TIRAMISU partners successfully test Locostra blast resistant wheel in Parma

A team of TIRAMISU partners including representatives from the Pierre Trattori company, the University of Genoa, SnailAid and SpaceTec Partners gathered in Parma (Italy) to test the Locostra wheel developed in the framework of the project.

The aim of the test was to verify whether the wheels could remain intact and resist mine detonations conducted in an real field environment. Two different generations of wheels were tested: generation three (G3) and generation four (G4). The G4 wheel is currently being developed as part of the TIRAMISU project and is designed to be mounted on the Pierre demining tractor. G3 was tested for comparison purposes only.

The tests lasted for three days and involved detonating six charges of TNT for each of the two wheels so as to compare them by testing their resistance to stress and blast deformation. The wheels incurred  only minor damage as a result of the explosions, demonstrating that TIRAMISU’s work to improve demining technologies is heading in the right direction.