Freightliner Offers Lane Guidance System for Heavy-Duty Trucks / Technology Detects Lane Drift, Warns Driver with 'Rumble Strip' Sound

ORLANDO, Fla. (PROTEXT) - Freightliner Corporation's arsenal of truck safety systems has an exciting new addition -- Lane Guidance, a lane departure warning system. To be available on Century Class S/T, Columbia and Argosy heavy-duty trucks, Lane Guidance monitors the truck's position relative to lane markings, then sounds an audible warning when the truck is about to stray outside its lane. The advanced system is designed to prevent accidents by warning distracted or inattentive drivers of unintended lane changes. "Lane Guidance is intended to head off a dangerous traffic situation before it has a chance to occur," said Gary Rossow, Director of Government Technical Affairs for Freightliner Corporation. "There is no substitute for a well-rested, alert driver, but Lane Guidance adds an extra measure of safety." The Lane Guidance system consists of a digital camera, mounted on the windshield inside the cab; a Central Processing Unit (CPU) located in the overhead console; two speakers located in the left- and right-side doors and associated wiring. The camera continually gathers visual data, digitizes them and feeds them into the CPU. Using proprietary DaimlerChrysler image recognition software and a lane recognition algorithm, the CPU determines if a vehicle is drifting too close to the lane markings. When this occurs -- and if the driver has not activated the turn signal -- the CPU sends a signal to emit a distinctive "rumble strip" sound. When the truck is straying to the left, the warning sound comes from the left speaker. When the truck is straying to the right, it comes from the right speaker. The driver intuitively steers away from the side of the sound. The "rumble strip" sound was chosen after research showed that it effectively warned drivers without causing them to overreact. Lane Guidance works both day and night and in most inclement weather conditions. The system tracks most types of lane markings common in North America, including dashes and dot-type reflective markings (commonly called "bot dots"). A change of lane width on the road or merging/splitting of the lane should not cause an alarm. The system is designed to be maintenance free. A warning light on the dash serves to indicate any problems with the system. Lane Guidance will stand up to the normal rigors of the truck environment such as vibration, shock, temperature, humidity and dust. The Lane Guidance System is a joint development among Odetics ITS Inc., DaimlerChrysler Research, and Freightliner Corporation. "Lane Guidance is an exciting new technology that holds tremendous potential for further increasing heavy-duty truck safety," Rossow said. Production begins in the second quarter of 2000. Lane Guidance joins a multitude of active and passive safety systems available from Freightliner. Freightliner also offers its Roll Advisor & Control system, which guards against vehicle rollover, and the Eaton Vorad EVT-300 Collision Warning system, which warns of objects ahead and to the side of the truck. An advanced electronic braking system (EBS) -- available on the Century Class S/T and Argosy -- improves braking control, lessens brake maintenance requirements, compensates for brake fade and helps reduce stopping distance. "Safety is the central design criterion of all Freightliner vehicles," Rossow said. "Freightliner encourages the adoption of onboard truck safety systems and urges the federal government to grant tax and other incentives for truck fleets employing these technologies." Freightliner Corporation, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is the leading heavy truck manufacturer in North America. Freightliner produces and markets Class 3-8 trucks under the Freightliner, Sterling, American LaFrance and Thomas Built Buses nameplates and is a DaimlerChrysler company, the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturer. On the Internet Visit Freightliner Corporation's Web Site at www.freightliner.com for additional Freightliner news. ots Original Text Service: Freightliner Corporation Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Chris Brandt of Freightliner Corporation, 503-735-5471, or fax, 503-735-5775, or chrisbrandt@freightliner.com Web site: http://www.freightliner.com Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT