Eaton Corp. has developed the Vorad VS-400, a new generation of its truck safety system. The system, which will be available in limited quantities in April and will be in full production by June, incorporates a collision warning system (CWS) with forward-looking radar, the company’s Blindspotter side sensor and SmartCruise adaptive cruise control. Truck owners also will be able to obtain data in real time through a subscription to the safety package of Eaton’s Fleet Resource Manager, powered by @Road.
Features of the next-generation Vorad include a new 77-GHz radar that won’t require a special bumper to be installed on the truck, as with the current version of Vorad. The radar, which integrates a CWS and adaptive cruise control, is 70 percent lighter and 60 percent smaller than the existing EVT-300 radar and cuts the number of wires to four from the current 18.
The system also employs a new driver interface unit that offers visual and audio alerts and the ability to configure for left/right speaker capability. The unit is user-programmable and can accept driver identification and up to four personal identification numbers. And it is designed to support lane-departure warning systems and other technologies that follow defined protocol structure.
The new system is modular, so truck owners can purchase Smart Cruise adaptive cruise control, BlindSpotter side-object detection system and standard collision warning separately or together as one package.
