ANTI-SKID
Page 24
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Westinghouse on trial
AN anti-jack-knifing system made by Bendix-Westinghouse is undergoing field trials with the NFC, and the first results are highly successful.
The system is called the Electronic Braking Corrector or EBC, and the first to go into service was fitted to a Guy Big J tractor before it was supplied to BRS (Midland) in May 1974.
Apart from a couple of brief test sessions at the TRRL, the vehicle and its EBC have been in service continuously since then. It has now covered about 100,000 miles.
Mr Stan Gray, chief engineer of BRS (Midland), told CM: "So far, we are very satisfied. It is one of the best systems we have come across, and probably has the edge on the Maxaret."
The Guy is fitted with a counter that registers every time the EBC operates—which means whenever the vehicle would skid, even a slight amount, if the EBC were not fitted—and this indicates that the unit operates, on average, 80 times a year. As Mr Gray points out, even if an accident would have occurred on only one of these occasions, the unit will pay for itself.
Following the success of these trials, 40 vehicles—Guys and Scammells—are being equipped with the anti-jackknifing devices for the NFC. Already, several of these are in operation, including six with BRS (Midland), and when this exercise has been completed, which should be by the end of February, the system will be offered to some other major operators for field trials.
Bendix-Westinghouse says that the EBC, which consists only of a sensor and an airpressure modulator will be priced competitively, but that there are no plans at present to offer a full anti-skid system, applicable to each axle.