Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
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32 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2014 E aton last month launched its Procision Line, a new dual-clutch automated transmission that initially will target Class 6 and 7 urban delivery markets, including pickup and delivery, beverage, school bus and recovery and towing. Eaton pre- miered the new transmission at its proving grounds and test track facility outside of Marshall, Mich., and allowed editors to test the unit under a wide array of driving and terrain conditions. The new transmission was designed to emphasize driver safety and fleet efficiency, said John Beering, senior vice president and general manager of commercial vehicle transmissions for Eaton. Features include "Hill Help" and forward/reverse creep modes, as well as a "back and forth" forward/ reverse function. A new "Tap Downshift" feature is designed to allow drivers to down- shift gears quickly by pumping on the brake pedal for added safety and vehicle control in congested driving conditions. The double-clutch design allows for a smooth continuous power curve without clutch lag or any jerking effects. One clutch is fully engaged when the Procision is in gear; at the same time, the transmis- sion's sophisticated electronic control modules preselect the next gear shift based on multiple data inputs. When the time for a gear shift arrives, the first clutch disengages while the other engages, elim- inating clutch lag and providing smooth shift points throughout the power curve. The ECM also allows highly efficient operation at low speeds; high torque output of 660 foot-pounds means the transmission can hold and accelerate a truck on steep grades more efficiently. During a test drive, Eaton demonstrated this by launching a Freightliner M2 from a dead stop on a 20 percent grade: Vehicle rollback was minimal, and the truck accelerated smoothly with only 50 percent throttle input. On a 15 percent grade, the transmission held the truck firm with no rollback until throttle was applied. Even though many medium-duty appli- cations are not as weight-conscious as those found in Class 8 fleets, Eaton designed the Procision with highly compacted packing in an aluminum housing. The unit weighs 364 pounds and has been designed to be scaled down for Class 4 and 5 applications, and Eaton indicated a scaled-up Class 8 version of the Procision also was likely. – Jack Roberts Eaton launches new dual-clutch transmission Truck platooning system unveiled M eritor Wabco, Peloton and Denso last month unveiled a system that allows multiple trucks to platoon. The sys- tem – showcased at the World Congress for Intelligent Transportation Systems in Detroit – is based on adaptive cruise control systems and autonomous braking and is touted as one that can save fuel and increase fleet efficiency. The Peloton system uses DSRC radio technology from Denso and Meritor Wab- co's collision mitigation and safety control systems. Radio transmissions control the platooning software, said Chuck Rice, Pelo- ton's vice president of cloud services. Rice said that when two trucks are traveling on an open highway and want to platoon, Peloton's system will identify the location of the trucks, which truck should be routed in front and which one in back, and the distance that will be kept between the two units. When the trucks reach a reasonable distance from each other, the two drivers engage switches in the cab that start the program, and the trucks are pulled together to the predetermined distance from one another. The drivers still are needed to steer, but once engaged, the trucks' speed and braking are controlled by the platoon system. While drivers still can override the system manually to brake in emergencies, the technology is designed to use collision mitigation systems on each tractor to sense when danger is close and slow the trucks. "When the front [truck] intends to brake, the system sees that and engages the brakes on the back [truck] as well," Rice said. The system is set to be available for new trucks and as a retrofit product with an installation time of about three hours. Cus- tomers will purchase the system hardware during installation, then pay a per-mile us- age fee when implementing the platooning software on the road. Customers also will be able to access driver performance and fuel efficiency data on all equipped trucks. Rice said the system has more than 70,000 hours of on-highway testing and that Peloton hopes to release it in late 2015. "We already have fleets ready" for the prod- uct, he said. – Lucas Deal The truck platooning system is based on adaptive cruise control systems and auton- omous braking and is touted as one that can save fuel and increase fleet efficiency. Eaton's Procision Line dual-clutch auto- mated transmission initially will target Class 6 and 7 urban delivery markets.