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Predictive Powertrain Control - Clever cruise control helps save fuel |
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A cruise control system that can "see ahead" is about to go live. Predictive Power Control, now available in the new Mercedes-Benz Actros, reduces fuel consumption by an additional three percent. Because the system is familiar with the topography of the road ahead, it is able to respond in a way that will deliver the most fuel-efficient performance. This new driver assistance system really comes into its own when negotiating up- or downhill gradients. As the first GPS-based cruise control system, Predictive Powertrain Control not only intervenes to control speed and braking, but can now also regulate the transmission. The system thus extends use of the fuel-saving EcoRoll function, which is fitted as standard on the Actros, and will furthermore insert a carefully judged single or double downshift of gear at an early stage, where appropriate. A first stage of development saw Daimler Trucks introduce a GPS speed regulator, without gearshift intervention, some three years ago as an option for its Freightliner branded trucks in the USA. When it was launched onto the market in 2009 this system, which was available in overseas markets under the name "Predictive Cruise Control" was the first cruise control system to be so "farsighted". Combining geodetic data with the ability to pinpoint the vehicle's position through the Global Positioning System (GPS) makes "predictive" driving in cruise control mode possible. The new development from Mercedes-Benz builds on this basis, using its knowledge of the road ahead when driving up or downhill. In doing so, Predictive Powertrain Control turns the classic and inherent disadvantage of a non-regulated cruise control system into clearly measurable advantages: fully laden long-distance haulage trucks such as the new Actros 1845 BlueTec 6 can achieve fuel savings of around three percent in long-distance operations over moderately difficult topography compared with "non-regulated" examples fitted with a classic cruise control system. Predictive Powertrain Control relies on data fusionPredictive Powertrain Control is representative of a new type of technology that brings together the technology that is already in the vehicle with external data from its surroundings. As a result, and thanks to its profound understanding of both the vehicle and the route, this intelligent cruise control system with transmission intervention delivers a driving performance that could only be matched by an extremely motivated truck driver with an exceptional level of concentration. To put it another way: Predictive Powertrain Control exploits the fuel-saving potential of the new Actros right to the very last drop.Operating a vehicle with Predictive Powertrain Control is just as easy as you would expect with any Mercedes-Benz truck. In essence, all the driver has to do is to operate the speed regulator. Over and above the parameters that could previously already be set, just one further critical value needs to be defined. Alternatively, the driver can simply rely on the parameters as pre-set at the start of each journey. Over the course of the trip, the most important variables can then be very easily fine-tuned via the menu of the on-board computer. |
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CarrierNetMobile App breaks down the telematics barrier |
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Deltion has launched an innovative ?App? for Android-based smart phones to deliver accessible telematics to users of the company?s cloud-based CarrierNet transport management solution. Called CarrierNetMobile, the App can be downloaded free of charge from the Google App store. With Android smart phones capable of running the App now widely available from approximately £30, CarrierNetMobile will deliver transport management telematics at the lowest possible cost. This means that instead of traditional telematics technology, the smart phone becomes the in-cab computer, which adds convenience and saves money.Features include fleet tracking to track and trace deliveries; Electronic Point of Delivery and Point of Collection capabilities, such as allowing signatures for deliveries to be taken on a smart phone?s screen; navigation functionality using the Android smart phone?s Google features; and the App can also be used for job management.Deltion will soon be further extending CarrierNetMobile?s capabilities with an add-on for the App. Currently in development this will use Android smart phone technology to monitor and report on driver performance. CarrierNetMobile is the ideal solution for 3PLs, 4PLS and other supply chain operators who wish to make greater use of small transport operators, which typically combine good customer service with efficiency and low cost. Because they also generally lack telematics, this creates a communications barrier when it comes to integration into the business networks of larger organisations. However, small operators do use smart phones, which are the passport to the cloud. Loaded with the CarrierNetMobile App they can break down the communication barrier.?CarrierNetMobile takes advantage of the computer power offered by today?s ubiquitous smart phone. This power is greater than all that NASA could muster back in 1969 when it sent men to the Moon,? said Denis O?Sullivan, MD of Deltion. ?Companies are seeking robust and functionally rich service solutions, such as CarrierNet, that are highly flexible and future proof. They no longer want to rely on paperwork, telecommunications, fax, and manual reconciliation, which waste time and resources.?Denis O?Sullivan added: ?Accustomed to buying products online with free delivery, order tracking status emails and alerts supply chain managers are asking why, if a £5 book can be delivered with such high levels of information, visibility and reliability, the same can?t be achieved with an order in their business worth many thousands of times more? CarrierNetMobile App, which has been trialed already by one major UK grocer, provides these capabilities via the phone.?The CarrierNetMobile App can be downloaded free of charge from the Google App store. Users will need to be running Deltion?s cloud based CarrierNet transport management solution, which will charge a fee for the applications. |
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Paris
