Effective Positioning in Cutting Area of a Harvester Using Computer Modelling

An improvement of methods and models for preliminary estimation of the performance of harvesters in timber production intends to support better justification of the use of certain harvester types and technologies for specific natural and production conditions. It is possible to increase the accuracy of calculation models with a more complete and realistic description of the production environment and operational processes. The article presents a modelling of the harvester’s movements across cutting areas for selecting a position with the highest number of accessible trees. The investigational process involved the creation of an algorithm along with a simulation model and the statistical processing of the results. The problem-solving process required consideration of the tree’s distribution within the cutting region. The data arrays, which were necessary for efficiency evaluation in the simulation model and its software implementation, were the following: the distance between the working stands of the machine with the maximum number of available trees, the time of cyclic processing, and the number of trees in the area. The results of the statistical analysis of the data are presented with justification from the theoretical laws of probability distribution. The choice of machine working stands, which considered the arrangement of the trees, was estimated using the productivity per hour index. The index was calculated with a constant distance parameter that is equal to the difference between the maximum and the minimum manipulator’s movement, and it was also calculated for a stand with a maximum number of accessible trees. The calculation function for the index involves random variables that characterize the working conditions of the stand. The index itself is conceded as a random variable. The values for it were found by statistical data processing. A comparison of the values determined a high probability of a significant increase in the productivity of the harvester. At the stand with the maximum number of trees, it is estimated at around 8 % with a standard deviation of 0.199. For citation: Makarenko A.V. Effective Positioning in Cutting Area of a Harvester Using Computer Modelling. Lesnoy Zhurnal = Russian Forestry Journal, 2023, no. 4, pp. 120–135. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.37482/0536-1036-2023-4-120-135