WABCO Holdings Inc., a global technology leader and tier-one supplier to the commercial vehicle industry, presented its technology breakthroughs at the 2012 Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS). It showcased how WABCO leads the industry in pioneering breakthrough technologies with game-changing capabilities that help truck, bus and trailer manufacturers to increase vehicle safety and efficiency, and to improve driver effectiveness and environmental sustainability.
WABCO’s recent technology breakthroughs include OnGuardPLUS, the trucking industry’s first and most advanced emergency braking system; the award-winning OptiDrive, a breakthrough in automated manual transmission technology, boosting fuel economy up to five per cent; and MAXXUS, the lightest and highest performing single-piston air disc brake for trucks.
At MATS 2012, the company further demonstrated its commitment to the commercial vehicle industry in North America as it showcased across-the-board capabilities in safety, driver assistance and vehicle efficiency. WABCO’s breakthroughs are increasingly being adopted by original equipment manufacturers, leading to higher content per vehicle for WABCO safety and efficiency systems.
WABCO operates in North America through wholly-owned subsidiaries – WABCO North America and WABCO Reman Solutions, WABCO Compressor Manufacturing, its joint venture with Cummins Engine Company, and the Meritor WABCO joint venture.
The company also announced at the show the availability of its new IVTM technology for the North American market, representing the company’s latest advancement in integrated monitoring of tyre pressure on trucks, trailers and buses. The system provides drivers with real-time tyre pressure information. By using IVTM, customers can maintain tyre inflation at an optimum level that can reduce fuel consumption up to two per cent.
Using WABCO’s IVTM system also helps increase the lifetime of tyres up to 20 per cent. It fits all wheel sizes and all types of light, medium and heavy duty commercial vehicles with up to 20 wheels. It also helps prevent vehicle downtime and reduce repair costs. IVTM improves vehicle safety as correct tyre inflation enables better road handling and shorter braking distance. It also detects slow leaks which contribute to heat build-up, the cause of the majority of tyre failures.
The company further showcased the North American version of its industry-first electronically controlled air suspension (ECAS) technology that reduces fuel costs for trucks and buses while helping to make vehicles more efficient and environmentally friendly.
Since it introduced the industry’s first ECAS technology in 1986, the company has sold more than three million systems worldwide. ECAS maximizes the traction performance of 6×2 trucks while minimizing tyre wear. It also saves fuel by lowering the vehicle’s chassis and lifting axles, which helps reduce the vehicle’s aerodynamic and rolling resistance. Fleets in North America can specify 6×2 trucks, instead of more expensive and heavier 6×4 trucks, leading to further fuel savings.
WABCO’s award-winning Intelligent Trailer Program is the industry’s most innovative, comprehensive and modular solution to address critical needs of fleets to improve trailer safety and efficiency, increase driver effectiveness, and enhance the capabilities of fleet managers to reduce the total cost of transportation.
Enabled by several breakthrough technologies, WABCO’s Intelligent Trailer Program combines major functions to improve vehicle safety and efficiency into a single integrated program for all types of trailers globally. Functions can be used separately or in combination, allowing trailer builders and fleet operators to select those functions most relevant for their particular needs through the most cost-effective solution.
“WABCO’s Intelligent Trailer Program is the industry’s only complete program that optimizes return on investment for fleets and drivers by reducing vehicle and trailer downtime, lowering costs, improving driver comfort, and enhancing vehicle safety and efficiency,” said Nikhil Varty, WABCO Vice President, Americas. “Driven by our passion for innovation, we continue to help customers to quantify utilization of their assets, thus also enabling transport professionals to better assess future investments.”
The program offers 25 functions to customers in many regions worldwide. Vehicle manufacturers can customize additional functions to meet individual operational and maintenance needs.
Through pioneering engineering, WABCO’s PAN trailer brakes combine an innovative compact design with single-piston technology and taper wear compensation. Available in 16- to 25-inch rim sizes, PAN air disc brakes perform superbly in trailer axle applications up to 23,500 lb (10.6 metric tons).
In addition to providing high performance braking capabilities, WABCO’s PAN range is one of the lightest trailer air disc brakes in the industry. For example, the 22.5 inch PAN22 weighs only 79 pounds (36 kg), including brake pads. As a result, trailers can increase payload or improve fuel economy while also reducing maintenance and service costs by using thicker brake pads.
Transmission automation technology
WABCO Holdings further presented its advanced transmission automation technology that offers transmission automation in commercial vehicles, boosting fuel savings up to five per cent and reducing emissions through optimized gear shifting.
This WABCO technology improves driver effectiveness, particularly among less experienced drivers. It also enhances vehicle safety by freeing drivers from frequent shifting, allowing them to further concentrate on traffic conditions.
The company introduced the commercial vehicle industry’s first electronic automated manual transmission (AMT) system in 1986 and has continued with pioneering engineering ever since. In 2011, it was also the first to market with a high-temperature AMT system to meet increasing demands from customers.
AMT systems, which combine the high efficiency of a manual gearbox with the optimal shift timing of an automatic one, continue to gain global acceptance among major manufacturers of transmissions, trucks and buses. For example, they account for more than 60 per cent of transmissions in trucks and buses in Europe.
Another new product displayed by the company was the OnGuardPLUS collision mitigation system (CMS), the industry’s first advanced emergency braking system (AEBS), offering significantly greater levels of vehicle safety and driver effectiveness.
OnGuardPLUS uses forward-looking radar to monitor traffic ahead. It reduces the risk of colliding with moving vehicles and decelerating vehicles ahead that come to a standstill. It fully applies brakes in imminent collision situations, and provides the driver with acoustic, visual and haptic warnings. It also automatically initiates emergency braking, enables maximum possible deceleration and brings the vehicle to a complete stop.
The company’s OptiDrive system, a breakthrough in automated manual transmission technology, continues to gain global acceptance among major manufacturers of transmissions, trucks and buses. Superbly engineered as a modular system, OptiDrive reduces by 50 per cent the development time required for transmission and original equipment manufacturers to apply it to their respective product platforms.
OptiDrive received an Automotive News PACE Award in 2010 for product innovation.