Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/815349
28 commercial carrier journal | april 2017 validation platform for a new turbo-compounding system designed to recover wasted energy from the turbocharger and apply it to the driveline. Volvo debuted turbo-compounding on its 2017 D13 production model engine, which the company says helps boost fuel effi- ciency by up to 6.5 percent. SuperTruck also al- lowed engineers to test a revised wave piston design and an optimized com- mon-rail fuel system that together help achieve a quieter, more complete fuel burn. Both of these innovations also found their way into Volvo's 2017 model-year production engines. Offering consistent torque at a wider band – from about 900 to 1,300 rpm – SuperTruck's turbo-compounding D11 engine not only contributes to fuel economy but also runs quieter. You don't have as much horsepower on reserve with the 11-liter engine, but you hardly miss it. e weight and aero gains also yielded remarkable driv- ability. e truck glides easier on the highway, using the 65,400-pound vehicle's own inertia, gravity and low wind resistance. With 42 percent less aerodynamic drag, I was able to coast at around 60 mph up and down a negligible grade for 1.4 miles. Down even the most moderate grades, the truck can pick up an extra 10 mph easily. Volvo's iSee system, incorporating the company's 12-speed iShi transmission and reading the road's topography, deter- mines the best shiing patterns and acceleration points to save fuel when intelligent cruise control is activated. Its ability to predict power needs was nothing short of amazing. e system knew when I was coming down a grade, what that would do for speed and what was needed to top the next hill. When no throttle input is needed, iSee slips the truck into neutral, supplying only enough fuel to the engine to keep it running. Sometimes the truck would descend a hill and crest another in neutral before coasting a short distance. It would jump back into gear only briefly to give me just enough mo- mentum to maintain a 3 mph tolerance to my 61 mph target. Acceleration and shiing is seamless. Unless you're listen- ing to the engine, you barely know it's happening. Sight lines One of the first things you notice from inside the seat is the view through the huge panoramic windshield. Design- ers pushed the cab some 8 inches forward – about where a VNM cab would be – and raised it 3 inches. at allowed shortening and sloping the nose and slanting the windshield for better aerodynamics. From the seat, you can't see the hood, and with no fend- er-mounted mirrors, it has a distinct cabover feel despite the roughly 7-foot nose. Aero gains also figure in SuperTruck's use of a sophisti- cated camera system in place of mirrors. It still sports the legally required pillar-mounted mirrors, which Brantley says is its biggest wind-catcher. Just how seriously did the design team take drag? ey eliminated the hood grip because Brantley says its drag was "measurable." I found the cameras as helpful as a mirror in almost every case, but they do narrow your field of view, making backing a challenge. Still, it was easy enough to see down both sides of the trailer and in the blind spot. HVAC system To best insulate the cab, Brantley's team removed excess glass such as the skylight. It's replaced by a sophisticated solar panel and interior LED light bank that reacts to changes in exterior light. "It gives you the same ambient light you'd get from out- side," Brantley says. "But when you go under an overpass or drive through shadows, it will dim and flicker just like a skylight would." A large solar panel built into the roof charges the batter- ies that run the HVAC. Battery-charging power also comes from a 10kW alternator that siphons kinetic energy from the drum brakes. On a full charge, the batteries can supply all the hotel-load and auxiliary power needs of a sleepy trucker for 14 to 17 hours. All that's needed is some sunshine and driving – and braking – during the next duty cycle to pump energy back into the system. e ignition works off an independent super-capacitor, so there are no worries about running the batteries down so far that the truck won't start. SuperTruck has been through fuel economy validation tests, axle tests, trailer tests and complete vehicle tests, and its work is not over. Brantley plans about 18 months more of testing on SuperTruck before digging in on the sequel, which will share technology that's successful on the current truck. Two screens mounted on the passenger side allow the driver to see down the trailer's side and in the truck's blind spot.