Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/759228
commercial carrier journal | december 2016 61 EQUIPMENT: COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEMS mercial Vehicle Systems, says the terms collision avoidance, collision mitigation and crash avoidance are terms that oen are used interchangeably. "e Bendix Wingman Advanced and Bendix Wingman Fusion systems are collision mitigation technologies," he says. "ey are designed to help drivers potentially avoid rear-end collisions, or at least help reduce their severity." e National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 17,775 people died in highway crashes in the first six months of 2016, a 10 percent increase from the first half of 2015. e Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said 3,744 large trucks were involved in fatal crashes in 2014, a 5 percent drop from 2013. e fatality rate in truck-related crashes per 100 million vehicle miles traveled by large trucks declined by 6 percent, from 0.143 to 0.134. Combination trucks involved in fatal crashes dropped from 2,813 in 2013 to 2,717 in 2014. e rate fell from 1.67 to 1.60 on a 100-million-VMT basis, and there also was a slight decline in the over- all fatality numbers, from 2,896 to 2,839. ESC mandate looms In order to combat on-highway injuries and fatalities, the government has im- plemented measures requiring trucks to be outfitted with an increasing array of safety equipment and technologies designed to protect not only the driver but also those driving around them. Effective next year, all new trucks will be required to have an electronic stability control system that can help prevent a rollover accident. ESC systems represent a roughly $600 add-on that NHTSA ex- pects will prevent an estimated 49 deaths and 1,758 crashes annually. A collision mitigation system takes vehicle stability control multiple steps further, but Morrison says the two sys- tems communicate and work together. "What this really does is to give the driver options in a collision situation," Andersky says. "If the driver feels they are not going to be able to stop in time to avoid a collision, they can have the option to swerve and avoid the crash if the lane next to them is clear." If needed, the ESC system will intervene automatically to help mitigate the po- tential rollover or loss of control. While collision avoidance systems mitigate or prevent impending rear- end collisions, ESC systems improve directional stability and help protect against rollovers, skidding, spinning and jackknifing. Separate systems can work hand- in-hand, such as Wabco's joint devel- opment program with ZF on Evasive Maneuver Assist. e system helps evade a stationary vehicle ahead, while ESC helps prevent a rollover during the evasive maneuver, Morrison says. While Bendix's collision mitiga- tion systems are integrated with the company's Electronic Stability Program full-stability system, both perform separate functions. The collision mitigation technol- ogy combines adaptive cruise control – to help the driver maintain a set following distance behind a forward vehicle – and autonomous emergency braking, which helps the driver avoid collisions by automatically cutting throttle and applying the brakes when the system determines a colli- sion is imminent. e system also provides various alerts to let the driver know when fol- lowing distance is closing, a collision is imminent with a moving vehicle or, with Wingman Fusion, a stationary one before applying brakes, and if a metallic stationary object is in his lane of travel. Wabco's OnGuardActive collision mitigation system uses a 77GHz radar- only solution with up to a 650-foot reach. OnGuardActive performs active braking on moving, stopping and stationary vehicles; supports the driver with forward collision warning; offers adaptive cruise control as an optional feature; uses dual-mode radar that ad- dresses both long-range and adjacent- lane views; is modular and scalable; and comes with continuous automatic radar alignment. Mandatory mitigation? Collision mitigation also could follow in ESC's government-mandated footsteps. e National Transportation Safety Board determined that collision avoid- Wabco's OnGuardActive collision mitigation system uses a 77GHz radar-only solution with up to a 650-foot reach.