of either hydropneumatic or electrohydraulic suspension. Suspensions can be configured to meet customer requirements from a mix of options including axle position control, self-stabilizing and control at various load levels, load sensing, and self-leveling functions.
"Greater vehicle traction is realized both on and off road, which results in greater productivity and energy savings with less tire wear and operator fatigue," said Bob Brazeau, Chief Engineer with Spicer Off-Highway Products Division in Statesville, NC.
"We developed the suspended-axle designs to accommodate the increasing trend of using agricultural tractors for standard road transport," said Aldo Blini, Chief Engineer with Spicer Off-Highway Axle Division in Arco, Italy. "Our new suspended-axle systems offer superior performance at a very competitive cost."
The Spicer suspended axles developed to date feature a top pin mounting configuration with a four-bar linkage that can be used interchangeably with many existing nonsuspended axle products without changing the frame design.
According to Blini and Brazeau, off-highway vehicle suspensions are market-driven concepts that keep their engineering/design teams researching additional applications. Construction, forestry, and material handling are vehicle markets in which suspended-axle design concepts could be applied in the near future.
"Our first suspended-axle designs address some of the horsepower applications most requested by agricultural vehicle manufacturer customers in North America and Europe," said Brazeau. "Eventually, we will have a comprehensive Spicer Suspended Axle Series to fulfill a wide range of low- and high-horsepower applications."
