A METHOD TO EXAMINE EFFECTS OF FELLER-BUNCHER BOOM DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL PARAMETERS ON FOREST THINNING SYSTEM PERFORMANCE (ANIMATION, GRAPHICS)

A method for examining the potential performance of feller-buncher design concepts in forest thinning was developed. Geometric modeling was used to identify important parameters in the configuration design of feller-bunchers. Boom reach and prime-mover width were the design parameters that were related to the feller-buncher performance through quantities such as Selectivity, which was defined as a measure of quality in selective thinning. Other measures of feller-buncher performance include static lifting capacity, bunch size, and productivity.Graphical animation is a method which was employed for verifying, interpreting, and presenting the simulation results. The animated output is viewed like a computer generated movie. The observer sees a three-dimensional (perspective representation) of the simulated feller-buncher smoothly moving through the forest cutting and bunching trees.An example is presented to illustrate how the geometric analysis and interactive simulation are used in a design process. In the example, boom length and prime mover width are specified to meet specific design requirements.An interactive computer simulation was also developed. The intractive simulation allows a human operator to make the decisions that would be made by the feller-buncher operator in the woods. The simulation produces detailed descriptions of paths taken to execute the thinning. The paths are in turn analyzed via simulation "post processors". The paths are dependent only on the configuration geometry (eg. boom length) of the feller-buncher and the operating strategy. Time or rate related quantities such as the travel speed of the prime-mover as it relates to productivity are studied with the post-processors. Therefore once a path description is created it can be used repeatedly to study the design of the feller-buncher.