NEAT NEWS: TIRES, SPRINGS & COOLANT

March 1, 2006 Vol. 2, No. 5

Among the nifty new products first seen at the annual meeting of the Technology and Maintenance Council in sunny Tampa a couple of
weeks back, you’ve got to like the new SmartWave tire-pressure monitoring system (TPMS) from Dana. Well, it’s actually made by SmarTire Systems of Richmond, B.C., but an agreement made between the two companies last year will see the Roadranger organization marketing it for the commercial vehicle industry in North America. No matter how it comes to market, it’s unique.

With a sensor installed in each tire, the system watches both tire air pressure and temperature and reports in real time to a
dash-mounted display. Each tire’s condition can be graphically shown. When the vehicle starts moving, a centrifugal switch activates the sensors and the initial tire data is immediately transmitted to a receiver using radio frequency technology. The sensor reads tire information every 12 seconds and transmits the data every four minutes. However, if the tire pressure changes by 3 psi, the sensor transmits immediately. A record-keeping function provides convenient access to tire-pressure events.

Temperature fluctuations have a direct impact on proper operating tire pressures, but the system automatically compensates, ensuring proper inflation regardless of tire temperature.

As SmarTire explains it, the transmitted tire data is captured by the receiver which in turn sends the information to the display unit. That allows the driver to toggle through each wheel position and to select the type of information being displayed: tire pressure, temperature, or pressure deviation. The display incorporates a bright red LED light which is activated whenever a tire pressure irregularity is detected or when the temperature of a tire goes above a pre-set level. OEM installations using SmarTire’s J1939 CAN-based receiver can be configured to show tire alerts on various in-vehicle displays.

Real-time pressure monitoring means the system works on the road, not just when a truck or trailer is passing through a stationary
gate-reader or when someone is using a hand-held device.

The TPMS system lays the foundation for a host of wireless sensing and vehicle communication system solutions, says Steve Slesinski, director of product planning for Dana’s Commercial Vehicle Systems.

He says the SmartWave system will generate substantial customer savings in fuel efficiency and tire wear by preventing the potential for
damage associated with over or under-inflated tires. Hard to argue that one.

Another of the more interesting recent announcements comes from a similar partnership agreement, this one between ArvinMeritor and Liteflex LLC. That’s the new SimilAir composite trailer spring for linehaul and general service applications. It’s a mechanical spring that
delivers ride quality close to that of an air suspension, the maker says, with much lower initial and life-cycle costs. Not to mention less weight — as much as 240 lb less than the lightest air suspensions, and over 100 lb less than popular mechanical suspensions. It also needs less maintenance than air suspensions, and it’s more resistant to corrosion than steel springs.

ArvinMeritor adds that a suspension using SimilAir composite springs doesn’t suffer from dock walk like air systems, and presents
much reduced vibration and noise compared to steel springs.

The agreement between ArvinMeritor and Liteflex is a long-term deal granting ArvinMeritor exclusive distributorship of Liteflex truck, trailer and specialty vehicle composite mechanical springs for North America and several other key global markets. Liteflex has
supplied composite technology to General Motors for some 25 years.

And how about a million miles on the same coolant, with just top-offs and one addition of an extender? That’s the impressive story behind the latest Chevron news.

The enhanced formulation of Delo Extended Life Coolant and Texaco Extended Life Coolant is good for 750,000 on-highway miles, 8 years, or 15,000 hours in off-road vehicles without the use of chemical additives or extenders. It needs only normal topping up.

You’ll get the million miles if a Chevron chemical extender is added at 500,000 miles/10,000 hours/4 years. That also means increased
intervals of 20,000 hours or 8 years. These dramatic gains over current ELC products, which can be stretched to 600,000 miles at most, should easily result in cost reductions of over $500 per vehicle annually.

With modern engine technologies, we’ve got progressively higher operating temperatures, but Chevron says the new ELC formula is up to the challenge, offering what it calls “exceptional heat transfer capabilities” and “improved corrosion protection.” The new formula
meets the new heavy duty coolant spec ASTM D6210 and exceeds most major coolant specifications, including Caterpillar EC-1.

One last note: Carrier’s new Deltek hybrid refrigeration technology has been recognized by winning the Truck Writers of North America annual Technical Achievement Award for 2005. It was presented at the recent TMC meeting. Carrier’s new Vector 1800MT
multi-termperature refrigeration unit is the first to use a hybrid diesel/electric system. It’s not the sort of “hybrid” that we think of in terms
of motive power, rather that it runs on either a standard Kubota diesel engine or by plug-in electricity. It’s said to offer unprecedented
reliability and an estimated 30% reduction in maintenance costs. By expanded use of electronics and maintenance-free electrical components, the Vector eliminates two-thirds of the serviceable mechanical components found in conventional systems — such as idler pulleys, most belts, fan shafts, the compressor shaft seal and clutch — while using only half the refrigerant charge
compared to conventional systems. Easy to see why it won an award.

This newsletter is published every two weeks. It’s a heads-up notice about what you can see at www.todaystrucking.com where
you’ll find in-detail coverage of nearly everything that’s new. Plus interesting products that may not have had the ‘air play’ they deserved within the last few months. There’s more here than we could possibly fit into the magazine. Subscribe today!

If you have comments of whatever sort, please contact me at rlockwood@newcom.ca.

Rolf Lockwood, Editorial Director