INCREASING THE COURSE STABILITY OF A MOBILE TOWER FOR SUPPORT INSTALLATION IN HOP FIELD

The study examined lateral spacing parameters from 300 to 620 mm with a step of 40 mm and tractor track widths from 1.450 to 1.810 mm, also with a step of 40 mm. The aim of the study was to improve the course stability of a mobile tower used for hanging hop supports, which directly impacts its efficiency and quality of operations. The optimal parameter ratio was found to be a tractor track width of 1.610 ± 5 mm and a lateral spacing of 420 ± 5 mm in hop field conditions with a row spacing of 3.3 m. With these values, the tower’s stability increases by an average of 10-12%, and the probability of deviation from the row by more than 20 cm when driving over uneven surfaces decreases. Using a mobile tower increases the productivity of support installation work by 2-3 times compared to manual labor. A scissor-type tower was developed at Chuvash State Agricultural University, which can be coupled with tractors with a power of 45 kW or more. Field tests revealed that its disadvantage is deviation from the intended course when working on uneven surfaces, which reduces the accuracy of attachment. The static and dynamic analysis methods were used to eliminate this problem, taking into account the forces acting on the tower in the horizontal plane. The calculation results confirmed that increasing the lateral spacing and the width of the tractor’s track leads to an increase in the offset of the trailer point, while widening the row spacing reduces this effect. Thus, the obtained data allows us to optimize the tower and tractor parameters, ensuring increased stability, maneuverability, and quality of work in the hop fields.