Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/580471
40 | Overdrive | October 2015 DRIVE TEST My turn I n May, when Freightliner pulled the curtain back on its new Inspiration autonomous truck model, the company promised CDL-holding journalists the opportunity to get a Nevada autonomous truck endorsement in the fall. Freightliner proved as good as its word: After a surprisingly brief training session back in Nevada, I found myself fully endorsed to operate any autonomous Class 8 vehicle in the state. When it came time to break in my card at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, just north of Sin City, Freightliner engi- neer Jim Martin rode with me in the passenger seat. He noted that Freightliner took great pains to make sure the Highway Pilot autonomous driving system were intuitive to operate. Indeed, Highway Pilot is about as complex as running a cruise control system. As sensational as the autonomous truck concept may be, it's a bit demystifying that it's existing technologies, finely integrated, that enables autonomous vehicle control. Highway Pilot's sensor systems include specialized cameras that track lane markings, two radar systems, GPS vehicle tracking systems and Detroit's DT12 automated manual transmission. All of these systems are tested and on the market today, some in widespread fleet use, save one: an electric servo motor connected to the steering column. It translates signals from Highway Pilot's electronic control system into steering wheel movements. Highway Pilot doesn't sim- ply drive the truck. It lever- ages Detroit's DT12 AMT to consistently deliver strong fuel economy through optimal shifting. It also can lend driver sup- port in little ways you might not think about. I was steering the truck when a particularly strong crosswind pushed me onto the rumble strip. I engaged Highway Pilot and watched it smoothly steer the truck back into its proper lane. The system reacts to wind gusts far quicker than a human driver can and responds with fluid move- ments far removed from the half-panicked jerk of the steer- ing wheel most drivers would make instinctively. At its core, Highway Pilot is simply a highly-advanced cruise control system that never gets tired or loses its An editor goes hands-on, hands-off with autonomous driving endorsement BY JACK ROBERTS The technologies that enable autonomous control on Freightliner's Inspiration are mostly sensor systems avail- able in today's market, except for a motor con- nected to the steering column. See the Drive Test playlist at youtube.com/ OverdriveMag for video of Overdrive Equipment Editor Jack Roberts piloting the Inspiration. the Inspiration.