A hybrid system approach to off-tracking suppression in multi-articulated vehicles

Multi-articulated vehicles consisting of a tractor pulling a large number of (semi-) trailers, also known by the term “road trains”, are a promising alternative for a more efficient mass transportation of goods. One of the major technical problems of road trains is off-tracking, i.e. the deviation of a pulled vehicle from the paths of its preceding vehicles. The novel sliding junction technique can drastically suppress or even eliminate off-tracking but has stringent demands on the control of the junction (“kingpin”) position. The hybrid systems approach to sliding consists in setting a predefined number of discrete sliding deviation levels corresponding to various ranges in the value of the deviation angle between two adjacent vehicles. The resulting control system is an inexpensive, easy to operate alternative that may prove attractive to a manufacturer.