Safety device for the automatic operation of roll over protective structure for agricultural tractors: Dispositivo de seguridad para el accionamiento automático de un arco antivuelco en tractores

Résumé

An inadequate use of the deployable Roll Over Protective Structure (ROPS) in agriculturaltractors contributes to fatalities in rollover events. To resolve this problem, anautomatically deployable ROPS was designed, constructed and tested. The prototype,HydraROPS, established two assistance levels, manual activation on the board andautomatic change to the operative position occurs in situations of impending rollover,without the intervention of the driver. In this level, it automatically sends a SMS with theGPS location to contact emergencies. The tractor’s hydraulic power was used to move theprotective structure. In order to increase the deployment speed of ROPS, a pressureaccumulator was included in the hydraulic circuit. The deployment time of the ROPSwithout and with the pressure accumulator were 2.599 s and 0.743 s respectively, reducingthe deployment time of ROPS by 71%; HydraROPS can be installed on tractors equippedwith a certified rollover protective structure.