REPRINTj,-—Paper was presented at a meeting ©f the Southern New England Section of the Society of Automotive Engineers at Hartford, Conn, on March k, 19S>3. Subject to revision. Permission to publish this paper, in full or in part, after its presenta­ tion and with credit to the author and the Society, may be obtained upon request. The Society is not responsible for statements or opinions advanced in papers or discussions at its meetings. fsrift-un, .*■ ■ i i IJ library Ini'o. Service 29 W„ 39 9t.„ w. Y. n, MILITARY VEHICLES By MAJOR W. 0V MILLER Project Engineer, Combat Vehicles Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc., 29 West 39th Street, New York 18, N. I. Downloaded from SAE International by Columbia Univ, Wednesday, December 05, 2018MILITAHX VEHICLES My prime purpose is to bring you up to date as far as "Modern Ordnance Vehicles'* are concerned with emphasis on the testing, Improvements made in recent years, and the trends that will, no doubt, be realities in the near future. My comments will cover more about tanks, rather than wheeled vehicles. Since 19U7, an entire new series of tactical vehicles have been produced, and these represent our "Modern Ordnance Vehicles". These vehicles.have been thoroughly tested at Aberdeen Proving Ground and at other test installations that are under the technical control of Aberdeen Proving Ground. Included in this latter category is the high ambient and desert testing station at Xuma, Arizona, and the low temperature test installation at Devils Lake, North Dakota. The majority of the vehicles have also been tested at Fort Churchill, Canada, in very low temperatures. Some have also been combat tested. Army Field Forces have also conducted extensive tests in all types of terrain and climates. At Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the testing of tactical vehicles (track-laying and wheeled) can be divided into three broad test phasesr a. Engineering and Endurance Testing b. Firing Tests c. Durability The purpose of the first phase is to gain specific knowledge about pilot or pre-production pilot vehicles and components in regard to engineering character­ istics, performance and endurance, such as: a. Cooling ability in all ambients b. Octane requirements c. Vapor lock studies d. Fuel economy e. Slope performance f. Vibration and noise level surveys g. Drawbar pull h. Acceleration and braking tests i. Load distribution j. Endurance tests k. Many other specialized tests. In the firing test phase, the ability of the main and secondary weapons and all the associated fire control equipment (periscopes, telescopes, range finders, etc.) are tested to determine the firing accuracy of the intergrated sys­ tem of pilot and pre-production pilots. Downloaded from SAE International by Columbia Univ, Wednesday, December 05, 2018- 2 Finally, in the durability phase, production vehicles, which incorporate modifications to correct deficiencies discovered in pilot tests, are tested to de­ termine the life of vehicle components,: as well as the firing ability of the vehicle. These tests consist of driving the vehicles over all. types of terrain in all types of weather. Both drivers and maintenance personnel are recently inducted military personnel. As the turnover rate of personnel is always, high in a combat area, the use of this type of personnel adds a great deal of realism to our testing and also provides as a by product, an excellent training facility, As.most military vehicles differ in many respects from their civilian counterparts, it is necessary to conduct tests in many different locations, as no one area contains all the conditions under which a vehicle must be tested„ A typical test station is found in Yuma, Arizona. The illustrations contained in this paper depict the preparations required, equipment and facilities utilized, test courses and techniques that are required to successfully conduct a large