In recent years, auto manufacturers have introduced some groundbreaking safety innovations that have important implications for the commercial trucking industry.
Auto manufacturers have agreed to make automatic emergency braking standard equipment on nearly all new cars by September 2022.
Automatic emergency braking systems prevent crashes or reduce their severity by applying the brakes automatically if the driver does not react quickly enough. While the safety systems have shown their effectiveness in reducing crashes in passenger vehicles, less has been known about their effectiveness with large trucks.
Researchers at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety say that crash prevention technologies such as automatic emergency braking and forward-collision warning systems have the potential to prevent or minimize many large truck crashes, particularly rear-end collisions.
How Volvo Truck Emergency Braking System Works
One company leading the way in this research effort is Swedish auto manufacturer Volvo, which recently introduced its automatic braking system for trucks.
Volvo Trucks Global’s truck emergency braking system is designed to prevent accidents. It uses a Collision Warning/Early Braking system to stop the truck if it detects an obstacle in the roadway. You can check out a video of a 40 ton Volvo FH tractor-trailer utilizing the emergency brake system here.
Here’s how the system works to prevent collisions:
- Camera and radar – The system uses a camera to determine the distance between the truck and a potentially hazardous object and identifies the object. The radar measures the distance to the object and the speed at which the object is moving.
- Sensor fusion – The two sensors (camera and radar) work together to gauge the potential road hazard. By working together, they can differentiate between actual threats, such as a person or a vehicle, and non-hazards, such as a piece of debris in the road.
- Control unit – The control unit analyzes data from the camera, the radar, the truck, and the driver’s behavior. If the control unit perceives an imminent accident, it will activate the warning system.
- Braking system – If the truck driver does not respond to the warning system, the braking system will be automatically activated. The vehicle brakes gradually at first, but as the truck gets closer to the hazard, the system will bring the vehicle to a sudden stop.
Even though the system can bring the vehicle to a quick stop, it warns the driver multiple times before intervening, first with a red light, then with a flashing red light and an alarm.
Child Barely Avoids Being Hit by a Semi Using a Volvo Brake System
In 2017, a large tractor-trailer traveling on a roadway in Norway narrowly missed hitting a small child who suddenly darted across the road. The entire incident was caught on a dash-cam video. The child had just exited a bus along with other children when the child attempted to dash to the other side of a two-lane highway.
Fortunately, the truck was able to brake in time to prevent a collision with the child. A Latvian logistics firm known as Kreiss investigated the near-accident in partnership with Volvo to determine what prevented the accident. They concluded that the driver’s quick reaction was the reason the truck stopped so quickly.
The investigation found that because the child was short in stature and appeared unexpectedly, it would have been impossible for Volvo’s FH emergency braking system to activate. It was the truck driver’s quick reaction that saved the child’s life and prevented a devastating accident.
However, Kreiss also commended the automatic braking system developed by Volvo engineers, the truck’s low-rolling resistance tires, and the training specialists employed by the company.
Effectiveness of Safety Systems in Large Trucks
A 2020 study by researchers at the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety compared the crash rates of tractor-trailers equipped with new safety technology and trucks lacking the technology.
The researchers found that forward crash warning systems in large trucks were associated with a significant 22 percent reduction in reportable crashes per miles traveled and a 44 percent reduction in the rate of rear-end crashes, compared to trucks without the technology.
Similarly, trucks equipped with automatic emergency braking systems had a 12 percent reduction in overall crashes and 41 percent for rear-end collisions, the Institute reported. The research showed that the technology reduced the speed at which the trucks were moving by half from the time it activated until the collision.
The safety of large trucks is expected to improve as new trucks are equipped with these new technologies.
How Normal Truck Brakes Work
Most trucks operate on an air brake system that consists of three distinct brake systems: the service brakes, parking brake, and emergency brakes. When truck drivers want to slow down or bring their truck to a stop, they press the brake pedal.
When they do, air flows into a brake chamber. The air pressure forces out a pushrod, which puts pressure on a slack adjuster. As the camshaft turns, the S-cam twists, and the brake linings touch the brake drum, forcing the vehicle to decelerate.
A truck driver can use two separate valves on the truck’s dashboard to pull the parking brake, one for the cab and the other for the trailer. The emergency brake system utilizes components of both brake systems if a truck’s brakes unexpectedly fail.
There is a spring located in the brake chamber that has enormous pressure behind it. The emergency brakes in a typical truck will activate if there is insufficient air in the chamber to prevent the spring from deploying.
However, there has been dissatisfaction over S-cam brakes and how they work. By taking a page out of Volvo’s book, American trucking companies and manufacturers could introduce new technologies such as automatic emergency braking to improve overall safety.
Contact a Truck Accident Attorney
Have you been seriously injured in a semi-truck accident in Indiana? If so, the Indiana truck accident attorneys at Craig, Kelley & Faultless, LLC, can help you seek full compensation for your injuries and accident-related losses. Our highly regarded legal team has the resources to help you hold the truck driver and trucking company accountable when their negligence causes serious accidents.
Craig, Kelley & Faultless, LLC was served accident victims in Indiana for more than 20 years. Our attorneys have extensive experience investigating complex commercial truck accidents. Two of our founding partners have earned certification from the National Board of Trial Advocacy in the area of personal injury law related to commercial truck and bus accidents. Both David Craig and Scott Faultless have extensive experience representing accident victims harmed in truck accidents.
Call us or contact us online for a no-cost consultation with one of our knowledgeable truck accident lawyers.
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