.I. agric. Etlgng Res.

(1978) 23, 259-272

Torsional Vibration Analysis of Tractor and Machine P. t.o.

Drivelines

D. A. CROLLA*

The tractor and machine power take off (p.t.0.) driveline is simplified to a two inertia system.
The effects of various components on the behaviour of this simplified model are then examined,
including an overrun clutch, backlash and Hooke’s joints. These non-linear elements affect
the frequency response of the system considerably, for example, natural frequency can be
halved in certain operating conditions simply by the addition of an overrun clutch.
Operating the machine with different tractors also affects frequency response and the designer
must, for example, be able to calculate the range of natural frequencies to avoid machine
inputs from blades or tines which excite the driveline in this range. This paper presents the
necessary theory to perform these calculations.

1. Introduction
The design of drivelines for agricultural machinery is a particularly demanding task. Experience
gained from other driveline applications requiring the transmission of high torques is not always
relevant because of the unusually harsh environments in which agricultural drivelines operate.
Machines are often left outdoors all year round, and in work may be subjected to extreme torque
fluctuations due to overloads caused by the random nature of the crop or soil, machine blockage
or vibration. Another difficulty is that machines must be designed to operate with a range of
tractors, each with different engine p.t.o. driveline characteristics, so that the natural frequencies
of the combined systems vary considerably.
The situation is aggravated by the lack of research work on driveline behaviour. Apart from
some excellent work by Kiihlborn’ in Germany who used his analysis to model a conventional
baler, little other work has been reported. Perhaps this lack of work is not altogether surprising,
since historically drivelines have tended to be considerably over-designed to avoid failures. But
over recent years, as machine size and sophistication have increased, the need for a more technical
approach to design has been emphasized.
Increases in machine size have resulted in higher inertias which increase the amount of stored
energy to be dissipated when blockages occur, as well as causing problems when starting which
have been discussed recently. 2 The higher capital investment required for larger machines means
that breakdowns are effectively more expensive in terms of the greater capital invested and loss
of output during available working hours. Increased power requirements have brought about a
gradual change from the 540 rev/min p.t.o. standard to 1000 rev/min operation, and this has
caused severe vibrarion and balancing problems in some cases on machine drivelines originally
designed to operate at the lower speed. One final important trend is the increasing use of front
mounted p.t.o. driven equipment which increases the complexity of the driveline.
The objects of this paper are to examine the dynamic behaviour of the combined tractor and
machine driveline, and the effect of various components on a simplified model of the driveline.
The ability to predict performance and vibration characteristics at the design stage is one of the
fundamental requirements of the development of agricultural machinery. The other requirement
is a knowledge of torque loading patterns over a wide range of field conditions and these data are
currently being analysed for presentation in a later paper.

* NIAE, Wrest Park, Silsoe, Bedford MK45 4HS

Received 7 December 1977: accepted in revised form 15 April 1978

259
W71 8634!78/030313i- 16 $02 O&O ci‘ 1978 The British Society for Research in Agricultural Enaineerina
260 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

2. Simplified model of tractor and machine driveline

There are several components normally included in agricultural drivelines which make the
system non-linear and which therefore make classical methods of vibration analysis inapplicable.
These components include, (a) overrun clutch, (b) overload clutch, (c) non-linear spring and
(d) Hookes joints. The approach used here is to start with a simple linear model of the tractor and
machine driveline and to include the non-linear components in turn. In this way the individual
effect of each component on the system equations and characteristics can be identified.

Machine
- inertia
-
Gear ratio I Gear rotio Cn iln
5 478
I
1, : I 1
L
I

- , -
Stiffness, damping I Stiffness, damping
of tractor p.t.0. I of machine
shaft h,, , cp shaft k,,,,c,,,

Tractor : Machine

Fig. 1. Simplified model of a tractor and machine p.t.o. driveline

The model used to simulate a tractor and machine driveline is essentially that described in
previous work,2 shown in Fig. 1. The tractor p.t.o. clutch is ignored since normal working
conditions after the machine has been started will be assumed. The slipping torque of the p.t.o.
clutch when engaged will normally be higher than the peak torques reached in the driveline and
will not therefore affect the analysis. If this is not the case then the p.t.o. clutch can be treated
as a simple slip clutch which is described later.
There are several imuortant assumutions made in this simnlified model. as follows.
(a> The tractor engine and main machine working partsAcan be replaced by simple inertias.
This is reasonable for most engines where inertia is dominated by the flywheel and many
machines where the inertia is concentrated in the final rotating parts. But it will be an
over-simplification in some cases, for example, balers, where an additional flywheel is
part of the machine and more inertias may be necessary to represent the system adequately.
(b) The stiffnesses of the driveline components from tractor engine to p.t.o. stub are linear and
can therefore be combined to give an equivalent overall stiffness.
(4 The stiffness of the machine driveline components are linear so that they can also be
replaced by an equivalent overall stiffness. This assumption may not be valid for flexible
components such as belts or rubber elements but the effect of a non-linear stiffness in the
system is examined in detail later in the analysis.
(4 The tractor engine torque is assumed to be constant. This assumption will be valid for most
of the frequency range considered but below about 1 Hz torque fluctuations due to engine
governor operation may become important.
BY referring the inertias to the main driveshaft and combining the stiffnesses and damping
between the two sets of gears, the equations of motion can be written.
Z1 e,+c(e,-e,)+k(B,-8,)=T,, . . (1)
I, e,-c(e,-e,)-k(8,-8,)= -T,, . . (2)

where z, = zen,2, (3)

I, = Zmnm2, ... (4)
I). A. CROLLA 261

NOTATION
c shaft damping coefficient Y defined as (0,--B,), i.e. shaft deflection
CCrit critical shaft damping coefficient Y. free play or backlash
c ,” machine shaft damping coefficient Y. shaft deflection at which overload
c, tractor p.t.o. shaft damping coefficient clutch operates
I inertia 6 relative angle of shafts each side of
1%. tractor engine inertia Hooke’s joint
I (II equivalent machine inertia dimensionless disturbing frequency
k general shaft stiffness 0” angular displacement of an inertia
k, crankshaft stiffness 6 angular displacement of engine inertia
Xf tractor front p.t.o. shaft stiffness em angular displacement of machine inertia
k, machine shaft stiffness Pl defined by expression .LI~w,~ = TIljT,,l
kp tractor rear p.t.o. shaft stiffness V damping ratio
n, tractor engine/rear p.t.o. shaft gear w variation in shaft deflection about mean
ratio w0 mean operating speed
W,f tractor engine/front p.t.o. shaft gear w1 defined by expression p,w,‘= TJ,/T,,I
ratio w. natural frequency
trnl machine gear ratio Q disturbing frequency
4 function describing speed variation
across a Hooke’s joint
time Suffices
I, torque 1 refers to equivalent engine inertia
T, engine torque 2 refers to equivalent machine inertia
7-m machine torque A double suffix refers to a variable quantity
T” mean operating torque between two inertias, e.g. klz is the shaft
r, general shaft torque stiffness between inertias 1 and 2. Speed and
slipping torque of overload clutch acceleration are denoted by a single and
mean shaft deflection double dot respectively.

. .. (5)

I 1 1 (6)
-=-+-.
c c, cfn
The mathematical solution to these equations is not difficult to derive and by defining a new
variable, y= (13, - f9,), a second order differential equation can be written. If the solution is to be
of practical use however, a different derivation is more relevant. Under normal operating
conditions the driveline will be running at some mean speed, CD,,,which will be controlled by the
engine governor and can therefore be assumed constant.
If we define, 4, as the variation in speed about the mean speed, then the following equations
can be written,
e,=o,t+W1, &=CBo,t+yl,-p, . . . (7)

4=0&+&, &=wg+&, . . . 63)

0, = $;r, e, = $&, . (9)

where p is the static deflection of the shaft due to the applied torque.
The frequency response of this system is now obtained by applying a torque, Tz= T,,+ TcosQt,
to say the machine inertia and assuming that a constant torque Tl = TOacts at the engine inertia.
262 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

Substituting Eqns (7)-(9) in Eqns (1) and (2), and inserting these torques gives,
Z,(~,)+c(~,-~,)+k(lul-~u,+B)=T,, t.. (10)
z,(~,)-c(~,-~,)-k(W1-yl,+p)= -T,-TcosQt. . . . (11)
But
P = T,lk . . (12)
because it is the static shaft deflection so that the k/?and T,, terms cancel out. Then, by defining

@=wI-Vv, . . (13)

as the difference in shaft deflection about the mean, the equation of motion for the system is
simply,
. (14)
e + ;e+ f O- ;cos 52 t=O
2

where
. . . (19
;L-+;

and the two classical parameters of the system can then be defined in the usual terms:
Ti .. .
natural frequency w,=
J 7 ;

c . . . (17)
damping ratio v = 2 = ~.
2%&i
The response is therefore reduced to that of a single degree of freedom system and is indepen-
dent of the mean operating speed. Because the damping ratio will normally be small, typically less
than 0.1, it follows that large vibration amplitudes will occur if the system is excited near its
natural frequency. The driveline design must therefore avoid any forcing cyclical inputs from for
example, the engine, machine blades, tines or Hookes joints which excite the driveline near w,,.
Already the machine driveline designer is faced with a problem because both the effective tractor
inertia, Zr and p.t.o. stiffness, k,, and damping, cP, affect the k and Z terms in Eqns (16) and (17)
so that natural frequency and damping ratio will vary with the type of tractor used to operate the
machine. It is necessary therefore to avoid inputs over a defined frequency range toavoid vibration
on different tractors.
Taking for example the case of a 2.2 m twin drum mower and conditioner, which has an
effective inertia of 34 kg m2, and assuming a typical overall driveline stiffness of 4100 Nm/rad,
then the range of natural frequencies when used with tractors whose engine inertias vary over the
range 05 to 2 kg m2, is 2.7 to 4.5 Hz. This estimate is conservative because the driveline stiffness
is assumed to remain constant. If this varies from say 2000 to 8000 Nm/rad over the tractor range,
then the frequency range is increased to between 1.9 and 6.2 Hz.
Although this analysis is useful as a first approximation, in practice there are several other
factors to be considered which introduce non-linearities into the driveline. These are discussed
individually in the following sections, so that their effect on the basic simplified system can be
identified.

3. Effect of overrun
The characteristic of an overrun device is shown in Fig. 2. This is incorporated in the simplified
model in Fig. 3 and the device is assumed to be close to the machine inertia where it will often be
placed in practice.
1). A. CROLLA 263

Shaft torque

Mean torque To- - - -

Shaft deflection, 8, -&

-
Non-liz Linear

Fig. 2. Torque characteristics of a shaft fitted with an overrun device

Equivalent Equivalent
engine inertia mochim inertia

Fig. 3. Simple driveline model with overran device

The equations of motion become

I, 0, + T, = T,,, (18)
I2 &Tr= -To-TcosQt, (19)
where
T,=c(d, - d,)+k(B,--8,) for (0, -8,) >O, . (20)

T,=O for (0, - 0,) < 0. . (21)

If during vibration (0, - 0,) becomes negative, then the above equations show that the system
is discontinuous and therefore non-linear. It is possible to derive expressions to describe the
areas of linear and non-linear operation in terms of two dimensionless coefficients, 4, which is the

i
0 o-4 0.8 I.2 l-6 2. cl
Dimensionless disturbmg frequency, 9

Fig. 4. Boundaries between linear and non-linear regions for driveline model with overrun for various degrees of
damping, v
264 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

ratio of the disturbing frequency to the natural frequency ($2/o,) and ~rcur2 which is equal to
(TI,/TJ). The areas can then be plotted as shown in Fig. 4. 3 These curves show for example
that the closer (Q/U,) is to unity, where vibration amplitudes are greatest, the greater the likeli-
hood of entering a non-linear region. Also, the greater the mean torque, T,, compared to the
exciting torque T, the less likely it is for (13,- 0,) to become negative and so the system is more
likely to remain linear. These relationships are described more fully in Reference (3).
The frequency response calculation is more difficult to calculate than for the original system.
For values of q and p10r2 in the linear region, the response will be unchanged, but for other
values the equations are non-linear and there is no simple mathematical solution. As with other
dynamic non-linear problems encountered in agriculture, the easiest solution, without resorting
to the more sophisticated mathematical techniques such as phase plane or describing function
analysis, 4 is to simulate the system. As in previous work,2 a simulation language on a large
digital computer was used, because of availability but the problem lends itself as readily to an
analogue computer approach.

With overrun clutch

Ol--l
0.1 \
Disturbing frequency, n (Hz)

Fig. 5. Effect of overrun andfreeplay on speed variation of machine

A typical frequency response calculated using the simulation language C.S.M.P., 5 is shown in
Fig. 5. The figures used are those shown in Table 1 for a medium power tractor and drum mower
and conditioner. The solid line is the response of the simple system and the dotted lines show the
effect of the overrun clutch at two mean torque levels. The effect of the overrun clutch is to alter
not only the natural frequency but also the shape of the curve which has one steep side corres-
ponding to the transition from linear to non-linear operation. Once again the designer may be
faced with the problem of changes in operating conditions, in this case the mean torque, changing
the driveline behaviour, and ideally the driveline should be free from undesirable characteristics
over the range of mean torques at which it may be operated. Note however that the overrun
device has most effect at the lower torques, and this point is particularly relevant to drum mowers,
which have high inertias and which often operate at lower mean torques than other forage
machinery.
In the case where there is some free play, yO,in the driveline Eqns (18) and (19) remain unchanged
but the value of T, is now
T,=c (8,-e,)+k(B, -13,) for (0, -Q2)>y0, .*. (22)
T,=O for (8, - e,) G yo. . . (23)

The effect of this is to increase the areas of non-linear operation, by an amount proportional to the
magnitude of the free-play. 3 The effect of O-05 rad of free play on the system with an overrun
device is shown in Fig. 5. The overall amplitudes of speed variation are increased but the shape
of the curve remains similar to the case with the overrun clutch only.
L). A. CROLLA 265

4. Effect of overload clutch

The characteristic of an overload clutch can be approximated to that shown in Fig. 6. It is
assumed that when the shaft torque reaches T,, then the slip clutch starts to slip and continues
slipping at this torque until the shaft torque drops below T, when the clutch re-engages. In
practice, there may be several discrepancies, 6 for instance the breakaway torque is often higher
than the slipping torque, and the slipping torque may be speed and temperature dependent, but
these are secondary effects which may be ignored for the simplified model. The equations are
T,=k(B,--fl,)+c(~,-8,) for -ys<(8,-8,)<y,, (24
T,= T, elsewhere . (25)
and eqns (18) and (19) remain unchanged.
.
Shaft torque
rr

Clutch slipping T, -

y, Shoft deflection, 81-82

Fig. 6. Torque characteristic of a shaft fitted with an overload clutch

In practice, the design value of T, will invariably be far higher than the torques caused by
torsional vibration, and slip would only occur with a lightly damped system forced at its natural
frequency. Since there are already other reasons for avoiding this frequency range the effect of
the overload clutch on vibration is only of academic interest. A notable exception to this argu-
ment however is the conventional baler, which as pointed out previously is a special case because
it does not fall within the scope of the simplified model chosen, and must be analysed separately.
It is however quite normal for the overload clutch to operate each cycle of the fundamental forcing
frequency of the machine corresponding to the ram stroke frequency.

5. Effect of backlash
The characteristic: of backlash in the driveline is shown in Fig. 7 where
T,=O for -y0<(8,-&.)<~,, . . . (26)
T,=c(o, - d,)+k(B, -0,) elsewhere. . . . (27)
Assuming as before that there is a constant mean driving torque imposed on the driveline, then
normal operation will occur on the right-hand slope of this characteristic and for small amplitude
fluctuations about this mean the system will be linear. Obviously if during vibration (8, - 0,)
falls below y0 then the behaviour is non-linear, and the shaft torque suddenly drops to zero until
(0, - 0,) reaches - y0 when the shaft again operates as a torsional spring. The effect of this dead
space in the spring characteristic is analagous to the deadband characteristic encountered in
control engineering applications and together with other relay features has been the subject of a
266 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

Shaft torque
6

+70 Shaft deflection, 6,-&

Fig. 7. Torque characteristic of shaft with backlash

considerable amount of non-linear analysis. The overload clutch characteristic in the previous
section is analagous to the saturation feature of a control valve. The areas of non-linear operation
can be described as before in terms of dimensionless coefficients and are similar to the overrun
case except that a lower as well as an upper boundary is required, relating to the case where
(4 - &> < Yo.
20,
I
‘I
15 - \ ‘I
\ II
\ ’’ With backlash of

IO -

5-

0 I I ,,,,,,I
0-I I.0 IO-0
Disturbing frequency, 51 (Hz)

Fig. 8. Effect of backlash on speed variation of machine

The effect of backlash is shown in Fig. 8. The parameters are as before except that slightly
more damping was used to reduce computing time but the response of the original system with
increased damping is shown for comparison. The effect of the backlash is to alter the natural
frequency and also to increase the overall level of speed variation substantially. The detrimental
effects on a driveline of this characteristic are apparent. Speed is more difficult to control
accurately, the peak variation at CO,,for the same damping ratio is exaggerated, and since the
speed variation is increased, both the acceleration and torque peaks are increased. The range
between minima and subsequent maxima is the factor which most affects fatigue behaviour and
the effect of backlash will be to increase the number of damaging cycles and therefore reduce
fatigue life.
6. Effect of non-linear spring characteristic
There are several machines which have belts or rubber elements in their drivelines and unlike
the metal components of the driveline, these often have a non-linear spring rate. The overall
machine stiffness can then be described by the following general equation,
k=k,+k, (f?,-es>. .. . (28)
In practice, this expression can vary considerably but it will generally result in an increasing spring
Il. A. CROLLA 267

rate as shaft twist increases. The natural frequency of the system increases as amplitude of
vibration increases, so that at a given forcing frequency, the amplitude of vibration can never
become large because the natural frequency at small amplitudes is different from that at higher
amplitudes. The system exhibits a phenomenon called jump resonance, when the response
suddenly changes depending on whether the frequency is increasing or decreasing.
In practice, there arecircumstanceswhere the forcing frequency may be increasing or decreasing,
due for example to the effect of the Hookes joints when the machine is accelerating or decelerating.
It may be necessary to measure or calculate the spring rate of potentially non-linear components
to predict whether this effect may be expected.

7. Effect of Hooke’s joint

Because of the need for flexibility between tractor and machine, the drivelines of all agricultural
p.t.o. driven machinery, except stationary units, include Hooke’s joints. Unless they are in line
or the angles of a pair ofjoints are equal and in the same plane, then they introduce a fundamental
forcing frequency oftwice the shaft speed into the driveline. The equation describing the relation-
ship between input and output speed of a single Hooke’s joint, such as that shown in Fig. 9 for
example is

e,, cos 6 (29)

lt9, = (1 -sin2 6 sin2 19~~)= ‘1’S

They are more commonly used in pairs, as in Fig. IO, in which case the equation is

cos 6,
43
e
y=
11
i
(co? 11
cos 6,
6, = q13 (30)
1 - 1 - ~0~2 sin2 01,
2
providing the assumption can be made that the inertia of the connecting shaft is negligible. The
practical effect of Hooke’s joints between shafts is equivalent to a gearbox connecting the shafts
where the gear ratio varies sinusoidally with input rotation.

Fig. 9. Simple driveline model incorporating (I single Hooke’s joint

Taking firstly, the example shown in Fig. 9, if say !&I2 and k&k, then the system can be
simplified considerably by the assumption that 0, and 8,, are constant. This reduces the problem
to a simple one degree of freedom system which is excited by a sinusoidally varying speed, d12,
the frequency of which depends on the mean rotational speed, e,,. However this assumption
268 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

Fig. 10. Simple driveline model incorporating a pair of Hooke’s joints

will not usually be valid for the tractor and machine model and the dynamics of each shaft
must be considered. The four equations of motion are
118, + cl@, - 01,) + k,(& - 011)= T,, . . . (31)
Ize,-c,(B,,-e,)-k,(B,,-8,)= -T,. . . . (32)

The shaft torques are connected by the effective gear ratio, q12, which is defined by
k,(B,-e,,)+c,(8,-8,,)=q,,k,(e,,-e,)+q,,~,(B,,-8,). . . . (33)
where providing that 6 < 20”, q, 2 can be approximated to

qi2 = B
42 = l-2-4, cos 28,,+44, cos 4e,,.
. . (34)
11

where A, and A, are constants involving 6.

By again defining a variable,
y=e,-8, . . . (35)

Eqns (31) to (34) can be reduced to a single non-linear differential equation, which is a form of the
Mathieu equation, characterized by a sinusoidally varying coefficient. However, the solution
is not easy and direct simulation of equations (31) to (34) was used to calculate the frequency
response of the driveline, shown in Fig. II. The same parameters as before were used but no
additional excitation term was required because the Hooke’s joint already provides this. Machine
speed and torque variation are plotted in the upper graphs against p.t.o. speed which is propor-
tional to forcing frequency. In the lower graphs the amplitude of variation of speed at each side
of the Hooke’s joint is plotted against p.t.o. speed.

TABLE I
Typical driveline parameter values for a medium power tractor and
drum mower and conditioner

Drum mower and

Tractor
Parameter conditioner
(52p.t.o. kW)
(2.2 m, twin drum)

Inertia, kgrrP 1.1 11

Stiffness, Nm/rad 8000 8400
Damping, Nms/rad 80 80
Gear ratio for 540 rev/min operation 3.52 1.76
Gear ratio for 1000 rev/min operation 1.9 0.95
I). A. CROLLA 269

The data used for the left-hand graphs was taken as before from a medium power tractor and
drum mower and conditioner, operating at 540 rev/min. The data for the right hand graph was
for the same tractor and machine but operating at 1000 rev/min p.t.o. speed. For the latter case,
the gear ratios n, and n, were those shown in Table I, but the other parameters were unchanged
with the exception of the shaft damping which was adjusted to give the same percentage critical
damping in each case. Again, a high value of damping, about 0.25 critical, was used to reduce
computing time. The overall levels of speed variation will be reduced by the higher level of
damping but the comparisons of the important features are valid.

_v

50

40

30

20 B
‘2,‘:
IO 811
A
L-l_J/
0 loo 200 3co 400 5006co
P.t.a shaft speed (rev/min)

Fig. II. The e$xt ofa single Hooke’s joint on a simple driveline model operating at 540 revlmin (left) and 1000 rev/mitt
(right)

The effect of 1000 rev/min operation is to almost double the natural frequency, although peak
speed variation amplitudes are similar providing the damping ratio is the same for each case.
There is more speed variation at higher speeds for the 1000 rev/min operation. This is a result of
reducing n, to give a lower equivalent inertia when the machine inertia is referred to the p.t.o.
shaft. Torque amplitude variations at 540 and 1000 rev/min are however similar. But the higher
speed results in greater speed variation at the input and output side of the Hooke’s joint.

8. Effect of front driven p.t.o. machines

There are several situations, particularly in forage conservation, where work rate and efficiency
can be improved by operating p.t.o. driven machines at both the front and rear of the tractor.
The most convenient point from which to drive the front p.t.o. is the front of the diesel engine,
although little is known yet about the effects of this on crankshaft fatigue life. An understanding
of the dynamic behaviour of the driveline is essential in order to avoid crankshaft failures which
would make the scheme uneconomic.
The previous model can be extended to include the front driven machine, as shown in Fig. 12.
The assumptions about the main components reducing to simple inertias and stiffnesses remain as
before, but notice that the engine crankshaft which was effectively isolated from the rear driveline
270 P.T.O. DRIVELINES

Front machine Tractor Rear machme

-
_) I
JStiffness I
, 6 I
L = I r,--- I
I
Stiflness { Stifjws .
Stiffness kt ’ P I m
I
I
I
GeoYtioGear ratio Gear ratio Geaztio

Fig. 12. Simplified model of the driveline of a tractor operating a p.t.o. machine at both the fkont and reur

60- II

I
50 -
I

250
L

Dlsturbmg frequency (Hz)

Fig. 13. Speed and torque variation of tractor driveline operating a machine at both front and reur
13.A. CROLLA 271

by the engine flywheel, must now be included since there is no flywheel at the front of the engine.
The model can be further simplified to the three inertia system of Fig. 12 by removing the effect of
the gears and calculating the effective inertias. The shaft stiffnesses are given by
1 (36)
-=- ; +!$,
k 01 c f

I 1.. (37)
- = .-; +&
k 12 n m’
and similar equations apply for the damping if the k terms are replaced by c terms.
The equations of motion can then be written,
zoe, -k,,(B, - 0,) -co1(81 - 0,) = -To, . . . (38)

/le,+k,,(8,-B,)+c,,(B,-8,)+ko,(8,-8,)+co,(B,-8,)=T,, . . (39)

r,e,-k,,(8,-8,)-c,,(B,-8,)= -T,. . (40)

Using these equations, the frequency response of a typical example of a medium power tractor
operating a drum mower at the front and rear, was calculated and is shown in Fig. 13.
The crankshaft stiffness is typically of the order of 100 times that of the driveline and so its
effect on the overall stiffness from tractor engine to front machine is negligible. But the front
driveline is subjected to the same kind of fluctuating torque as the rear driveline and so overload
protection against peak torques which will be transmitted by the crankshaft becomes increasingly
important. Since overrun, backlash and Hookes joints are equally likely to be present in the
front driveline, their effect can be calculated in the same manner as outlined for the rear drive.
However, there is the additional problem of interaction between front and rear components, and
there are now two driveline natural frequencies to be avoided.

9. Conclusions

(1) By simplifying a tractor and machine p.t.o. driveline to a two inertia model, the frequency
response was, calculated and the effect of various non linear elements, namely, overrun
clutch, overload clutch, backlash, non-linear spring and Hooke’s joints were examined.
(2) All the non-linear components affected the frequency response of the driveline significantly
and their effect must be included even in relatively simple design analyses.
(3) The effect of both the overrun clutch and backlash was to alter the driveline natural fre-
quency and to increase the amplitude of speed variation. Their effect is greatest on high
inertia, low torque machines such as drum and disc mowers.
(4) The effect of Hooke’s joints is to impose a forcing frequency of twice shaft speed into the
driveline. The driveline natural frequency must not therefore coincide with the forcing
frequency at normal working speed, though excitation may occur temporarily during
starting, when the machine speed is rising.
(5) The model can be extended to include front driven p.t.o. implements. The main differences
are that an expensive component, the engine crankshaft is included in the driveline, and
there are two natural frequencies to avoid.

REFERENCES

’ Kiihlborn, H. Dreschwingungsverhalten des Systems Ackerschlepper-Landmaschine. (Torsional vibrations

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