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Controls are the key to meeting increasing transmission and diesel engine performance needs. Customer demands for optimum vehicle performance and rapidly increasing number of differing heavy duty transmission applications are pushing present hydraulic controls to their limits, and require the current controls be specifically calibrated for the various applications. A microcomputer-based control system can overcome these limitations and also provide performance improvements. Application of the microcomputer for truck and bus transmissions is of considerable interest at this time as it has already been developed for the automobile industry, thus assuring high reliability and a large production base to minimize cost.

The decision to use a microcomputer in an automotive application is often far easier than the choice of which particular microcomputer to use. The wide range of applications places an equally wide range of demands on the microcomputer. Three application examples (engine control, antiskid braking, and dashboard control) will be used to demonstrate how a microcomputer can be selected for a given application by a combination of classical benchmarking techniques and key feature extraction.

A unique shuttle bus is being constructed by Minicars, Inc., and Walter Vetter Karosserie-werk for Denver’s Transitway/Mall. The bus is designed for frequent stop, low speed service in a downtown pedestrian environment. It features a very low floor and multiple wide doors for rapid passenger boarding and deboarding. Two versions will be supplied for comparative evalation, a low noise diesel configuration and a battery-electric configuration. Either version can subsequently be converted to the alternative propulsion system.

Telebus II is a low floor construction vehicle especially designed for the transport of physically disabled passengers. Its design allows for all kind of problems in connection with wheel chair drivers. The main characteristics being a vehicle body which can be lowered to road level so that disabled passengers can enter the car via a front resp. lateral right hand door without outside help. Special restraint systems for wheel chairs as well as special purpose seats for the disabled are standard equipment. The vehicle has a self-supporting superstructure, independent air suspension and is powered by a transverse rear 65 kW Diesel engine with automatic transmission.

An electric truck development was undertaken by Grumman Allied Industries to prepare for the markets of the 1980’s. Grumman has built 150,000 aluminum truck bodies and is using this technology to create a light weight vehicle to assist in the national goal of reducing foreign oil imports. The first year’s experience produced the lesson of what not to do. A redesigned unitized, all aluminum body and a new propulsion system resulted in the desired vehicle. The vehicle meets the requirements of the U.S. Postal Service and the DOE Demonstration program. This paper describes the development program to meet Grumman’s goal of placing a truly utilitarian and serviceable vehicle that will readily meet customer acceptance. The unitized chassisless structure is designed to take major driving loads. Design features and performance characteristics are enumerated. Safety and service considerations have been incorporated into the vehicle.

Anticipating that population growth during the next decade will continue to spread into suburban areas strengthens the belief that there will be an increasing need for a significant portion of that population to rely on personal and commercial transportation to maintain a high level of mobility. The now recognized trend toward lighter fuel efficient vehicles mandates that such an automotive market be served by improving on-road mobility of such vehicles particularly during construction periods and/or in inclement weather. This paper will discuss one method of achieving that mobility.

This paper will discuss several approaches one firm has successfully used in the application of engineered materials to meet objectives set forth by the user industry to provide equipment responsive to rider demands and operator requirements. The contents are not exhaustive because the technology is one of rapid growth, but the intent is to show where, given an opportunity, innovation can be rewarding to the supply industry, the manufacturer, the operator and the rider.

Sharp increases in operating costs in recent years have caused transit authorities to look for relief through higher bus driver productivity. Use of high-capacity buses can result in increased driver productivity. An important evaluation of nearly 400 high-capacity articulated buses has been underway in cities across the United States since 1978. Some results of that evaluation are now available, and a significant expansion of the nation’s articulated bus fleet is underway. This paper discusses the history of the articulated bus, the results of the evaluation of M.A.N. articulated buses in the U.S., and the M.A.N. program for expansion of articulated bus service in the U.S.

Bus rebuilding, as a specific business, has matured quickly. There are many definitions, or interpretations, of the meaning of bus rebuilding. It is a cost effective alternative to avoiding delays in obtaining new buses and for reducing capital expenditures. Future bus design can be improved by reviewing the findings and repairs of bus rebuilders.

The P’UP has been on the markets worldwide since 1972, both in Japan and overseas, including for the U.S., in which case, with model designation as the Chevrolet LUV. In 1980, for the first time since its market introduction, it was fully remodelled with detail improvements reflected thereon in every aspect. This new model continues to be on the U.S. market as the Chevrolet LUV as it has been, but, beginning from spring of 1981, the similar model has been introduced to the market by the American Isuzu Motors Inc. (AIM) as the Isuzu P’UP. Taking this opportunity, a diesel version has been added to its model lineup. The diesel engine mounted on this version features its 20 to 30% better fuel efficiency over its gasoline counterpart. In the first half of this paper, the engineering concepts of its full remodelling and their onvehicle reflection will be introduced.

In the articulated Scania bus built on the standard BR112 chassis, the engine is transversely mounted at the extreme rear. The bus is of the “pusher” type and the power unit drives the rigid rear axle. The articulated joint is designed so that no special actuating system is necessary under normal conditions. However, a control system is provided for coping with abnormal situations. In view of the fact that the same chassis Is used for two-axle buses, double-deckers and articulated buses, it has been possible to apply a high degree of standardisation to the components and the service work has been appreciably simplified. It is also easier for the drivers to handle the different types of buses.

Whole-life costing techniques are underlining the virtues of heavier-duty vehicles and components. The double-decker, still representing over 60% of the annual intake of vehicles for multi-stop service, seems likely to remain dominant despite recent challenges. Trends in legislation,especially that of international origin,tend to increase complexity and hence both cost and weight, but there is a strong case for a revival of the traditional virtues of simplicity, efficiency - especially in regard to fuel consumption - and weight-saving.

The damage pattern of about 30% of accident vehicles with injured occupants corresponds to that created in offset head-on collisions. An accident reconstruction method using the vehicles' deformation energies as operands is introduced for this collision type. The parameters so determined are compared for accidents both with and without glance-off, and their effect on the different injury mechanisms of the belted driver is discussed. A theory is suggested regarding the cause of serious injuries to the lower extremities in glance-off accidents, and is supported by examples. To confirm the results crash tests involving glance-off are carried out.

The incidence of pelvic and lower extremity fractures is examined by reference to data extracted from police and hospital records. It is shown that the incidence and number of fractures to the pelvis and the lower extremities is strongly dependent on the age of the struck pedestrian and the speed of the vehicle. Pelvic injuries are shown to be more common in elderly females than in other age groups and it is suggested that this is due to elderly females being more likely, with current vehicle front end heights, to sustain a direct blow at the level of the pelvis. Pubic rami fractures appear to result when there are distributed impact forces at the level of the pelvis and acetabular fractures occur when there are concentrated forces applied to the greater trochanter.

The wheel motor is a combination of hydro-motor and planetary transmission. Industrial, agricultural, construction and various types of public utility vehicles, which due to their design cannot use axle drives, make increasing use of the individual wheel drive. Speed, torque transmission, wheel bearings, valves for hydraulic operation and hydraulic engagement/disengagement are some of the requirements for wheel motor drives.

The 380W dragline is Bucyrus-Erie's first modular designed dragline. The modular concept applies simplified field connections for assembly of components rather than field welding, resulting in shorter erection times and lower erection costs. The various modules are described. The advantages during field erection are discussed. Comparison of erection time with a larger dragline is made. Discussions of design aids, namely use of finite element analysis is included.

Manufacturers of many types of construction, logging, mining and material handling equipment are concerned about providing emergency steering capability on their vehicles. This paper offers a comparison of the three most commonly used methods - Ground Driven Pump, D.C. Driven Pump and Accumulator - including suggested circuits and pros and cons of all three systems.

Basic knowledge of the characteristics of wire rope have been utilized to design a completely torque blanced product. Test results showing the improved properties of this product are presented, along with recommendations for use in boom support pendants and as a hoist line.

The drive axle housing in a fork lift truck has a very complex cast shape and is a heavily loaded structural component. The development of the finite element model for analyzing an existing design and three new designs is described. The analytical results and the experimental strain measurements on the existing housing correlated extremely well. This provided confidence in using the technique in three other designs where the housings were modeled, analyzed, modified and re-analyzed prior to making the first prototype casting, saving considerable time and cost. Other uses of the model for evaluating manufacturing variations, such as, core shift and providing guidelines for future designs are also presented.

Recently, application of electronics to construction machinery has proceeded rapidly. And various electronic control systems have been developed for off-highway dump truck. In this paper, we explain an automatic retarder control system, as an example of effective use of on-board computers. This system controls the cruising speed at a constant set value while monitoring the brake's cooling oil temperature. Two of the most important functions of this system is prevention of brake trouble, and fine speed control. The former is automatic restriction of maximum descending speed by feeding information of brake's cooling oil temperature into the logic control unit. The latter is an adaptive control of brake force under various operating conditions. This control system was equipped to our newly developed dump truck, HD1600M-one of our exhibit at CONEXPO ‘81.