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Apr 10, 2017

SCANIA TRUCKS + APPLE * USA: CarPlay into some of it heavy trucks

* California - Scania brings Apple's CarPlay to semi trucks for first time

--- A Swedish manufacturer, Scania, on Wednesday announced plans to build CarPlay into some of it heavy trucks, marking perhaps the first time Apple's platform has been integrated into non-consumer vehicles... CarPlay will come to Scania Infotainment Systems equipped with a 7-inch touchscreen and a voice control option, the company said. While the technology is being rolled out to new trucks starting in June, older vehicles should also be able to upgrade so long as they support voice control... To date CarPlay has been used primarily by automakers targeting the public, such as Honda, Chevrolet, and Kia. While Toyota is still refusing to install it, even long-time holdouts like Mazda have come onboard, if only sometimes providing retroactive upgrades. Otherwise, drivers have had to turn to aftermarket receivers... 
Cupertino, CAL, USA - Apple Insider, by Roger Fingas - April 05, 2017

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Mar 18, 2017

Ford's SIDE WIND STABILISATION * UK:

* England - Ford Transits get side wind stabilisation as standard


--- Ford has confirmed that all Transits will be fitted with a feature known as Side Wind Stabilisation as standard... Side Wind Stabilisation is a Ford-developed advanced feature that works by carefully applying the brakes on one side of the vehicle to reduce the effect of a side wind gust on the vehicle’s path... At vehicle speeds over 50mph, the Side Wind Stabilisation system monitors stability sensors 100 times per second. If a sudden gust is detected, the feature can become active within less than 200 milliseconds – the time it takes a sprinter to react to a starting pistol... The Side Wind Stabilisation technology is offered as a standard feature on Ford’s latest Transit and Transit Custom models that feature the Ford EcoBlue diesel engine, which will be on display at the CV Show in Birmingham. April 25-27... 
Brentwood, Essex, UK - Transport Parts (Ireland), by Padraic Deane - March 6, 2017

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Mar 14, 2017

STARSKY ROBOTICS * USA: Remote-controlled trucks

* California - Human-less trucks are here

--- The idea for remote-controlled robots that drive trucks came to Stefan Seltz-Axmacher. Now the 27-year-old co-founder of Starsky Robotics is heading one of a handful of startups looking at upending the long-haul trucking industry... The 15-employee company already has raised $3.75 million, but unlike other startups such as the Uber-owned Otto that seek to eschew truck drivers completely, San Francisco-based Starsky Robotics wants humans steering big rigs, just not from behind the wheel... Starsky outfits trucks with an add-on system that uses computers, radar and software to allow the vehicle to run autonomously on the highway, where there is much more predictability than on the streets. Then, once the big rig exits on to city streets, the remotely controlled robots take over... Last month, the company equipped a Freightliner and hauled 5,000 pounds of freight from Orlando to Fort Lauderdale. For 120 miles the truck ran humanless and then an additional 20 miles via remote control... 
(Photo: A self-driving truck)   --  San Francisco, CAL, USA - The Whittier Daily News, by Rachel Uranga - 8 March 2017

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Aug 8, 2016

PRINTED SPARE PARTS FOR TRUCKS * USA: With 3D printers

* NY - Three ways 3D printing is (quietly) revolutionizing trucking
Photo courtesy Ford Motor Co. : Since December 2014, Ford Motor Co. has been collaborating with Carbon3D in using that company's Continuous Liquid Interface Production (CLIP) 3D printing technology and says the parts made "are applicable for a range of needs of Ford vehicles"...

--- And here we've been expecting Amazon package trucks that'll 3D print items ordered onboard as the trucks rush to deliver them. It might not be quite that dramatic a change yet, but 3D printing already is influencing trucking and transportation in a number of ways — and maybe just as significantly... Yes, the patent Amazon was awarded in February last year for 3D printing on trucks made some waves and has been talked about as a potential disruptor of current trucking and supply chain norms. That could be even more the case if the online marketplace giant combines the idea with its equally buzz-generating concept of sending delivery drones to your door...


Photo courtesy Daimler AG: 3D printed spare parts for Mercedes-Benz Actros series trucks in the European market.

Photo courtesy IBM by Rich Riggins/Feature Photo Service: - Local Motors CEO John B. Rogers, Jr. stands next to the company's 3D printed, self-driving, electric minibus called Olli, which uses IBM Watson Internet of Things technology.
Photo courtesy Ford Motor Co.: A 3D printed bumper piece for a Ford Transit van (right above) and electrical grommet for a Focus

New York, NY, USA - Fleet Owner, by Aaron Marsh - Aug 2, 2016

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Aug 6, 2016

TRUCKING TECHNO-CONNECTED * Europe: Through the "Ultra Narrow Band (UNB)"

* France - SigFox, LoRa, Qowisio: the future of logistics connected?

--- The applications of the Internet of Things logistics are promising, including the emergence of low-speed networks for data transfer. But several constraints still hamper the "Ultra Narrow Band (UNB)" ... On the market for connected objects applied to logistics, the technology of "Ultra Narrow Band (UNB)", which uses radio frequencies, offers immense potential at very low cost... SigFox the company, operator of its own network UNB, opened the door. But to benefit from this technology, companies will renew their computer equipment for data collection and deploy compatible chips SigFox or LoRa. The territory is not yet completely covere... The promise is so beautiful but still within reach of all logistics... 
(Photo: The truck as mobile logistics centre -- Paris, France - WK Logistics Magazine - 25 July 2016

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Jul 21, 2016

UBER FOR TRUCKS * Brazil: "CargoX" described as

* Sao Paulo - Goldman Sachs leads $10M investment in Brazilian trucking startup CargoX


--- CargoX, a Brazilian startup that has been described as “Uber for trucks,” is announcing that it has raised $10 million in Series B funding... The analogy is kind of irresistible, since Uber co-founder Oscar Salazary is one of CargoX’s investors — he’s certainly seen his share of “Uber for X” pitches, but he told me he sees a big opportunity here due to the fragmentation in the Brazilian trucking market... CEO Federico Vega said that Airbnb is probably a better analogy than Uber, but either way, the company works to connect businesses that need to ship freight with truckers who have excess capacity. Brazil reportedly has an excess of between 300,000 and 350,000 vehicles, with trucks running empty 40 percent of the time, so the goal here is to reduce the number of empty trucks on the highway, increasing revenue for truckers and reducing costs for freight owners... He added that CargoX has a network of 150,000 trucks. In some cases, truckers only contact the company if, say, they’ve made a delivery and are looking for freight to take on their return trip. Other truckers get all their freight from the company — “in an ideal world,” he said, CargoX would work with more and more truckers in that exclusive capacity... 
(Photo: CargoX CEO Federico Vega, with his director of logistics Alan Rubio)  --  São Paulo, SP, Brazil - TechCrunch, by Anthony Ha - 20 July 2016

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CATERPILLAR + AVID * USA: For highly efficient hybrid powertrain for heavy-duty trucks

* Massachusetts - AVID Technology and Caterpillar join forces to drive fuel efficiency standards

--- North East based automotive cleantech firm AVID Technology has secured a key position in a three year collaborative programme to develop more efficient vehicle powertrains with global OEM Caterpillar... In the project will collaborate to develop a highly efficient hybrid powertrain for heavy-duty on- and off-highway vehicles... The powertrain will utilise AVID’s advanced electrification technology for the engine’s ancillary devices to reduce the parasitic loads on the engine. Ancillary devices will be powered using waste heat energy that will be recovered from the exhaust... The system is expected to deliver significant fuel consumption reductions over real-world operating conditions...
This £5.2M, three year project encompasses software, hardware and control system design and development and will culminate with an on-engine demonstration using a Caterpillar-built Tier 4Final-compliant diesel engine... 
(Photo: A Caterpillar diesel engine) -- Burlington, MASS, USA - Automotive World - July 21, 2016

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Jun 10, 2016

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY FOR TRUCKS * USA - Energy savings on trash trucks

* Nevada - Trucks with a powertrain built by Wrightspeed
-- Garbage trucks are among the dirtiest trucks cities have. The more refuse they clean from the streets, the more pollution they may add to the atmosphere... One possible solution for reducing this pollution was at the WasteExpo, a waste management and recycling conference held Tuesday through Thursday at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Mack Trucks, a North Carolina-based manufacturing company, paired one of its trucks with a powertrain built by Wrightspeed, a company started by Tesla co-founder Ian Wright... Wright describes a powertrain as the parts of a vehicle that make it move, such as the engine, electric motors and range extender... The Route 1000 Powertrain Electric Drive System is built with garbage trucks in mind. Because garbage trucks use brakes extensively, Wrightspeed added a regenerative braking system to reduce wear and extend brakes’ life. Other energy-saving features include 24 miles of range on storage batteries, LED lighting, a battery cooling system and a Fulcrum Turbine Generator that can burn diesel or natural gas to extend the driving range... Wright said garbage trucks can become up to 700 pounds lighter, depending on the size of the battery pack, with an efficient power train. Wrightspeed engineer Nicholas Liotta said garbage trucks also become quieter and cleaner than their conventional diesel engine counterparts, because they don’t require their engine turbines to be on as much... 
(Image: A Mack Truck eletrified by Wrightspeed)   --   Las Vegas, NEV, USA - The Las Vegas Review-Journal, by Rocio Hernandez - June 8, 2016


 * Indiana - New technology on Borden garbage trucks means less pollution, noise

--- Hydraulics store energy when garbage trucks brake and release it when they accelerate, cutting fuel consumption and noise from squealing brakes... Borden Waste-Away announced this week that its fleet of garbage trucks is using the new iNTELLIDRIVE system, which was developed by Stored Energy Solutions. The new system will cut fuel costs and increase the efficiency of the trucks, said Chris Himes, president of Borden Waste-Away... Garbage trucks spend hours each day stopping and accelerating repeatedly between customers, especially in residential neighborhoods. That wastes a lot of energy with starting a heavy duty truck from a dead stop and stopping again... The iNTELLIDRIVE system uses hydraulics to store energy when garbage trucks brake and then release it when trucks accelerate. Himes said the recycled energy reduces the need to run the engine at full power, which exhaust emissions by 90 percent. The trucks' engines can run at idle speed, significant reducing fuel consumption... 
(Truth Photo by J. Tyler Klassen/AP - A Borden Waste Away truck picks up trash along Indiana Ave. Friday afternoon 9/17/2010. As city officials plan the next budget they are considering ways to pay for trash collection) -- Elkhart, IND, USA - The Elkhart Truth, by Alexandra Smith - June 9, 2016

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May 19, 2016

GOOGLE´s "Android" for cars * USA: TECHNO-TRUCKS

* California - Google revs up auto-based Android

---  Google announced a blizzard of car-based Android operating system updates Wednesday as the Silicon Valley tech giant tries to accelerate the convergence of automobiles and computer networks... The introduction of Android N, an open-source operating system provides a glimpse at a future in which manufacturers may be able to more affordably develop in-car technology, and where autonomous cars will be able to communicate with one another... The Google I/O conference is held in Mountain View near the company’s California headquarters in order to update developers on the latest Google wizardry from virtual reality to transportation. Google has been active in the auto space since its marshmallow-shaped autonomous Google car made headlines... KBB’s Brauer sees Google’s Android operating as a key step toward self-driving vehicles. Though fleets of operating system-sharing, autonomous cars are sci-fi stuff for now, industry insiders predict a future of dedicated lanes for autonomous cars that can safely travel at 100-plus miles per hour while networking with one another to travel just inches apart... 
(Photo Google: Google’s infotainment system is displayed in a 15-inch screen in the car’s center console and features an Android user interface) -- Mountain View, CAL, USA - The Detroit News, by Henry Payne - May 18, 2016

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May 1, 2016

Wrightspeed engine * USA - The "Tesla" of Garbage Trucks

* California - An hybrid system with an electric motor and extensive power and torque

  (Video by Ole Schell - Feb 18, 2014: A spot featuring the Wrightspeed electric/turbine powered truck performing on The Bonneville Salt Flats as it is tailed by a turbine powered Bell 206 Ranger Helicopter) 

--- Wellington, New Zealand, had a serious issues with its decades old vehicles. They rely on a system of overhead wires the city can’t afford to maintain, so it looked like municipal authorities would need to swap out the clean transport system for dirty diesel trucks and buses. But before the city revamped its mass transit system, a third way presented itself, a high-tech, more sustainable solution that may foreshadow a shift in how cities run their fleets of heavy vehicles, such as buses and garbage trucks... A former Tesla Motors founder, Ian Wright, started his own company on a seemingly simple premise, applying the massive sustainability gains of electric engines to the least sustainable vehicles on the road. The company’s electric motors, battery packs, and a gas turbine can provide lumbering, multi-ton motor vehicles with 60 percent better fuel efficiency and 90 percent cleaner emissions. It was a simple choice for Wellington to go with Wrightspeed technology, which will be installed in the city’s trolleys over the next year as part of a US$30 million deal announced last week...

(Photo: The Wrightspeed engine system) 

 --- The Wrightspeed hybrid system—an electric motor with extensive power and torque, a computer-controlled high-tech gear box and four-speed transmission, and a battery that’s charged by a gas-fueled turbine range extender called the Fulcrum—provides the push needed to move a heavy vehicle up hills with an electric engine, while giving it the extra juice needed to last through a long, arduous route with multiple stops...    Wrightspeed doesn’t work for every heavy vehicle, but for the backbone of urban transport and heavy-duty hauling, the system saves fuel costs and reduces emissions, with the more expensive upgrade paying for itself in three to four years. says Wright. "A garbage truck can go through 14,000 gallons a year. That’s a lot more pollution, and a lot more potential savings" ...

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Apr 21, 2016

TRUCKING TECHNOLOGY * USA

* California - Trucking technology make easy job for operators, drivers and inspectors 

 -- The trucking industry is a major contributor to the U.S. economy, and ensuring the safety and reliability of this industry is a complex job. However, advances in trucking technology are making it easier for operators, drivers and inspectors to ensure that all trucks on the road are meeting the regulations developed by the FMCSA... Three major areas of regulation that are currently being streamlined by advances in trucking technology are licensing, maintenance and inspections, and weight limits, which have all been traditionally validated using paper-based methods. In addition to reducing risk and adding value to the enterprise, using new technology in the transportation pipeline also enhances customer service by allowing all parties involved in the logistics pipeline to maintain visibility into the delivery status, ensure asset accountability and set expectations for normal and abnormal operations... The trucking industry suffers from excessive staffing turnover, and no doubt many drivers move on to other carriers because of disorganized operations, hectic schedules and poor communication. In order to attract the next generation of operators, motor carriers must embrace and employ new technology in the trucking industry that will empower and support their new team members...
Silicon Valley, CAL, USA - Insights Samsung, by Casey Meeks - 18 April 2016

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Apr 11, 2016

TECHNO-TRUCKS USA: * Execs Remain Unsure - ** Automatic emergency braking (AEB)

* Florida - Trucking execs remain perplexed by fleet technology savings

-- Fleet Advantage, a leading innovator in truck fleet business analytics, equipment financing and lifecycle cost management, said results of its latest survey show that an alarming percentage of the trucking industry remains unaware of the savings achieved by incorporating new fleet technologies... The online survey — presented to more than 500 private and transportation fleet executives and managers — shows that 45 percent of respondents are unsure of operational savings resulting from the implementation of new technologies to heavy-duty trucks in their fleet... Among several vehicle features designed to enhance performance and improve fuel economy, the majority of respondents (68 percent) said they’ve implemented the utilization of aerodynamic roof fairings. However, lack of digestible data may also be a reason why roughly a third of respondents said they’ve never used or considered features such as low-rolling resistance tires (34 percent), aerodynamic mirrors (34 percent), and aerodynamic cab extenders (34 percent). Also, 52 percent of respondents said they’ve never used aerodynamic chassis skirts... Despite the current low cost of diesel, 81 percent said they spec their powertrain for fuel economy instead of performance, and 86 percent spec their axle/gear ratio for fuel economy as well... 
Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA - Trucking News (CAN) - April 8, 2016 


* Michigan - Emergency braking an area where trucking can lead 4-wheeler technology

(Video: In-cab view of Meritor WABCO active braking system autonomously stopping vehicle before collision) 

 -- A study from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute claims automatic emergency braking (AEB) could decrease truck fatalities by between 44-47 percent, leading four key groups within the trucking industry to call for industry-wide AEB implementation... Just look at how prevalent automatic transmissions are on four-wheelers versus commercial trucking.. Effective with the 2016 model year, Ford – which sells more trucks than any other OEM – doesn’t even offer a manual transmission on any of its F-Series trucks... Making AEB technology standard on heavy trucks is years away and four-wheelers will most assuredly beat them to the punch, but the technology certainly exists. And it’s highly effective... Last summer I was in the passenger seat of a Peterbilt as WABCO’s OnGuard Active system ground the truck to a complete stop, preventing what otherwise would have been a rear-end collision... Decelerating a 16-plus tons without flipping it over poses a greater challenge than skidding a Kia Rio to a stop, but there are suites of electronic stability control (ESC) systems available to help manage that process, and ESC will be required on heavy trucks and buses next year. The addition of AEBs from that point would be an easy process... The adaptation of AEBs in trucking, which I think is a lot closer to the horizon than 2025 – when automakers have pledged to implement AEBs in light-duty trucks – will ensure many more on-highway collisions end in a tie, with more four wheelers and 18 wheelers walking away less worse for wear... 
Chicago, MICH, USA - CCJ Digital, by Jason Cannon - April 6, 2016

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Feb 19, 2016

TECHNOLOGIES for TRUCKS * USA: A solar charger

* Texas - PulseTech introduces solar charger maintainer
-- Fleet managers and sales dealers for buses, trucks, heavy construction equipment as well as RV owners can eliminate jump starts and extend battery life with the new SP-5 OTR Solar Charger Maintainer, PulseTech’s new 5-watt system that utilizes a simple, temporary plug-in instead of a permanent, more complicated installation, the company announced... The OTR attaches to the vehicle's exterior hood with four suction cups and plugs directly into the OBD connector for power... Manufactured by PulseTech Products Corp, the SP-5 OTR is a commercially rated solar panel for trucks and larger public transportation vehicles. Half the size of comparable solar chargers, the SP-5 OTR has the ability to maintain up to four 12V batteries connected in parallel and replaces the power loss from electrical accessories that occurs even when the ignition is turned off, according to the company... 
Southlake, TXS, USA - Fleet Owner - Feb 18, 2016

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Jan 22, 2016

DRIVERLESS TECHNOLOGIES * Australia/Holland - Safety, savings fuel push for

* Truckers around the world are facing their latest rival head-on: Driverless trucks
-- After decades checking their rearview mirrors for the threat from rail and air transport, truckers around the world are facing their latest rival head-on: driverless trucks... As companies from Toyota Motor Corp to Google parent Alphabet Inc race to develop driverless technology, trucking companies are seeing the potential to cut costs by nearly half and improve safety... Already in Australia, the world's most truck-dependent nation, mining giants such as Rio Tinto are using remote controlled lorries to shift iron ore around massive mining pits... Now the country's road transport companies are modernising fleets to ensure that when their industry goes autonomous, as early as the end of the decade, they are ready... Testing of the other benefits expected from going fully driverless - savings from removing driver compartments, air conditioning and rest stops - will come later... The cuts in wage and fuel bills could be massive. The U.S. road freight business alone was worth $700 billion in 2014, according to the American Trucking Associations... Although self-driven freight depends on making the inter-vehicle sensors and satellite positioning failsafe, the biggest hold-up is expected to come from regulators... Coordinating rules between different jurisdictions, whether between U.S. or Australian states or European countries, is key... Fears that thousands of drivers will lose their jobs have been raised, but the industry has downplayed such concerns as many countries struggle to fill trucking jobs... But said Kelvin Baxter, a former driver who employs 50 at his grain transportation business in Australia's east, "At the moment, our concerns are finding enough drivers" ... 
 (Photo)  --   SYDNEY, Australia/AMSTERDAM, Holland - Reuters, by Byron Kaye/Toby Sterling/Allison Lampert and Lincoln Feast - Jan 21, 2016

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Dec 16, 2015

TECHNO-TRUCKS DESIGN * USA - Turning Ideas into impact:

* DC - The Energy Department’s Office of Technology Transitions
-- Amazing things happen when scientists connect with innovators who connect with entrepreneurs. Ideas are sparked, solutions are found, new products are created and the entire economy is strengthened... That’s why the Department of Energy recently created the Office of Technology Transitions (OTT). Our goal is to turn ideas into impact. And we do so by connecting scientists and engineers at the Department’s 17 National Laboratories with investors and entrepreneurs all across the country... When the entrepreneurs and engineers at Smart Truck Systems, a company in Greenville, South Carolina, were looking to improve the aerodynamics and fuel efficiency of long-haul trailers, they looked to the supercomputers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Sophisticated simulations of airflow around the trailers led to the design of unique aerodynamic add-on components called the UnderTray system. The simulations reduced the time from concept to manufacture-ready from three years to 18 months. The system can increase highway fuel efficiency by up to 12 percent, saving thousands in annual fuel cost per truck and leading to potentially dramatic reductions in carbon dioxide emissions...
(Image by Oak Ridge National Laboratory - The National Labs’ supercomputing power to model aerodynamics of long-haul trucks to improve efficiency) -- Washington, DC, USA - Energy Gov, by Jetta Wong - December 8, 2015

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Nov 2, 2015

VIRTUAL TRUCKING USA: * Echo Global Logistics - ** KeepTruckin

* Illinois - Growth is real at virtual trucking firm

-- Calling Chicago “a transportation hub for America and an emerging tech center,” Echo Global Logistics CEO, Doug Waggoner, announced Thursday his company will double the number of employees it has in the city within two years... Waggoner said 550 workers would move from Skokie; that, with other new hires, would bring the firm’s total presence in the Chicago to 1,600 employees... Echo handles the transportation of products – but owns no trucks, trains, planes or ships. Waggoner said, “We’re kind of like a virtual trucking company” ... Echo started with 10 employees and a borrowed conference room in 2005. Today, Echo has 30 offices around the country and 2,500 employees. In May, Echo acquired Command Transportation, one of the largest privately held truckload brokers and non-asset-based transportation providers in the United States in a $420 million deal... 
(Photo by Lee Bosch/The Sun-Times: Echo Global Logistics EO Doug Waggoner, with Nicholas Vacco, a national account manager at Echo offices in Chicago) -- Chicago, ILL, USA - The Chicago Sun-Times, by LEE BOSCH - 29 Oct 2015


** California - Keeptruckin raises $8M led by Index Ventures

-- For years, truckers have had to keep unwieldy paper log books in order to track their hours, which complicates fleet management for trucking companies because they have to sort through faxes and mailed documents... KeepTruckin is a San Francisco-based company that is trying to automate this with a pair of hardware and software solutions that will log hours in the background. They’ve just raised an $8 million round led by Index Ventures, which brings their total funding to $10.3 million after an earlier round led by Google Ventures... They have 150,000 drivers using their product so far, and are trying to grab the rest of the 4.5 million person market... Tomorrow, the federal Department of Transportation is supposed to finalized regulation for hardware that directly syncs with a vehicle’s engine to log driving times. KeepTruckin has a device ready to go with the new law... 
San Francisco, CAL, USA - Tech Crunk, by Kim-Mai Cutler - 28 Oct 2015

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Oct 22, 2015

TECHNO-TRUCKS WORLDWIDE * India's e-platform -- ** Ireland's: A Smartphone on wheels -- *** USA: Electronic logs

* Delhi / India - Mahindra’s SmartShift connects cargo owners with transporters

-- Mahindra & Mahindra has launched SmartShift, a platform that connects cargo owners with transporters. The platform lets users find transporters based on the cargo weight, size and other requirements, and negotiate and seal a deal to transport it. SmartShift’s services are available via the website, smartphone app and call centre... The app works by providing three vehicle options to cargo owners on logging in, a three wheeler, a mini truck or a pick up, each with varying weight and dimensional capacities. On selecting a vehicle, details of load, destination address, payment option etc. are required to be entered. Cargo owners are not charged a service fee for using the platform, although they have to pay for the actual transport. The company claims to use a proprietary algorithm to automatically calculate the best price to transport these goods, as well as allow cargo owners to then change the price to their preference...
New Delhi, India -  Medianama, by Vivek Pai - October 20, 2015


 ** Kells / Ireland - A smartphone on wheels: here is how tomorrows intelligent trucks work

-- Tomorrow’s intelligent truck is more similar to a smartphone on wheels than a traditional vehicle... “Within a few years this is going to revolutionise productivity in the transport industry,” says Hayder Wokil, Director Quality & Uptime at Volvo Trucks... Today there are about 175,000 online-connected Volvo trucks on Europe's roads. A number of them can already today send information about when they need maintenance and some of the necessary service work can even be administrated remotely... However, this is just the beginning... 
(Photo: In the future trucks will be able to communicate with other vehicles in their vicinity)  --  Kells, Co. Meath, Ireland - IrishTrucker - 20 October 2015


*** Idaho / USA - Truckers prepare for electronic travel logs

-- Mandating electronic logbooks in interstate trucks and buses would prevent 20 fatalities and 434 injuries each year, the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates... The USDoT proposed the rule to force drivers to switch from paper to digital travel logs in an effort to reduce trucking accidents, including those caused by fatigued drivers... The department says the rule would simplify the monitoring of time truckers spend on the road and the reprimanding of those who log too many hours...  Impaired driving, including fatigue, was listed as a factor in more than 12 percent of the 129,120 crashes involving large trucks or buses in 2012, the department says. The proposed rule would make it harder for drivers to misrepresent their time on logbooks and avoid detection by authorities... Custody of the electronic records would remain with truckers and their employers, as paper logs do today. The records would be available to law enforcement and regulators during roadside inspections, compliance reviews and post-crash investigations. The log laws apply to trucks traveling at least 150 miles... The rule would also establish a procedure for a driver to file a harassment complaint against a carrier who orders trips that require drivers to break hours-of-service rules or to operate a vehicle while fatigued. The proposal will ensure drivers can access their records and will require logging devices to include a mute function to protect against sleep disruptions, the department says... 
(Photo by CHRIS BUTLER/Statesman file - Trucks parked at the rest stop on I-84 east of Boise)   --  ID, USA - The Idaho Statesman, by ZACH KYLE - October 20, 2015

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Oct 16, 2015

TRUCKS' TECHNOLOGIES USA: * The potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) -- ** Petition for collision avoidance and mitigation technology

* Illinois - Trucking along with big data and the IoT
-- Millions of trucks hit American roads every day, delivering essential goods like food, medicine, and the new iPhone 6s. But trucks also break down, which delays deliveries and hurts the profits of truck operators. Now manufacturers like International Truck are tapping into the potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) and big data analytics to minimize disruption to this essential service... Two years ago, International Trucks–a subsidiary of Navistar– launched a program to take advantage of big data and IoT technologies. Called OnCommand Connection, the program is designed to help its customers and itself to make the best use possible of the reams of data flowing off today’s modern truck fleet... The end result is less downtime. This system enabled one International Truck customer to proactively brings one of its long-haul trucks in to have an engine component serviced before its regularly scheduled maintenance. Having a truck in the shop costs a fleet up to $1,000 per day in lost revenue, so the potential to maximize uptime is a big incentive for trucking outfits... At the end of the day, trucking play an essential role in our daily lives. But there’s room for improvement in the $225-billion industry, and those who figure out how to best leverage big data will gain an advantage... 
Warrensville, ILL, USA - Datanami, by Alex Woodie - October 14, 2015


** DC - NHTSA eyes automatic braking requirement for trucks


-- The trucking industry has another acronym to get familiar with: FCAM, for forward collision avoidance and mitigation. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on Friday will publish a notice stating the agency plans to evaluate FCAM technology with an eye toward a heavy-duty equipment mandate. A petition for such a rulemaking was submitted in February by the Truck Safety Coalition, the Center for Auto Safety, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, and Road Safe America... “In work zone areas and when traffic is significantly slowed or at a complete stop, cars are particularly vulnerable to being rear ended by large trucks,” John Lannen, executive director of the Truck Safety Coalition said at the time the petition was submitted. “Trucks are overrepresented in fatal highway crashes, and they are even more so in fatal work zone crashes. This is why it is imperative that FCAM technology is required safety equipment in large trucks” ... The petitioners claim that FCAM systems have the potential to provide significant safety, economic, and societal benefits, citing estimated safety benefits from a 2012 research study conducted by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI)... 
Washington, DC, USA - Fleet Owner, by Kevin Jones - Oct 15, 2015

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Sep 2, 2015

AUTOMATED TRUCKS * USA: Lockheed Martin invests in Peloton Technology and commercializing Truck Platooning

* California - Lockheed Martin joins seven other Fortune Global 500 companies investing in Peloton and commercializing truck automation

-- Peloton Technology, a developer of vehicle systems that deliver advanced safety, fuel savings and analytics to trucking fleets, today announced an investment agreement with Lockheed Martin to accelerate Peloton’s development and deployment of truck-platooning technology for the U.S.A. and international trucking industries... The Peloton Truck Platooning System is a vehicle automation technology that has the potential to save lives and save fuel in today’s trucking operations. The System electronically couples pairs of trucks through a combination of vehicle-to-vehicle communications, radar-based active braking systems and proprietary vehicle-control algorithms. The system improves safety and allows trucks to travel at closer distances, which improves aerodynamics and reduces fuel use... Lockheed Martin joins a $17 million investment round co-led by DENSO International America and Intel Capital... 
Mountain View , CAL, USA - Business Wire - August 31, 2015

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Aug 20, 2015

TECHNO-TRUCKS * USA: CARS & COMPUTERS

* California - High-tech cars bring Detroit, Silicon Valley together

... The convergence of cars and computers is blurring the traditional geographical boundaries of both industries. Silicon Valley is dotted with research labs opened by automakers and suppliers, who are racing to develop high-tech infotainment systems and autonomous cars. Tech companies — looking to grow and sensing an industry that’s ripe for disruption — are heading to Detroit to better understand the auto industry and get their software embedded into cars... The result is both heated competition and unprecedented cooperation between two industries that rarely spoke to each other five years ago... For years the fast-paced tech industry showed little respect for the plodding car industry. Google and Palo Alto-based Tesla, with its high-tech electric sedans, convinced many to give the industry another look. The average car now processes more than 4,200 signals — from the engine and transmission to the backup camera to the radio — using 40 electronic control units, according to Boston Consulting Group... The automakers are learning that rolling out cars that remain static for years until the next model comes out is no longer practical. At the insistence of tech companies such as Telenav and Nvidia, they’re learning to make cars with navigation, infotainment and other features that can be constantly updated... Now, she’s watching companies that could potentially disrupt the auto business, such as Google and Apple. Google has promised a self-driving car within five years, and Apple has hired people from Tesla, Ford and other car companies for its own top-secret project... 
(Photo by Eric Risberg / AP - Dragos Maciuca shows off a driving simulator at Ford’s research center in Palo Alto, Calif. Maciuca left Apple this year to join Ford)  -- Silicon Valley, CAL, USA -  Associated Press/The Detroit Press, by Dee-Ann Durbin - August 18, 2015

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