Kenworth Truck Co. will offer two Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems safety systems as options on select Class 8 trucks.
The Bendix Wingman Advanced and SmarTire tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) will be available on certain models later this year.
The Bendix Wingman Advanced delivers active cruise control with braking features, along with collision mitigation technology. It uses a radar sensor mounted to the front of the vehicle and delivers both warnings and active interventions to help drivers potentially avoid rear-end collisions. The system provides following distance and stationary object alerts, which are always available above approximately 10 mph – whether or not cruise control is engaged. When drivers use their cruise control, the adaptive cruise control with braking feature will actively intervene to help them maintain a safe following distance behind a forward vehicle by reducing throttle; engaging the engine retarder; or, if necessary, applying the foundation brakes.
A stationary object alert provides audible and visual alerts to the driver when the vehicle is approaching a stationary metallic object, such as a car, steel drum, or other metallic obstruction blocking the lane of travel. The alert gives the driver up to three seconds before a potential impact, helping him or her to respond to the impending threat.
“Just as Bendix is committed to providing fleets, owner-operators, and drivers with highly proactive safety technologies, so is Kenworth, and the company’s choice of Bendix solutions reinforces that dedication,” said Scott Burkhart, Bendix vice president and general manager, Controls group. “We are pleased that Kenworth has expressed trust in Bendix to provide the leading, cost-effective technologies its customers have come to expect – technologies that will help them succeed in today’s challenging CSA environment.”
SmarTire technology from Bendix continuously monitors the pressure and temperature of each tire on a commercial vehicle, providing real-time tire status information to the driver or maintenance technician. Its temperature compensation feature allows the system to provide earlier warnings of a potential problem, providing time for the operator to react to the issue before it results in a failure.
The SmarTire system’s in-vehicle dash display provides information including actual tire pressure and temperature for each wheel location, along with a deviation value that shows the amount of over- or underinflation from each tire’s cold inflation pressure (CIP).
