Seismic source model for moving vehicles

We develop a method for the loading of ground by moving vehicles in large finite-difference time-domain simulations of seismic wave propagation. The objective is to realistically produce two distinct types of ground loading for either wheeled or tracked vehicles in our propagation models: lower frequency loading associated with suspension dynamics and higher frequency impulsive loading associated with tire treads or wheels rolling over individual track blocks. These loading characteristics are important because field measurements show that vehicle ground forcing in both frequency bands produces seismic surface waves that networked sensors can remotely process for security applications. The method utilizes a vehicle-dynamics model to calculate a response to vehicle acceleration and ground features such as bumps; calculates forces transmitted to the ground; distributes these forces to staggered points of a finite-difference model; and simulates seismic wave propagation away from the vehicle. We demonstrate the method using bounce-and-pitch models of wheeled and tracked vehicles. We show that by carefully preprocessing force inputs, we can accurately simulate wave propagation and seismic signatures in finite-difference analyses of vehicles moving continuously over terrain.