Characterization of ground pressure at different cable tension on tether-assist tracked self-leveling feller-buncher.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Belart F ; Chung W ; Leshchinsky B
• Description:
  As tether-assist feller-bunchers become a fast-growing technology to harvest trees in steep terrain, concerns regarding impacts to soil and water have also grown. These concerns owe to soil in steep terrain being significantly more prone to erosion and potential water quality issues when disturbed. Previous studies show that cable assistance might help with the pressure distribution under tracked feller-bunchers, potentially reducing compaction, compared to those operating without assistance. We implemented a field test in which pressure was measured under the rigid tracks of a stationary feller-buncher, as the operator changed the boom and cabin positions. We found that cable assistance not only reduced the peak ground pressures, but also better distributed the pressure under the track surface. The largest effects of the cable assistance are seen when the equipment is facing downhill, at the bottom of the track (downhill), which is also the highest-pressure scenario under conditions without assistance. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Forestry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Feller-buncher; Tether-assist; Ground Pressure; Steep Slopes; Harvesting Logging Industry; Equipment Testing; Safety Engineering; Emerging Technology; Forestry; Soil Mechanics;
• ISSN:
  0022-1201
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; San Francisco Region [OSHA]
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  161-170
• Volume:
  123
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20070951
• Citation:
  J For 2025 Mar; 123(2):161-170
• Contact Point Address:
  Francisca Belart, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and Management, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
• Email:
  francisca.belart@oregonstate.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2025
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon State University - Corvallis
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20150901
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Forestry
• End Date:
  20180831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7dc847c09aedf140bc731323e8446b4703641ae07d6ad9e7b7238120dab30b8f7dcaa9b938d34d035f87873a0fe7fec262d5d13dcaf290925445e82b6de3b57d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/248345/cdc_248345_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.02 KB ]