Specifications include, but are not limited to: Clear Roads is an ongoing pooled fund research project aimed at rigorous testing of winter maintenance materials, equipment and methods for use by highway maintenance crews. New materials are continually being developed that are lighter and stronger than the materials currently used in most snowplows built today. Many agencies are still specifying plows that are based on 1950s needs for brute strength to clear heavy snowfalls even though they are now more proactive in their operations, and the need for brute strength may no longer be appropriate. Most agencies are not waiting until snow piles up deep on the roads before they begin their plowing operations. The necessary height of the moldboard is in question as well as the shape that would keep down the snow cloud produced by the plow and the snow coming over the moldboard and landing on the plow windshield. The hitch and hydraulic power connections might also be impacted by changes to the plow and moldboard. The goal of this project is to develop performance specifications for a new generation of snowplow. The new snowplow design should take advantage of new materials and structural components and be optimized for a more proactive approach to snow removal. This project will look at both front plow and underbody designs and include the hitch and hydraulic power connections, the moldboard, and the cutting edge(s).
