Earlier this month, Volvo Trucks North America took another step in driver assist systems by introducing Volvo Dynamic Steering (VDS) on its VNL and VNR for next model year.
You might not have driven with VDS yet – and may have only heard about it last week – but I’m almost certain you’ve seen it in action.
Volvo’s electrically assisted hydraulic steering, which debuted in Europe for the 2014 model year, was in use by two reversing Volvo FM trucks while Jean Claude Van Damme did the splits between them. That viral video has been viewed more than 93 million times since Volvo Trucks uploaded it to YouTube in November 2013.
The VDS system itself is fairly straightforward. An electric motor mounted on top of the hydraulic steering gear compensates for up to 9 feet of torque in the steering column – the equivalent of having a third hand on the wheel – while also reducing vibration and offering directional stability.
It makes driving a little easier and a lot more comfortable for the 82% of drivers that report suffering some kind of muscular strain on the road by lessening the driver’s steering efforts by up to 85% at low speeds. Volvo said testing has shown that VDS has the potential to cut muscular strain by up to 30% and for some specific motions, muscular strain can be reduced up to 70%.
VDS is a passive steering system in that it does not steer the truck by itself. It’s simply a layer of assistance for the driver. In the event of a system failure, the system reverts to its hydraulic system and works like it normally would without the VDS bolt-on.
I was able to take VDS for a couple of quick spins – once in a VNR and once in a VNL sleeper – at Volvo’s Dublin, Va., Customer Center.
