PRESS info

P11Z01EN / Per-Erik Nordstrm 2 December 2011

Scania Active Prediction new cruise control saves fuel using GPS data
Scania is pioneering a new advanced cruise control system that uses GPS to read the position of the vehicle and predict the topography of the road ahead, saving up to 3% of fuel in the process. The cruising speed is adjusted before entering an ascent or descent, helping the driver make the most of every drop of fuel. Map data are stored in the Scania Communicator, which already incorporates GPS positioning, and the system interacts with the engine management system to control the speed of the vehicle. The system can be specified by customers in Europe starting in early 2012 and is based on the techniques included, for example, in Scania Driver Training. Truck drivers are under great pressure. Transport timing is often a high priority and there is a price to pay for this in the amount of fuel consumed. Scanias new cruise control has been developed to help drivers get to their destination in time without wasting fuel. Scania's cruise control with Active Prediction contributes to fuel savings of up to 3% with minimal time loss, compared to highway or motorway driving with normal cruise control. Maximum benefits are gained on an undulating route, where the road is never entirely flat. The major saving is achieved by adjusting the speed before a downhill stretch. The time lost in a full days driving is merely a couple of minutes. For a haulier, a fuel saving of 3% may amount to some 1,700 litres per year (40-tonne combination running 180,000 km/year).

Less experienced drivers are likely to benefit the most and may also acquire an economical driving style in the process. Highly skilled drivers will benefit less on wellScania Corporate Relations SE-151 87 Sdertlje Sweden

Telephone +46 8 553 810 00 Fax +46 8 553 855 59 www.scania.com

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known routes, but on unknown routes, in the dark or under adverse weather conditions, Active Prediction is likely to help them save fuel. This is how it works Using the steering wheel buttons, the driver sets the cruising and downhill speeds as usual a speed difference of at least 4 km/h is recommended. The set speeds appear in the central display. At the same time the speed window of Active Prediction appears at the top. These values cannot be adjusted. The system is active above 60 km/h. When the system adjusts the speed, a green E appears in the display.

Setting buttons

Cruising and downhill speeds at bottom, speed window at top

The green E appears when Active Prediction is active

On roads without topographical data or if the GPS signal is lost, the speed window for Active Prediction turns grey and the vehicle reverts to normal cruise control function.

Speed window turns grey if GPS or map data are unavailable

The speed settings can be reduced to the programmable favourites window showing the set cruising speed on the left and the downhill speed on the right. The time gap the driver has chosen for adaptive cruise control is in the centre. The green E will appear whenever Active Prediction is adjusting the speed.

Favourite window with all speed settings

For press material, see the Scania Active Prediction pressroom at www.scania.com/media. For further information, please contact: - Oskar Johansson, Engine Torque Control Software, tel. +46-73 988 2065, e-mail oskar.johansson@scania.com - Per-Erik Nordstrm, Product Affairs, tel. +46-8 553 855 77, e-mail per-erik.nordstrom@scania.com

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TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

Inadequacies of normal cruise control Cruising economically with a truck involves much more than just engaging the cruise control. Normal cruise control does what it is designed to do it strives to maintain the set speed in all conditions. Combined with automated gearchanging, it will do a good job of getting the load to its destination in time. Although convenient for the driver, this driving style has its drawbacks. As soon as the speed starts to drop when climbing a hill, the vehicle will use full engine torque and perhaps downchange to avoid losing speed. Normal cruise control will also try to maintain the speed all the way up to a descent, which means that the vehicle will enter the descent at cruising speed. To avoid speeding, this may cause unwanted braking, even down a small hill, which like all braking means a waste of fuel.

Anticipatory driving A trained driver will know that this is wasteful behaviour. When entering a hill, he or she will make sure the vehicle starts the climb with some extra speed to avoid a fueland time-wasting gearchange up the hill. Knowing the route, the same driver is likely to ease off the throttle shortly before the start of a descent to use the momentum and the weight of the vehicle to gain speed free of charge down the hill. Such anticipatory behaviour is part of human nature, but is often difficult to design into a device or a system. Normal cruise control, understandably, is unaware of what will occur down the road or round the next corner, but the Active Prediction system is aware of this. Sometimes it may be difficult for the driver to judge whether the road is flat or not, but the system will know.

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Cruise control with Active Prediction Scania's cruise control with Active Prediction is designed to overcome the inadequacies of normal cruise control by using topographical map data for the road network. At present the system has full coverage of the western and central parts of Europe. If the data are missing, the system reverts to normal cruise control function. Topographical information is combined with GPS data to determine the position of the vehicle and the topography of the road ahead. Based on this information, the most fuel-efficient speed profile is calculated every second. The road data are stored in the Scania Communicator, the vehicle interface that continuously collects and transmits driver and vehicle data as well as positioning to the Scania Fleet Management portal. Stored in the units memory on delivery, the map data can be updated by a Scania service workshop.

Actively predicting the topography The Active Prediction system reads road data for analysis up to 3 km in advance at normal highway cruising speed. Two basic situations are identified along the route: Next ascent: Next descent: Where to increase speed and by how much to start the climb with full torque available from the engine Where to reduce speed and by how much

The system is active at a cruising speed setting of 60 km/h or more; at lower speed the vehicle has normal cruise control function. The window of speed variation from the set cruising speed that the system uses is +4% and 8%. The speed window based on these percentages is fixed and cannot be adjusted by the driver. To provide sufficient leeway for the system to raise the speed before starting to climb a hill, Scania recommends that the driver set the downhill speed of the retarder at least 4 km/h above the set cruising speed. To regulate the cruise control, the system continuously assesses several vehicle and topography-related factors: The weight of the vehicle combination The cruising and downhill speeds set by the driver The specification and performance of the truck, e.g. engine rating, choice of gearbox and overall gearing Distance to the next ascent or descent Steepness of the next ascent or descent Influence of subsequent events along the route

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5 (7) The system function is integrated with the adaptive cruise control system, maintaining the appropriate distance to the vehicle in front Potential fuel saving Scania's cruise control with Active Prediction has been found to save up to 3% of fuel in highway or motorway driving compared to driving with normal cruise control. The fuel saving potential is linked to the topography of the road and the weight of the vehicle. Undulating terrain gives the best results, whereas the saving is smaller on a route with long steep hills. Long steep descents, for example, inevitably result in retarder braking when the vehicle reaches the set downhill speed. The system can also be said to compensate to some extent for a driver who is unfamiliar with the route. Some examples: 1. On the motorway sections of the test route of the German magazines Trucker and Verkehrs-Rundschau, the fuel saving at a gross vehicle weight of 40 tonnes amounts to 4% compared to normal cruise control. The motorways in this area are more or less constantly undulating, with ample opportunities for the Active Prediction system to act. 2. On the 1000-Punkte Test route along the A1 in southern Germany, with long, demanding hills up and down, the saving is 1.5% at 40 tonnes. In such conditions, the effect of increasing the speed before a hillclimb is fairly small. When descending, the set downhill speed is quickly reached and the vehicle continues down the hill using the retarder. This test route is used by German magazines Lastauto Omnibus and Fernfahrer and partner magazines in other countries. 3. For the motorway south from Scania in Sdertlje to Jnkping in south central Sweden and back, the effect of different weights was assessed. The route gives a flat impression, but is deceptively hilly and undulating. The fuel saving at 40 tonnes amounts to 2.6% with a time loss of less than 2 minutes.
20 tonnes Fuel saving 520 km total distance Time loss 6 hours driving 0.7% Less than 1 min 30 tonnes 1.7% Less than 2 min 40 tonnes 2.6% Less than 2 min 50 tonnes 3.4% Less than 2 min 60 tonnes 3.8% Less than 2 min

At higher gross weights, the system will increase the speed more often before ascents. It will also lower the speed more often before a descent, since the vehicle will accelerate faster downhill. The vehicle will also reach the set downhill speed sooner, if the hill is steep enough. At lower gross weights, less fuel is saved because the speed adjustments are less effective with lower potential energy at hand.

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TYPICAL SITUATIONS

Approaching an ascent When approaching an ascent, the Active Prediction system thus determines the inclination of the upcoming hill and how much extra speed is needed to build up turbo pressure and climb with full use of engine torque and a minimum of gearchanges. The speed is raised somewhat above the set cruising speed before the hillclimb starts.

Approaching a descent Approaching a descent, the system assesses the inclination of the slope ahead and the potential fuel saving. If the inclination is sufficient for the vehicle to accelerate above the set cruising speed, the speed will be reduced before the slope to avoid unnecessary braking. The speed will be allowed to drop by a maximum of 8% before the descent starts. The strategy is to minimise braking when descending the hill and thus avoid waste. This is the situation where the most fuel is saved. Passing a crest A crest is interpreted as an approaching descent. The speed is reduced if the weight of the vehicle is sufficient to accelerate up to the set cruising speed on the other side. Experience behind the wheel Compared to normal cruise control, the experience for the driver is that the vehicle enters hills a bit more aggressively, in an effort to minimise the number of gearchanges during the climb. Before the start of a descent, the speed drops slightly, as if the driver is easing off the accelerator in anticipation. As soon as the slope begins, the vehicle will start to accelerate by itself, with the help of momentum and weight. The overall experience is one of relaxed, proactive driving, similar to that taught in Scania Driver Training, for example.

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The main saving is achieved when slowing down before a downhill stretch. The biggest fuel saving potential is therefore in undulating terrain, with constant inclination changes and many small hills. The systems ability to anticipate these variations and adjust the speed then pays off handsomely. Impressions from field test drivers are positive in general, indicating acceptance of the systems behaviour both uphill and downhill. It feels as if a skilled driver is sitting behind the wheel even if there isnt, was the verdict given by one of them. Balancing the time In addition, the system tries to make up for the seconds lost when slowing down through extra speed before starting a hillclimb. Viewed over a full workday, the mere couple of minutes lost are handsomely compensated by the fuel saving achieved.

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