Safety's Not Always An Option
Volvo to offer Bendix stability control.
Steve Sturgess
Senior Editor
Heavy truck stability systems have been in the making for several years, ever since a few luxury cars started deploying these braking enhancements to keep vehicles on course in slippery conditions. Now comes news that Volvo is offering the Bendix refined ABS air brake system with the ESP safety enhancements on its VN as soon as next year.
Bendix' ESP is similar to the Meritor Roll Stability Control (RSC) and Roll Stability Support (RSS). These are stand-alone tractor and trailer systems that address roll instability in tractor-trailer combinations - an all too common cause of heavy truck accidents. The Meritor system piggybacks on the ABS to apply braking, slowing a combination when it senses through lateral acceleration an impending rollover.
The Bendix solution is similar in the rollover situation, but adds an optional yaw sensor that enables the electronic stability program (ESP) to interact with the truck's braking system, adding additional wheel-by-wheel braking that deals very effectively with control on slippery surfaces. Here, ESP can prevent front, drive or trailer slides.
I have had the opportunity of driving the Bendix system in high-friction, rollover-prone conditions and on a winter ice test track, and I can confirm it really works. It is a major enhancement for truck safety.
These systems - especially with ESP - go a long way to protect drivers from accident situations that, because of the size of a heavy truck, all too often result in serious injury and loss of life as well as significant property damage. So it's very good news that the systems are becoming available, with Volvo an early adopter. I also noticed several trailer exhibitors at the recent Las Vegas Truck Show were offering the Meritor RSS, again as an option. Further deployment cannot be far away.
Since stability control is a major safety option for fleet owners, it's important to understand that there are more than just safety concerns involved here. There are also legal ramifications. What if your truck is involved in an accident that may have been prevented through application of stability systems? There have been instances where defendants have lost cases because they had not taken full advantage of all available safety systems, even where those systems were optional.
And consider this from an operational standpoint: In a time of dire driver shortages, would a fleet not find a driver more receptive of a job offer when the truck he'll be driving is demonstrably safer?
It comes as no surprise that Volvo should be the first to offer a stability safety system. Safety is a core value at the Swedish manufacturer. It was 75 years ago that company founders Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson stated: "The guiding principle behind everything we make at Volvo is and must remain - safety." That's why Volvo was fitting car seat belts in 1959 and crash testing truck cabs in 1960, far ahead of any mandates.
And Volvo Truck is not about to finish with stability control. On a recent trip to Sweden, I was privileged to see not only the roll stability technology but other safety technologies either ready and waiting in the wings or in development. These included deliverables in today's trucks such as good visibility, comfortable climate, low noise level, lower-stress environment and effective braking.
These all make for a safer truck, but when you add on technology to detect a drowsy or distracted driver, additional visibility and lane position support, stability control, adaptive cruise control with interactive braking, you have the potential to make trucks even safer.
It was not the first time I had seen and driven such technologies. Two years ago I drove a Mercedes-Benz Actros with adaptive cruise control - where the radar-based collision avoidance system interfaces with the throttle to maintain a set following distance. In an emergency situation, the system also applies braking without driver involvement. And that Actros also had a lane assist setup that produced rumble-strip sounds on drifting out of lane.
But the Volvo demonstration goes much further, delving deeper into ways to help the driver see and process information, to minimize distraction from truck instruments and controls. Volvo also goes to great lengths to find the root cause of truck accidents by sending out teams of engineers to serious heavy truck accidents and reconstructing the events that led up to the crash.
Anti-lock braking systems have provided a real boost in heavy truck safety, and while it took a mandate to get their adoption across the board, the systems have enormously impacted fleet safety, going a long way to address the jackknife accident and the rear-end collision. Collision-avoidance systems such as Eaton's Vorad have proven their worth every time a fleet has taken up the option. So it will be with the systems demonstrated at the Volvo safety technology symposium.
The Volvo decision to deploy the Bendix ESP stability control will undoubtedly be a safety plus for the Volvo brand, but the other makes will not be far behind.
Indeed, Paccar's decision to option air disc brakes for the front axle of Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks next year is an early step in its rollout of safety systems. Look out for other announcements later this year.
Products & Services continued...
