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A German consortium tested a modified HSM 405H4 8WD logging vehicle with a 65-foot boom and a saw head designed to fell trees remotely. The consortium says the system could replace some accident-prone manual work, but testing also exposed stability limits and a bent saw blade; the machine appears to remain in development.
A German consortium has tested an HSM 405H4 8WD logging vehicle fitted with a 65-foot boom and a saw-equipped felling head, a design intended to let operators cut trees from inside the machine rather than working close to the trunk. The test, reported by The Drive, points to an effort to mechanize hazardous timber-harvesting work, though the rig remains in development and its stability has limits at full reach.
In a consortium report cited by The Drive, the vehicle cut several dozen spruce and beech trees during testing in the Altdorfer Wald forest district near Ravensburg. The tested trees measured up to 17.7 inches in diameter. The equipment replaces the feed rollers commonly used to delimb trees with a felling unit that cuts them. Cameras send views of the head and work area to screens in the operator’s cabin.
After cutting, the machine uses a winch mounted at the crane base, attached to the rotator, to pull the tree from its stump. It then drags the tree within reach of a following machine, which del imbs and processes the timber. The reported test problems included a bent saw blade and a moment when the extended boom and tree load strained the wheeled vehicle’s stability.
The rig is based on an HSM 405H4 8WD and weighs nearly 40 metric tons, or more than 88,000 pounds, according to The Drive’s account. The boom weighs more than 8,800 pounds, while the felling head weighs about 1,875 pounds. The report identifies a 7.7-liter Volvo diesel inline-six rated at 340 horsepower and 1,003 pound-feet of torque, driving all eight wheels through a hydrostatic transmission and two-speed transfer case.
Reducing Workers’ Exposure
The system’s main significance is its potential to move the cutting task away from workers. Tree felling exposes crews to falling timber, saws and unpredictable movement; using a cabin-operated boom could reduce the need for people to stand near the tree being cut. The consortium describes its aim as replacing accident-prone manual work and enabling fully mechanized timber harvesting.
That is a stated goal, not proof that the vehicle has reduced injury rates in operational use. The test report describes a limited field trial, not a long-term safety comparison. The machine also does not remove all hazards: trees still fall, the rig must remain stable under load, and crews may be needed to operate the follow-up processing equipment. The reported stability issue underscores that remote cutting changes the risks rather than eliminating them.
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How the Test Rig Works
Conventional mechanized harvesting often uses a head that grips a tree and feeds it through rollers to remove branches. The reported HSM setup instead uses a felling head with a saw, carried on a long boom. The operator watches camera feeds from the cabin and can reach trees from a distance of up to 65 feet, according to The Drive.
The consortium is also examining the weight and balance of the equipment. Its report says the wheeled vehicle can twist or deform when the boom is fully extended while pulling a tree. It says stability limits may be extended with bog tracks or water-filled tires, while work is underway to reduce the weight of the felling head. Those options are described as possible measures, not as evidence that the stability concern has been fully resolved.
Safety and Stability Still Open
The consortium’s account, as summarized by The Drive, does not specify when the trial took place, how many hours or work cycles it covered, or how the rig’s performance compared with existing harvesting methods. It also does not provide injury-rate data, operating costs, production rates, or a schedule for commercial deployment.
It remains unclear whether the proposed changes to the felling head, tires or running gear will resolve the stability problem, and whether the bent saw blade was an isolated fault or a sign of a broader durability issue. The report describes the project as still in development. No independent evaluation of the test results is included in the supplied source material.
Further Testing Before Deployment
The consortium is expected to continue development, including efforts to reduce the felling head’s weight and address stability at full boom extension. The report does not give a timeline for the next test or say when the vehicle could enter regular service.
Further field trials would need to show how reliably the saw and boom work across different trees and terrain, and whether proposed stability changes hold up during repeated operations. Until the consortium releases more results, the confirmed picture is limited to a test that felled several dozen trees, with a bent blade and a stability issue also reported.
Key Questions
How far away can the logging vehicle cut a tree?
The HSM rig’s boom is reported to extend 65 feet, allowing the operator to use the saw-equipped head at that distance.
What happened during the field test?
The consortium report says the machine cut several dozen spruce and beech trees, up to 17.7 inches in diameter. The reported issues were a bent saw blade and a moment of limited stability.
Does the vehicle eliminate logging injuries?
No. The project aims to reduce workers’ exposure by operating the cutting head from the cabin, but the available report does not provide injury-rate results. Falling trees and heavy machinery still pose risks.
Is the HSM rig ready for use?
The supplied report describes this version as still in development. It gives no deployment date or confirmation that the stability and saw issues have been resolved.
Source: thedrive.com
