multifunctional powerhouse - Mercedes Benz

26 ENGINEERING • UNIMOG 2 • 2010
Maximum manoeuvrability – all-wheel steering makes it possible. This optimum
starting position is a key criterion in favour of the U 400 for Reinhardt Feind.
Low-slung side windows and large rear windows ensure a clear all-round overview
even when faced by heavy snow drifts. Heated air driers additionally help keep the
driver warm.
The root cutter cuts a five centimetre wide trench next to the cycle path in which
the RootBarrier ®
membrane is laid. It is the ideal method of stopping roots.
ensure a high-quality job. The solution found was a steerable rear axle.
When the driver turns the front wheels to the left on a left-hand bend,
the rear wheels move even further to the right. On tight left-hand bends,
all four wheels are steered to the left, causing the Unimog to drive in a
circle – a very tight circle. Because, despite the long wheelbase, the allwheel
steering reduces the vehicle’s turning circle to just 13.2 metres.
Steering with a flexible rear axle is possible up to a maximum speed
of 30 km/h; the system then switches automatically to straight-ahead
running with only the front axle controlling the steering. Consequently,
neither the vehicle’s maximum speed nor its safety is affected. “The
hydrostatic drive system was also very important for us,” company boss
Feind adds. “It alone enables high levels of power transmission while
maintaining consistent and precise vehicle movement, because the rate
of working can be infinitely varied at a constant engine speed. It’s also
ideal for cutting verges.” As if in agreement, the low-emission Euro 5
standard engine of the U 400 growls away, working on metre by metre
through the roots in the ground.
Snow clearing on the St. Gotthard pass
Change of scene: 2,091 metres above sea level. In a 2.5 metre snow drift
on a road up on the St. Gotthard pass. Routine clearing of one of the key
linking routes across the Alps is a full-time job for specialist machinery
in the Spring months. So it is the ideal place to demonstrate highefficiency
snow clearing. And that was the reason why Aebi Schmidt,
a manufacturer of specialist machinery and vehicles for snow clearing,
de-icing and cleaning of road surfaces chose to invite its customers to
a very special event. The object of the demonstration was to enable customers
to see for themselves the methods, equipment and machinery
used, in live operation. Up on the pass itself, the big snow-clearers were
then deployed. One of them was the Mercedes-Benz Unimog U 400,
fitted with the Schmidt FS 105 snow cutter. The nine-tonne vehicle cuts
its way through metre-high snow walls with ease. This vehicle combination
is capable of handling up to 900 tonnes per hour. In parallel,
the Schmidt gritter unit mounted on the U 400 spreads grit from its
2.5 cubic metre silo. Low-slung side windows and the large rear window
on all Unimog models ensure drivers have an optimum view of the
snow masses. Even at temperatures down to 30 degrees below zero, the