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Fleet Owner / February 27, 2017 Dana has launched production its new SPL 350 Lite driveshaft and is introducing a new axle ratio for the Spicer AdvanTEK 40 tandem axle. The SPL 350 Lite driveshaft is optimized for high-efficiency on-highway and heavy-haul vehicles with engine downspeeding configurations. It is up to 35 pounds lighter than existing products, making it the lightest weight driveshaft in its class. The SPL 350 Lite offers improved performance, enhanced vehicle dynamics, and easier maintenance while delivering the durability and reliability required to support torque-management needs resulting from fast axle ratios that enable engine downspeeding. Designed with 11 fewer components to reduce weight and enable faster, easier installation by OEMs, this driveshaft offers extended component life, as well as improved performance and vehicle dynamics with reduced noise, vibration, and harshness levels. It shares service components with the existing SPL 350 driveshaft, simplifying maintenance and inventory for truck owners and service facilities. Dana offers the SPL 350 Lite driveshaft with a choice of service-free or standard re-lube designs. Dana is the only supplier in the industry to offer universal joint kits that are 100 percent interchangeable, allowing truck owners to change between service-free and re-lube configurations. Similarly, the new axle ratio for the Spicer AdvanTEK 40 tandem axle designed to support engine downspeeding for linehaul trucks. This 2.47:1 ratio allows truck buyers to fine-tune their driveline specifications for an optimized balance of productivity and fuel efficiency. Dana offers seven available ratios to support engine downspeeding, ranging from 2.26:1 to 2.93:1. This new ratio from Dana is ideally suited for direct-drive versions of the SmartAdvantage Powertrain, a joint collaboration between Eaton and Cummins. The configuration is recommended for regional-haul applications that travel a composite of interstate highways, secondary roads, and urban operations. For guidance in selecting the optimal configuration, truck owners can visit smartadvantagepowertrain.com.

Engine driven accessories bring modest fuel savings Jim Mele, Fleet Owner / February 27, 2017 Switching from belt- or gear-driven engine accessories to variably driven ones has the potential to reduce heavy-truck fuel consumption by 3% to 5%, according to the latest Confidence Report released by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) and the Carbon War Room. However at this stage of development, “variable engine driven accessories present relatively small opportunities for gains in fuel efficiency, but they may provide better payback with further development,” said Michael Roeth, NACFE executive director and IdeaXchange columnist for Fleet Owner. Introduced at the annual Technology and Maintenance Council meeting, the report was the 15th report issued by the two groups as part of their efforts to double freight efficiency by providing objective evaluations of technology and operating strategies. The newest report examined eight technologies that are all currently in development including 2-speed cooling fans, variable speed water pumps, clutched air compressors, high-efficiency alternators, smart air dryers, dual displacement power steering pumps, electrically driven A/C compressors and other electrically driven accessories. The research team interviewed component manufacturers, truck and engine builders, teams involved in the various Super Truck projects, the Dept. of Energy and fleets “in an effort to provide a foundational understanding” of the eight new accessory technologies, some of which might become part of efforts to meet upcoming greenhouse gas emissions standards for heavy trucks. At the current state of development, the conclusion is that “the fuel economy gains are pretty modest and could even decline” as fleets move to reduce operating engine speeds with downspeeding powertrains,” Roeth said. Fleets are concerned about reliability of new accessory system that add complexity, and the payback on investment in those systems from fuel savings “is insufficient for high levels of adoption at present,” he noted. Despite that conclusion, the report urges fleets to continue reviewing variable engine-driven accessories and for manufacturers to continue development work. Current work on high voltage and waste-heat recovery systems could potentially lead to improved payback, and greenhouse gas benefits might also drive future adoption, Roeth said.

Heavy Duty Trucking / February 27, 2017 The Technology and Maintenance Council and The North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) go together like peas and carrots, as a certain cinematic shrimp entrepreneur likes to say. So it's no surprise that NACFE operational leader Mike Roeth chose the TMC meeting here to release the organization's findings and a Confidence Report on the fuel efficiency of Variable Engine-Driven Accessories that many OEMs are evaluating today as possible fuel economy enhancement systems on future powertrains. These technologies include waste heat recovery systems and high voltage electrical systems, which OEMs and component suppliers are currently evaluating and have been testing on various OEM SuperTruck incarnations. NACFE Confidence Reports are painstakingly researched by truck industry technology leaders and examine existing or emerging technology to give North American fleets baseline information on how a technology works,and what kind of fuel economy benefit or ROI they can expect to see whne using it in real-world operations. The Variable Engine-Driven Confidence Report is NACFE's second look at an emerging trucking technology, coming on the heels of its Two-Truck Platooning report last year. Because the technology is so new, and very much in early stages of development, Roeth said initial findings were modest in terms of eventual deployment and the potential for fuel savings and ROI. But, he stressed, much work was being done to improve these systems and advised fleets to continue to review advances in this area of powertrain development as further advances possible. That said, the NAFCE's current report found the following on Variable Engine-Driven Accessories: Fuel economy gains are modest Fleets are concerned about complexity and reliability Payback is currently insufficient for high levels of adoption High voltage and waste heat recovery systems offer the best potential now for improved ROI Additionally, Roeth said NACFE is recommending the following policies as development of Variable Engine-Driven Accessories continues: Fleets should continue to review and study these systems Manufacturers should continue to develop these systems Fleets should monitor the improvements driven by Greenhouse Gas Regulations High voltage systems will enable payback -- but accessories will not be the driver for higher voltage systems The entire NACFE Variable Engine-Driven Accessory Confidence Report can be dowloaded here.

Meritor unveils 14X HE tandem drive axle Sean Kilcarr, Fleet Owner / February 27, 2017 The 14X HE “high efficiency” tandem is aimed at North American linehaul fleets operating primarily in high-speed highway environments. The new Meritor 14X HE (short for “high-efficiency”) linehaul tandem drive axle unveiled here at the 2017 Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) annual meeting is designed at its heart to save fleets operating at high speeds on highways more money, explained Chris Villavarayan, Meritor’s president of the Americas. “The long and the short of it is higher efficiency,” he told Fleet Owner. “Our linehaul customers are all about efficiency and this [tandem drive axle] is all about greater efficiency; that’s what drives them.” Villavarayan added that the 14X HE generates 1.5% to 2% greater efficiency – “nothing is more important” – and is 30 lbs. lighter than Meritor’s 14X tandem drive axle due to specific design changes. First, Meritor pointed to the use of laser welding in its axle manufacturing process to reduce weight and drive design efficiencies. For example, the 14X HE’s ring gear is laser-welded to the differential housing, offering a more robust joint that eliminates fasteners and reduces oil churning losses. The axle also sports “superfast ratios” down to 2.15 for aggressive downspeeding. Charlie Allen, Meritor’s general manager for rear axle drives, explained to Fleet Owner that the 14X HE reduces “oil churn” by pushing lubricating oil out into the axle housing – thereby giving “a shot of oil” to the wheel hubs in the process – without the need for complicated electronics. “It’s a highly efficient yet simple design,” he said. Meritor said, based on today’s diesel prices, a fleet with 1,000 trucks equipped with the 14X HE could realize $1 million per year in fuel savings. The company added that the 14X HE is one of 20 new global products Meritor plans to introduce as part of its “M2019” strategic plan ovetr the next two years.

Meritor unveils new high-efficiency tandem drive axle Truck News / February 27, 2017 Meritor introduced its new 14X HE high-efficiency tandem drive axle on the eve of the Technology & Maintenance Council’s spring meeting this week. The 14X HE is designed for linehaul applications and is 30 lbs lighter and up to 2% more fuel efficient than its predecessor. Nelligan claimed at the launch that it “outperforms the competition in weight, efficiency and overall gross combination weight. It’s the perfect axle for linehaul in North America.” The 14X HE has a GCWR of 90,000 lbs and can handle torque of up to 1,950 lb.-ft., Nelligan said. It features high-efficiency bearings, spiral bevel gearing and a new Meritor lube management system. The axle is the first of what will be about 20 new products designed and brought to market by Meritor over the next three years. “Built upon our trusted and valued 14X platform that is specified by a large majority of fleets, the new 14X HE is an evolutionary axle that takes efficiency to a whole new level,” said Ken Hogan, vice-president, rear drivetrain for Meritor. “Based on today’s diesel prices, a fleet with 1,000 trucks equipped with the 14X HE could realize $1 million per year in fuel savings.” Weight was reduced through the use of laser welding, Meritor said. The 14X HE’s ring gear is laser-welded to the differential housing, offering a robust joint that eliminates fasteners and reduces oil-churning losses. Ratios as fast as 2.15 are available for aggressive downspeeding. “With fuel being the largest operating cost to fleets, the 14X HE rounds out more of our portfolio with a product focused on improved fuel economy to save fleets money and reinforce Meritor’s leadership in axle efficiency,” Hogan said. “Meritor recognizes that fuel prices won’t stay low forever and that customers are always looking for solutions to reduce their operating costs.”

Transport Topics / February 27, 2017 Meritor has unveiled its new 14X HE tandem drive axle for linehaul applications. During a Feb. 26 event, Meritor described the axle, a modification of its 14X from 2011, as a “premium” axle that now is available as an option on highway tractors made by Freightliner, International, Kenworth, Peterbilt and Volvo. “Based on today’s diesel prices, a fleet with 1,000 trucks equipped with the 14X HE could realize $1 million per year in fuel savings,” said Ken Hogan, Meritor vice president for rear drivetrains. The HE stands for “high efficiency.” The new tandem drive axle is available in a range of ratios from 2.15 to 3.9-to-1. Eric Lewandowski, product manager for drive axles, said the lower ratios are for direct-drive transmissions, and the ratios above 3.0 are for overdrive transmissions. The axle is manufactured in Asheville, North Carolina. Lewandowski said 14X HE will not replace the 14X; the 14X will remain as an axle for vocational applications. The new 14X HE axle weighs 30 pounds less than the traditional 14X model, and is 1.5% more efficient than its predecessor. Meritor said the 14X HE is one of the 20 new products being launched by 2019.

Today’s Trucking / February 27, 2017 The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Office of Defect Investigation is calling on truck fleets to notify it about vehicle manufacturing or design defects. “We have a real hard time identifying defects on commercial vehicles,” said program manager Bruce York, making his plea to the American Trucking Associations’ Technology and Maintenance Council. Look no further than the statistics for proof. About 235 million vehicles in the U.S. generate about 45,000 complaints a year. In contrast, 9 million trucks only generate 600 calls to the office. Manufacturers jump on complaints raised by individual fleet customers, but that doesn’t ensure similar vehicle issues are addressed, York said. “It [a truck that isn’t addressed] is going to crash and kill one of your family members or one of your friends,” he said. “Reach out to our office. Reach out and contact us and let us know about the defect.” The office doesn’t have the authority to place vehicles out of service, he stressed. Some issues identified as maintenance-related challenges might also involve design or manufacturing issues, he said. The “grey areas” can include things like fuel leaks, cracked frames, abrading air lines, and chafed wires. York offered examples of past recalls, such as the 25,643 trucks pulled off the road to address cracks in steering column mounts, and the 55,794 trucks recalled because of a missing clip that allowed oil lines to rub against the engine. “That was a Canadian vehicle,” York said, pointing to the picture of one burnt hulk. In another recall, failing drag links in Volvo led to lost steering, requiring a recall of 111,050 vehicles. “Get your trucks fixed, but also let’s get them all fixed,” he told maintenance managers in the crowd. Design or manufacturing-related safety defects can be reported by calling 888-327-4236, or visiting www.safertruck.gov.

Daum to replace Bernhard as head of Daimler Trucks & Buses Fleet Owner / February 27, 2017 Daimler AG’s supervisory board announced Feb. 27 it has appointed Martin Daum, president and CEO of Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) and a member of the board of management, to lead Daimler Trucks and Buses for five years, beginning March 1. Daum succeeds Wolfgang Bernhard, who said he is leaving the company of his own volition and for personal reasons. “With Martin Daum, we are appointing a very successful and experienced executive to the board of management as head of the Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses divisions,” stated Manfred Bischoff, chairman of the supervisory board of Daimler AG. “He looks back on 20 years of experience in the industry and knows the cyclical commercial-vehicle business from all perspectives. We are convinced that he will successfully meet the upcoming challenges in the next years, continue along the successful path of Daimler Trucks & Buses and further strengthen their worldwide leading positions.” “With Martin Daum and his international management experience, the right course is being set at the top of Daimler Trucks & Buses for the long term,” stated Dieter Zetsche, chairman of the board of management of Daimler AG and head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. “The important commercial-vehicle business in the US and in the NAFTA region has developed very successfully under the leadership of Martin Daum and is of key importance to the Daimler Group.” Since June 2009, Daum has been president and CEO of DTNA and its affiliated companies Freightliner Trucks, Western Star Trucks, Thomas Built Buses, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation and Detroit Diesel Corporation. Before that, he was a member of the management of Mercedes-Benz Trucks in Europe as vice president production Mercedes-Benz Trucks, and at the same time was responsible for the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth. Daum started his career in the trainee executive group of the Daimler-Benz AG in 1987.

Reuters / February 27, 2017 Daimler AG has appointed the head of its North American trucks division to run group-wide truck operations, replacing departed chief Wolfgang Bernhard, the carmaker said on Monday. The move avoids a lengthy search for a successor to run the unit. Bernhard, 56, once seen as a candidate to succeed Daimler CEO Diete Zetsche, stepped down a year before his contract was due to expire, the carmaker said this month. Martin Daum, 57, president and CEO of Daimler's trucks business in North America, was appointed by the company's supervisory board to top management effective on March 1 for a five-year period, Daimler said. Daum has run Daimler's heavy-duty vehicle business in North America since 2009, having previously held a top management post at the company's European trucks division with responsibility for Daimler's huge trucks plant in Woerth, Germany. "We are convinced that he will successfully meet the upcoming challenges in the next years," Daimler Chairman Manfred Bischoff said in an emailed statement. Bernhard's restructuring efforts have angered powerful labor leaders, who impeded his progress at Daimler until he was too old to be considered for the top job, sources familiar with the matter have said. In contrast the works council, whose members occupy half the seats on Daimler's 20-strong supervisory board, welcomed the appointment of Daum. "He is collaborative," Daimler's labor boss, Michael Brecht, said by email, adding that he hoped for constructive talks as the company continues to look for cost savings. Related reading - https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/48684-major-shakeup-wolfgang-bernhard-to-leave-daimler/#comment-361232.

Bloomberg / February 27, 2017 General Motors boosted incentives on its pickup models this month after its biggest foes gained ground, intensifying a price war within the U.S. auto market’s most hotly contested segment. Discounts averaged about $6,996 for the Chevrolet Silverado and $5,315 for the GMC Sierra this month through Feb. 12, according to J.D. Power dealer data. Incentives on GM’s models surged 56 percent and 82 percent, respectively, from a year earlier as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Ford Motor Co. dialed back their spending. The pickup segment is among the most profitable within the global automotive industry, giving carmakers room to offer deals and motivation to make market-share grabs. At the same time, fierce brand loyalty among truck owners means that automakers have to offer bigger deals to entice them to switch models. The rise in incentive activity also reflects the U.S. auto market slowing down following a seven-year streak of expansion. “It’s taking a lot more incentives now to move the metal than it did last year or certainly the year before,” said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst with car-shopping website Autotrader.com. “Things are slowing.” GM is spending 26 percent more in discounts on each Silverado truck than Fiat Chrysler does for its Ram and 85 percent more than Ford does on its on F series, according to the Power Information Network data, which J.D. Power doesn’t release to the public. The deals from GM are part of a “Truck Month” promotion that includes offers for about 25 percent off the sticker price of some 2016 Sierra pickups or $11,185 discounts for select 2017 Silverado models. The offers follow sales declines in January for both of GM’s full-size truck models while Ford and Fiat Chrysler’s pickups gained. “Last month, GM’s pickup sales were down,” Frank Ursomarso, owner of Union Park GMC in Delaware, said in a phone interview. “That’s why they’re doing this. GM has to battle against Ram and Ford.” GM also lost sales ground in 2016. Deliveries dropped 4.3 percent for the Silverado and 1.1 percent for the Sierra last year. The F series gained 5.2 percent to seal a 35th straight year as the top-selling vehicle line in the U.S., and Ram pickup sales rose 8.7 percent. The largest U.S. automaker is responding to competitive pressures with its latest incentives, in particular deep discounting by Fiat Chrysler on the Ram, said Jim Cain, a GM spokesman. “We wanted to get our fair share in the truck market,” Cain said by phone. “The kind of incentives we offer in Truck Month are not the kind of spending we do a on a regular basis.” Analysts have estimated pickups can command $8,000 to $10,000 in gross profit per vehicle, generating much of GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler’s earnings. “If this level of incentives continues, it certainly will eat into profits,” Krebs said.

Automakers knew of deadly Takata air bag defects The Washington Post / February 27, 2017 Court documents filed Monday allege that five automakers were aware of defects that caused Takata air bags to potentially harm or kill motorists but continued to use them to save on costs. The documents filed by lawyers representing victims and their families claim that Honda, Ford, BMW, Toyota and Nissan have known about the issues with the Japanese manufacturer’s air bags for more than a decade but used the air bags anyway because Takata was cheaper than its competitors and could produce the bulk quantities the automakers needed. The allegations come as Takata entered a guilty plea in a federal courtroom Monday as part of its agreement with the Department of Justice. That deal, reached last month in the final days of the Obama administration, required the company to pay $1 billion in fines and restitution. In December, three Takata executives were indicted on wire fraud charges. The largest portion of the penalty, $850 million, will be paid to automakers that incurred billions of dollars in expenses recalling vehicles and replacing air bags. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which sets automobile safety standards, recalled more than 64 million air bags in 42 million vehicles, making the Takata recall the largest in U.S. history. Takata also agreed to set up a $125 million fund for the families and individuals affected by the faulty air bags as part of the Justice Department deal. The device that inflates Takata air bags was found to explode in certain instances, sending shrapnel into the cabin of the car. The defect has been blamed for 11 deaths and roughly 180 injuries in the United States, according to NHTSA, as well as others around the globe. The allegations raise new questions about who should shoulder blame for the deaths and injuries the air bags caused. The agreement reached with the Justice Department claims that Takata deliberately omitted or falsified data to make its air bags appear safer, then passed the doctored information on to automakers. Automakers said in court documents last Thursday that Takata’s deception should exonerate them of liability. But the documents filed Monday say automakers nevertheless had independent information that the air bags were faulty and chose to continue installing them in millions of vehicles. “For the automotive defendants to call themselves victims insults the real victims here — hundreds of people who have been seriously injured or killed by a device that was [supposed] to protect them, and tens of millions of vehicle owners who have been forced to bear the risk of such injury and incurred substantial economic damages,” the documents say. Attorneys representing people injured by the faulty airbags initially filed their civil lawsuit against Takata and seven different car makers in 2015. Takata filed its own court update on Monday. The company said its agreement with the Justice Department should have “limited (if any) impact” on the pending civil litigation because it does not address Takata’s liability in the particular case. Although Takata has admitted to providing automakers with false safety information, the company’s agreement “does not stat that this conduct caused the field ruptures and recalls, or the alleged economic harm resulting therefrom.” Toyota and Ford declined to comment on the accusations. Nissan and BMW did not immediately return requests for comment. In court documents, lawyers allege that Honda was “intimately involved” with the design of Takata’s air bags and that at least two air bag inflaters ruptured during testing at Honda’s facilities in 1999 and 2000. Honda used the air bags anyway, according to the court documents, and at least 77 air bags ruptured on the road before the company implemented a nationwide recall. Honda called the allegations that it used the air bags despite safety concerns “categorically false” and pointed to the Takata settlement as evidence that automakers were misled to believe the product met safety standards. “The reality is that when Honda learned of the risks that these air bag inflaters presented, Honda reacted promptly and appropriately by issuing safety recalls and replacing the affected Takata air bag inflaters at no charge to its customers,” the company said in a statement.

Give the folks at Watts Mack (provider of the BMT website) a call at 1-888-304-6225. 84QS51 and 84QS52 (complete assemblies)

As I mentioned above, Great Coastal ran 250hp Caterpillar engines in their Freightliner COEs that were governed at 1600rpm. They were engineered to lug and deliver great MPG, which they did. So it's no surprise to me that Preston did well with their eco-spec 290hp engine. Preston did not run Macks, but the company had the most wonderful group of people I've ever met.

Today's disc brakes, all essentially proven tech from Europe, would be a great move on any brand truck. I'd stay away from Twin Y. It's an experiment gone wrong......dealers can't give them away.

Bob, this link shows clear pictures of Sisu's 10x6 tridem drive axle arrangement. https://autoreview.ru/articles/gruzoviki-i-avtobusy/Sisu-coffe-i-ponchiki

Climb Inside the World’s Largest Wind Tunnel A cold wind is whipping past, but the engineers scurrying around the giant room don’t seem to mind. They’re busy moving a fishing rod-like smoke wand this way and that, watching vaporized mineral oil stream off its tip and flow like a contrail over the sleekest semi you’ve ever seen. The engineers call this space “the 80-by-120;” it’s the largest wind tunnel on the planet, 80 feet tall and 120 feet wide, big enough to hold a Boeing 737, the star of the National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex in Mountain View, California. The truck is Navistar’s “Catalist,” a concept built to cut drag and boost fuel efficiency. The 80-by-120 is one of the few places that can really put the new design to the test. Sitting on the western edge of NASA’s Ames Research Center, the 80-by-120 blows through superlatives. It is its own biggest fan. It’s always in heavy rotation. This isn’t just spin! Its six turbines—40 feet wide, each powered by a 22,500-horsepower motor—can hit 180 rotations per minute, generating 110 mph winds in the tunnel and moving 60 tons of air every second. At that speed, they guzzle 106 megawatts of electricity—enough to power a town of 100,000 people. The turbines sit at the back of the tunnel; 1,400 feet away, in the front, is a screen door the size of a football field, which sucks in air from the outside, but not things like geese and NASA employees. After charging the length of the tunnel and passing the turbines, the air vents to the sky. That’s good for the folks on the ground uninterested in recreating Mary Poppins, but a potential problem for the commercial jets landing at and taking off from the nearby San Jose International Airport. So before spinning the turbines to full speed, the Air Force warns pilots about the risk of turbulence. A smaller wind tunnel opened here in 1944, and tested Cold War jets and models of the Space Shuttle. The big one opened in 1987, large enough for helicopters with 65-foot rotors and the parachute that landed the Curiosity rover on Mars. “You’re able to do a lot of things at full scale that you’re not able to do in tunnels that are much smaller,” says Scott Waltermire, who runs the aerodynamic complex. That’s why Navistar showed up with its truck, which a crane dropped into place (the walls of the tunnel open up for easy access). The Chicago-based truckmaker has spent five years working on the concept big rig, with a $20 million grant through the Department of Energy’s Supertruck II program. Navistar’s “Catalist” Supertruck (the “ist” is for International Super Truck) packs a mild hybrid powertrain, running auxiliary systems like the A/C off a battery, charged by rooftop solar panels and regenerative braking. And it looks pretty sharp. Sleek cameras instead of bulky sideview mirrors. “Super single” wide tires instead of two skinnier ones side by side. Sophisticated trailer skirts and a boat tail to smooth the air flowing over the truck. “If you think of the analogy of a boat going through the water a large wake behind it, we’re aiming to reduce that wake that the truck creates,” says Navistar aerodynamic engineer Craig Czlapinski. The result is a truck that Navistar says delivers a whopping 13 miles to the gallon, even when 80 percent full. (A typical 18-wheeler gets about 6 mpg.) They’ve come to the wind tunnel to make it even better. The opening test keeps the wind speed low, about 15 mph. Czlapinski wields the smoke wand, guiding the smoke over the cab and along the trailer. He pokes it between the two, then into the wheel wells, watching for points where the smoke (and thus the air) pulls away from the body. Then the team triggers the turn table on which most of the truck sits, some 55 feet in diameter, turning it a few degrees to the left, then to the right. Wind, after all, doesn’t just hit vehicles head on. They notice smoke leaks through the part of the boat tail, a by-product of drag pulling on the rear doors of the trailer—so they’ll likely add a seal to plug up the leak. Up front, smoke is getting sucked up between the cab and trailer, a sign they should lower the adjustable bit of the roof of the tractor. After 40 or so minutes in the wind, the engineers shut down the turbines and walk out. For the next test, they’ll sit in the control room—no one’s allowed in the tunnel when it cranks the wind up to highway speeds. The Navistar folks will spend five weeks here, testing the Catalist and some other production models, swapping out cabs and trailers. Then it’s back to Chicago to study the results, stamp out the weaknesses, and perfect the aero. And while they’re making trucking better for everybody, the wind tunnel’s operators will get ready to put their next giant client on blast. Video - https://www.wired.com/2017/02/climb-inside-worlds-largest-wind-tunnel/#slide-1

Startup Firm Unveils Prototype Autonomous Truck Heavy Duty Trucking / February 24, 2017 Yet another startup tech firm has rolled into the autonomous truck arena. San Mateo, Calif.-based Embark publicly revealed its prototype self-driving truck on Feb. 24. The company, which gained approval from the State of Nevada earlier this year to begin testing its truck on public roads, said its self-driving technology enables a truck “to drive from exit to exit on the freeway without any human input.” Embark said its tractor-trailer setup uses a combination of radars, cameras and Lidar (light detection and ranging) depth sensors “to perceive the world around it.” The data points captured are processed via a form of Artificial Intelligence known as Deep Neural Nets (DNNs) that “allow the truck to learn from its own experience— much like humans learn from practice.” “Analyzing terabyte upon terabyte of real-world data, Embark’s DNNs have learned how to see through glare, fog and darkness on their own,” said Alex Rodrigues, CEO and co-founder of Embark. “We’ve programmed them with a set of rules to help safely navigate most situations, how to safely learn from the unexpected, and how to apply that experience to new situations going forward.” Embark’s truck is built specifically for “long, simple stretches of freeway driving between cities, rather than all aspects of driving.” Like other autonomous truck designs, including the Freightliner Inspiration truck and the Otto (owned by Uber) truck, Embark's computerized truck is meant to be handed off to a human driver once it heads off the highway, who will then navigate local streets to the destination. “A human driver will still touch every load, but with Embark they’re able to move more loads per day, handing off hundreds of miles of freeway driving to their robot partners,” is how the company put it. Rodrigues said he was inspired to launch Embark after blowing a tire on the interstate and waiting four hours for a tow. In that time, he said, “every single 18-wheeler that drove past had a sign on the back 'Drivers Wanted'. It was so clear there was a shortage of drivers.” He added that “Embark's goal is to increase productivity per driver and prevent the shortage from becoming a crisis.” Rodrigues is no stranger to robotics, having built his first autonomous robot at age 13. According to the company, his robots have won international competitions and one of his autonomous shuttles transported over 1,000 passengers in demonstrations across California. According to Embark, the company’s robotics team includes “talent from technology leaders including SpaceX, StanfordAI, and Audi's self-driving team. The team is backed by a multi-million dollar investment led by Maven Ventures. Maven’s previous investment in self-driving technology, Cruise Automation, sold to GM for $1B last year.” In addition to its prototype autonomous truck, Embark noted that it also fields a fleet of five trucks to gather data to help accelerate development. The company added that it plans to quadruple its engineering team within the next year and “aggressively expand its testing fleet to show their technology is ready for the nation’s highways.” “We are committed to proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that this technology is safe and reliable,” said Rodrigues. “That means performing extensive tests and working with our partners in the government to get it— and the market— ready.”

Transport Topics / February 26, 2017 Eaton Corp. has focused on a future for power management in commercial vehicles built around 48-volt power. It is just an architecture change from a 12-volt system, and “the power electronics to do it is not rocket science, either. I think we are on that cusp,” Larry Bennett, director of vehicle technology and innovation at Eaton Corp., told Transport Topics here Feb. 26 at the annual meeting of American Trucking Associations' Technology & Maintenance Council. “Certainly, when you look at what the SuperTruck guys are wanting to do and [truck manufacturers], I think they are leaning heavily on 48-volts at this point,” he said. In August, the U.S. Department of Energy announced its SuperTruck II initiative to more than double the freight efficiency of Class 8 trucks and go beyond provisions in the new federal Phase 2 greenhouse-gas emissions rule affecting heavy- and medium-duty trucks, as well as trailers. Truck makers are so interested, Bennett said, that if Eaton could make 48-volt power management available, they would definitely take advantage of it. “So they are ready to go,” he said. “What appeals to them is a fuel-economy play,” or taking accessories that are driven by the belts off the engine so they are not spinning when they are not needed. Unnecessary spinning of accessories creates parasitic drag and reduces engine efficiency.

Autonomous trucks: The reality is setting in Sean Kilcarr, Fleet Owner / February 24, 2017 Despite the recent lawsuit filed against self-driving truck systems maker Otto and its new owner, Uber, regarding the theft of autonomous vehicle trade secrets as well as the ongoing reluctance among both motorists and truckers regarding the acceptance of such technology, more than a few experts believe self-driving trucks will be a daily reality sooner rather than later. The reason boils down to a single word: Economics. “The autonomous vehicle is going to change everything,” Robert Hooper Jr., CEO of Atlantic Logistics, recently explained to me. “It’s a Tsunami coming at our [freight] industry and if we don’t prepare for it we’ll get swept away.” An economist by training, Hooper said the cost-savings potential of the self-driving truck is huge, especially when one contemplates eliminating the need for a full-time human driver to pilot big rigs. By his calculations, driver pay runs the gamut from $35,000 a year for those in drayage operations up to $125,000 annually for more “specialized” markets such as household goods moving and the like. Now compare that to expected additional cost of self-driving systems to the base sticker price of a Class 8 truck, which this study said will be a around $23,400 per unit. That’s a one-time expense per truck, compared to the ongoing pay required for a human, and obviously that comes in well below even the lowest wage rate on the truck driver pay scale. “That’s why there will be a huge incentive to adopt this technology,” Hooper stressed. “That’s why I am trying to prepare my business for it.” Still, despite that “incentive,” research by Steve Sashihara, founder and CEO of Princeton Consultants, indicates that “self-driving trucks” remains the one technological advancement most freight industry denizens are the most skeptical about. “There are some people that believe no, this is definitely going to happen but there are a lot of other people that think in eight years; they’re not sure,” he explained. “Maybe we’ll see a few on the road but, I’m not sure it’s going to have a big impact. In Sashihara’s view, the potential safety benefit of autonomous vehicles as a whole – cars and trucks – is what’s going to driver their adoption. “The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) did a very interesting report talking about live data on self-braking technology,” he explained. “Largely, the synopses which I’m seeing say that systems with automatic braking reduce rear-end crashes by about 40% on average. That would have been 700,000 fewer police reported rear-end crashes in 2013 and I think this is very important for the adoption [of self-driving vehicles].” That’s but one reason he believes self-driving trucks “are close to inevitable,” but the question remains: where and when? “In terms of tailwinds, [one] thing that is propelling [self-driving trucks] forward for long haul freight transportation is that approximately a third of the cost of truckload transportation are drivers [and the] constant of persistent long term driver shortages, from all quarters,” Sashihara pointed out. “Also, very few trucks, in our experience, are slip-seated. A lot of them are ‘single-opted’ so, having something that isn’t bound by hours of service (HOS) means more asset utilization,” he added. John Larkin, managing director and head of transportation capital markets research for Stifel Capital Markets, also thinks that self-driving trucks represents but the tip of a very large iceberg in terms of radical supply chain changes racing toward us. “How long will it be before the internet of things (IoT) monitors the amount of granola each of us has in his/her pantry and records when the granola stockpile reaches the pre-specified replenishment level?” he asked. “How long before 3D printers are placed in each of Amazon’s delivery vehicles so that the custom door handle you just ordered will be manufactured as it makes its way through your neighborhood en route to your front door?” Larkin added. “How long before drones start delivering shaving cream to your front porch? Our sense is that all these innovations will be upon us sooner than we think – particularly if government would simply get out of the way.” So hold onto your hats; we may be speeding toward the advent of true self-driving truck operations faster than we think.

Fleet Owner / February 24, 2017 Embark today unveiled its self-driving truck technology to the public. The company, which gained approval by the State of Nevada earlier this year to begin testing its truck on public roads, announced it has created a technology that allows trucks to drive from exit to exit on the freeway without any human input. According to the company, Embark’s truck uses a combination of radars, cameras and depth sensors known as LiDARs to perceive the world around it. The millions of data points from these sensors are processed using a form of Artificial Intelligence known as Deep Neural Nets (or DNNs) that allow the truck to learn from its own experience — much like humans learn from practice, Embark noted. “Analyzing terabyte upon terabyte of real-world data, Embark’s DNNs have learned how to see through glare, fog and darkness on their own,” said Alex Rodrigues, CEO and co-founder of Embark. “We’ve programmed them with a set of rules to help safely navigate most situations, how to safely learn from the unexpected, and how to apply that experience to new situations going forward.” Embark mentioned its truck is built specifically to handle long, simple stretches of freeway driving between cities, rather than all aspects of driving. At the city limit, Embark's computerized truck hands off to a human driver who navigates the city streets to the destination. A human driver will still touch every load, but with Embark they’re able to move more loads per day, handing off hundreds of miles of freeway driving to their robot partners. “Spending weeks on the highway is tough on you,” said owner-operator Jeff Scorsur. “If I could still get the job done while driving in my own city and sleeping in my own bed – that would make my family very happy.” According to Rodrigues, the idea for Embark came after blowing a tire on the interstate and waiting four hours for the tow truck to arrive. “Every single 18-wheeler that drove past had a sign on the back 'Drivers Wanted'. It was so clear there was a shortage of drivers,” he said. “The numbers back that up. The American Transportation Research Institute estimates there is currently a shortage of 100,000 truck drivers in the industry, which is poised to only get worse as baby boomer drivers - the bulk of the industry’s workforce - retire over the next decade. Embark's goal is to increase productivity per driver and prevent the shortage from becoming a crisis.” According to the company, Rodrigues started Embark by recruiting talent from technology leaders including SpaceX, StanfordAI, and Audi's self-driving team. The team is backed by a multi-million dollar investment led by Maven Ventures. Maven’s previous investment in self-driving technology, Cruise Automation, sold to GM for $1B last year. .

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