Enhancing Tractor Operator’s Safety, Comfort, and Experience with LTTS’ Solution

Background and Business Challenges:  The client, a global OEM in tractors and heavy equipment, had developed a tractor variant for the APAC region and wanted to reduce steering wheel vibrations and improve seat comfort with an aim to enhance operator’s safety, comfort, and experience.  In agricultural tractors, the steering wheel and seat vibration is a huge concern for operator safety and comfort.  When dealing with vibration related issues, the design and analysis plays a major role in determining the root cause of the problem.  LTTS (L&T Technology Services), with its vast experience in this field, was chosen to:

• Analyze the root cause of a tractor’s steering and seating vibration
• Improve the operator’s comfort and reduce fatigue

Solution Implementation: LTTS effectively tackled the challenges the client was facing.  They began by benchmarking against competitors’ products, including a field trial.  Engineering analysis was done to identify the root cause of excessive vibrations and discomfort.  Further, concept generation was done on 2D and 3D virtual validation, leading to detail design and prototyping.  The solution included:

• Design of Experiments (DOE), Vibration Transfer Function analysis (VTF), frequency response analysis, and MBD simulation to minimize vibration in steering and seat
• Prototyping build and field tests were carried out at LTTS’ in-house state-of-the-art “Teardown Lab”

Business Outcome: The business outcome was positive.  LTTS’ solution enhanced operator productivity and efficiency by 25 percent.  100+ field tests were conducted, and the performance goal was set after benchmarking against two competitors’ products.  Other tangible benefits:

• Reduced tractor vibration level to 1.5 G
• Retrofitting resulted in potential CAPEX reduction of 5 percent
• Enhanced user experience as it enabled customized, ergonomic seating position