As part of the development of the Next Generation NATO Reference Mobility Model (NG-NRMM), UW-Madison participated in an industry-wide multibody-dynamics simulation benchmarking activity that occurred in 2016 and 2017. Out of all the participants, Chrono was the only open source software solution. For Phase I of the Benchmarking activity, the lab built a model of an M113 replica utilizing the tracked vehicle capabilities of Chrono::Vehicle. This model was subsequently exercised in a variety of events. These events included a maximum swept radius during a turn in place maneuver, double lane change maneuvers, obstacle avoidance and crossing maneuvers, and several other events. For Phase II of the Benchmarking activity, the lab built a model of a 4-wheeled demonstration vehicle and exercised it through a similar, but slightly different, set of maneuvers as the Phase I Benchmarking event.
Contributors: Radu Serban, Asher Elmquist, Rainer Gericke, Michael Taylor, Daniel Melanz and Dan Negrut