**1. Introduction**

Since the late 1960s, the agricultural industry has taken an increasing interest in the effects of soil compaction on soil health, agricultural practices, water runoff, and the sustainability of grain production. Compaction results from any practice that

includes traveling over the soil. This can be caused by heavy-axle machinery, excessive ground working, livestock, or specific geotechnical practices, such as rolling, which is used to compact the soil in preparation for construction. Repeated soil compaction experiences have cumulative negative effects for agricultural soils, such as a decrease in pore space, reduced pore nutrient and water uptake, denitrification, and enhanced difficulties in seed germination. The effects of compaction also extend beyond agriculture and are of concern to environmental specialists all over the world. For instance, high compaction rates increase the likelihood of water retention issues, water runoff, and erosion. From the last 60 years of research, modern agricultural operations have progressed to incorporate a variety of soil compaction reducing approaches. These approaches include equipment solutions like tracked implements, happy-seeders, and complex multi-crop planters that reduce field traffic. Within the scope of production agriculture, many existing practices unrelated to vehicle design, like no-till seeding, have decreased the impact of soil compaction and help to repair damaged and heavily compacted soils. These design improvements and management practices will be explored in this chapter, and their effectiveness will be measured. This topic is particularly timely and relevant because present-day tractors have increased in size compared to traditional row crop tractors for better productivity and field efficiency. Although most smaller-scale agricultural equipment is used for multiple tasks, the presence of a variety of different off-road vehicles on the market indicates a broad need for various equipment types and provides an opportunity for exploring the existing and potential solutions to soil compaction problems in different off-road vehicle designs. The chapter will proceed with an analysis of how soil compaction is addressed in machine design, as well as new areas that deserve more specific research and improvement. Multiple factors are involved in soil compaction, and multiple designs exist to address these various factors. The present off-road vehicle offerings are clearly less than ideal for long-term soil health. There is a potential for improvement in existing designs to benefit all involved stakeholders, and this potential will be explored.
