Juddian, I share your very sensible reservations about new technology which is
a) not fully thought through
b) imposed by EU bureaucrats who never asked us if we wanted it and
c) depends on computers and electronic sensors (as if such things never fail or have bugs in the software).
The Luddites did have some justification, I know of a company that eliminated 130 manufacturing jobs by investing in computer controlled machinery, now produces the same quantity with just 5 men.
Buckstones:
Juddian, I share your very sensible reservations about new technology which is
a) not fully thought through
b) imposed by EU bureaucrats who never asked us if we wanted it and
c) depends on computers and electronic sensors (as if such things never fail or have bugs in the software).The Luddites did have some justification, I know of a company that eliminated 130 manufacturing jobs by investing in computer controlled machinery, now produces the same quantity with just 5 men.
Progress is inevitable, but one wonders where the break point is when automation has reduced the working population to such a degree that those with real jobs who are net contributors to it all fall below a certain percentage of the population.
In our new low wage service (pause for guffaws) economy we’ve already seen the move to min wage and short hours equals top ups by the govt, mind you i wonder where this govt magic money tree is and how much more fruit in can produce, borrow.
I just think there comes a time when men and women of vision, and Christ there’s precious few of those in our current house of ill repute, need to sit down and thrash out (involving us plebs) exactly where we are going and how we are going to pay for it before we find ourselves with a £2.5trillion national debt and 75% of a likely 100 million population, and still importing more, either kept or subsidised.
As for autobraking tech, well its early days and not so many have it yet, we shall see how this progresses.
@xichrisixi…clear it up? No! 
So with the timed delay for the driver to intervene, the old parcel boys who ‘draft’ along down the M6 are in for a big surprise when the one in front gets caught out by a gantry and anchors up a bit smart! Well boss, It’s like this…you know that fancy AEBS…it don’t work! Or the Iceland truck that you didn’t expect to stop halfway through a turn? 
As said…do away with all this fancy electronic ■■■■■■■■ and let the driver do the driving…like the good old days!
dri-diddly-iver:
You obviously saw what what happening because you have just described it so why did you need the truck to brake for itself
As already pointed out, the computer reacted before I could even touch the brakes, I saw the guy turn but I didn’t expect him to totally ignore the traffic and just carry on. I think slamming on the breaks manually is far slower than the automatic system, there is no way a driver can bring a truck from over 60 mph to a standstill without locking up in less than 100 feet. As to knowing what was happening I am alert to everything, I check everything constantly, glancing at the nearside mirror, then glancing back to find a truck crossing the path is something that can easily happen no matter how experienced a driver is.
I have to say, some of the remarks on here show plain ignorance
As most of you drive in the UK you can’t possibly have any idea what it is like to drive over here ? I was not poodling along at 56 mph, this is the NJ turnpike everything is shifting at 65 or 85 mph, the particular spot has 2 left lanes and 2 right lanes that are split by a divider section, in the past I have seen other idiots make the mistake but when they turn to cross they usually stop in the divider to check, this idiot didn’t, I was fully aware and the buy pulled across without stopping. The braking system took charge before my foot hit the pedal. If you don’t know the situation or how traffic flows on the busiest highway in the north eastern states you can’t understand the situation. Some even suggest I was not paying attention LOL… I have been driving heavy trucks since 1975 and have had not one accident or got any points on any licence, I think a lack of concentration would occasionally get me in trouble by now LOL
Fair points made on both sides.
Can we conclude that some of us find that automatic braking systems make our driving safer, while others are able to bring their vehicles to a halt safely without it?
By the description it sounds like possibly the split here ?.
google.co.uk/maps/@40.857757 … 312!8i6656
In which case assuming traffic is backed up to be going slow enough in the express side lanes for a truck to turn across the divider,who you’ve seen waiting there.To the point of requiring an emergency stop,bearing in mind a reasonable idea that’s what he’s going to do. Having seen others try it in the same place,there’s no way that anyone would want to be running through there at 65 mph + when the muppet predictably goes for it.
Kerragy:
Fair points made on both sides.Can we conclude that some of us find that automatic braking systems make our driving safer, while others are able to bring their vehicles to a halt safely without it?
It gets a bit more questionable if drivers get into the habit of a false sense of security in which anticipation is compromised on the basis that the truck’s technology will always win out.
Carryfast:
Kerragy:
Fair points made on both sides.Can we conclude that some of us find that automatic braking systems make our driving safer, while others are able to bring their vehicles to a halt safely without it?
It gets a bit more questionable if drivers get into the habit of a false sense of security in which anticipation is compromised on the basis that the truck’s technology will always win out.
Interesting point.
Maybe post Brexit there is a case for investigating whether these devices should be removed from domestic vehicles on safety grounds. Some of our friends in the EU may possibly have less rigorous testing and training protocols than us. It may well aid safety in areas where drivers have lower skill levels. Similarly we could look at an option for less confident or experienced drivers to retain the use of the system here. The only caveat being that they should abide by a significantly lower speed limit on motorways so as not to present a hazard to their unencumbered colleagues. Perhaps the use of P plates as a warning may be appropriate until they feel able to remove the stabilisers?
Kerragy:
Carryfast:
Kerragy:
Fair points made on both sides.Can we conclude that some of us find that automatic braking systems make our driving safer, while others are able to bring their vehicles to a halt safely without it?
It gets a bit more questionable if drivers get into the habit of a false sense of security in which anticipation is compromised on the basis that the truck’s technology will always win out.
Interesting point.
Maybe post Brexit there is a case for investigating whether these devices should be removed from domestic vehicles on safety grounds. Some of our friends in the EU may possibly have less rigorous testing and training protocols than us. It may well aid safety in areas where drivers have lower skill levels. Similarly we could look at an option for less confident or experienced drivers to retain the use of the system here. The only caveat being that they should abide by a significantly lower speed limit on motorways so as not to present a hazard to their unencumbered colleagues. Perhaps the use of P plates as a warning may be appropriate until they feel secure enough in their abilities (and presumably following a further test to achieve the upgraded licence) to remove the stabilisers?
Pat Hasler:
I have to say, some of the remarks on here show plain ignorance
As most of you drive in the UK you can’t possibly have any idea what it is like to drive over here ? I was not poodling along at 56 mph, this is the NJ turnpike everything is shifting at 65 or 85 mph, the particular spot has 2 left lanes and 2 right lanes that are split by a divider section, in the past I have seen other idiots make the mistake but when they turn to cross they usually stop in the divider to check, this idiot didn’t, I was fully aware and the buy pulled across without stopping. The braking system took charge before my foot hit the pedal. If you don’t know the situation or how traffic flows on the busiest highway in the north eastern states you can’t understand the situation. Some even suggest I was not paying attention LOL… I have been driving heavy trucks since 1975 and have had not one accident or got any points on any licence, I think a lack of concentration would occasionally get me in trouble by now LOL
Don`t worry, we may behind the USA in many ways, and have lower speed limits, but am sure we have our fair share of home grown idiots who can cause “accidents” without doing 65mph.
Kerragy:
Fair points made on both sides.Can we conclude that some of us find that automatic braking systems make our driving safer, while others are able to bring their vehicles to a halt safely without it?
For myself Id have to say that they could indeed be a life saver; but I do find them an absolute pain in the ■■■. I dont claim to be a perfect driver, (incredible I know) and can see that it could save my life or maybe that of another motorist. But with the type currently fitted to my DAF the list of pedestrians, cyclists, etc that it cant recognise, and my own experience of false alerts I have very little confidence in it. I only hope that newer versions will be better. I honestly think that (looking at Google cars etc) better technology IS out there, but (as with its awful gearbox) the system fitted to my truck is not fit for use.
shep532:
In my experience drivers who seem to have problems with the AEBS and false alerts or unrequired braking need to consider their driving style or defect the system.
Being triggered by bridges and gantries aside I’m driving down an empty ■■■■■ road. Nothing is in front of me. I’m turning a corner with marker posts near the kerb or approaching a junction that happens to have a post in the middle of the road on an island. Please tell me how I am supposed to adjust my driving? Am I supposed to go round every corner with marker posts or fence posts next to the kerb at walking pace like this one here where I’ve had them slam on just in case it decides I’m going to hit them?
Other things it doesn’t like is say a 90 degree left bend with a junction going off to the right and a central right turn central reservation area with a car sat in it waiting to turn right. M42 J2 to Evesham road has such a bend and I had it whack the brakes on there once as well.
Conor:
shep532:
In my experience drivers who seem to have problems with the AEBS and false alerts or unrequired braking need to consider their driving style or defect the system.Being triggered by bridges and gantries aside I’m driving down an empty [zb] road. Nothing is in front of me. I’m turning a corner with marker posts near the kerb or approaching a junction that happens to have a post in the middle of the road on an island. Please tell me how I am supposed to adjust my driving? Am I supposed to go round every corner with marker posts or fence posts next to the kerb at walking pace like this one here where I’ve had them slam on just in case it decides I’m going to hit them?
Other things it doesn’t like is say a 90 degree left bend with a junction going off to the right and a central right turn central reservation area with a car sat in it waiting to turn right. M42 J2 to Evesham road has such a bend and I had it whack the brakes on there once as well.
Exactly so.
Out of curiosity, is your`s a DAF, or another make? Is this a case of one manufacturer buying in 2nd class cheaper technology, (re DAF crap gearboxes?) or are all systems equally susceptible to false alerts?
Juddian:
How did we and our forebears manage for all those years driving (a bloody sight faster than they go now) vehicles with nothing like the braking capability they have today, and most went through their whole lives behind the lorry wheel without ramming some bugger up the arse.I asked one of the lads with a lorry equipped with this marvel how to switch it (and adaptive cruise) off when i have to use one, he looked aghast and said if i should have an accident with it turned off it would be my fault…no i won’t counter that point because i’m denting the wall with me head…
I’d counter that by saying when you were driving trucks that weren’t limited, the traffic was a lot less and generally people were better behaved behind the wheel. Too many knobs driving flash motors thinking they own the road, too many idiots on smart phones not paying attention, too many clowns not actually knowing the rules of the road in todays world.
dri-diddly-iver:
Radar19:
A computer will react far faster than you ever can.As mentioned above, yes. It will not react as good as a competent driver to incidents half mile ahead!!! As in Pats case there shouldn’t have been any need for the computer to take effect.
In my opinion some drivers will not concentrate as much and rely on ‘computer’ to brake for them!! It’s like overkill H&S - when people stop thinking and acting for themselves…that’s when accidents happen!
Just because he remembered enough to recount the incident afterwards doesn’t mean he could have reacted quick enough at the time.
Conor:
Pat Hasler:
I was doing about 65 mph when a Swift truck four lanes to my left suddenly turned 90 degree’s and drove across all four lanes to the local side, I was about to die … This wonderful safety system stopped my truck in about 50 feet without locking the wheels and left about 5 feet between me and the side of the afore mentioned vehicle. Believe me, the reaction of that truck saved my life.You obviously weren’t paying attention to what was going on or you had your brain in switched off mode. By the time the automatic braking engaged in your truck I’d have already been slowing down.
The only time the AEBS has come on on my truck is when its decided I’m going to hit a bridge I’m driving under. Last night it slammed the brakes on when I was going under a chuffing overhead sign gantry on the A1 at 3am in the morning on an empty road. I’ve had nothing but false positives off the AEBS fitted to the trucks I drive. Not once has it ever engaged when the brakes needed to be touched.
Piffle. You have no idea how you’d have reacted in that situation.
I do find it funny that the people who seem to encounter the biggest problems with this system are the ones who see themselves god like super drivers who would never need any technology assistance. This set up is a great addition in my opinion.
Conor:
shep532:
In my experience drivers who seem to have problems with the AEBS and false alerts or unrequired braking need to consider their driving style or defect the system.Being triggered by bridges and gantries aside I’m driving down an empty [zb] road. Nothing is in front of me. I’m turning a corner with marker posts near the kerb or approaching a junction that happens to have a post in the middle of the road on an island. Please tell me how I am supposed to adjust my driving? Am I supposed to go round every corner with marker posts or fence posts next to the kerb at walking pace like this one here where I’ve had them slam on just in case it decides I’m going to hit them?
Other things it doesn’t like is say a 90 degree left bend with a junction going off to the right and a central right turn central reservation area with a car sat in it waiting to turn right. M42 J2 to Evesham road has such a bend and I had it whack the brakes on there once as well.
Well you seem to let the warning go off and let it apply the brakes. As has been pointed out you should tap the brake pedal the moment the alarm goes off, shouldn’t be hard for a super trucker like yourself, this then will stop it jamming on the brakes.
switchlogic:
Conor:
shep532:
In my experience drivers who seem to have problems with the AEBS and false alerts or unrequired braking need to consider their driving style or defect the system.Being triggered by bridges and gantries aside I’m driving down an empty [zb] road. Nothing is in front of me. I’m turning a corner with marker posts near the kerb or approaching a junction that happens to have a post in the middle of the road on an island. Please tell me how I am supposed to adjust my driving? Am I supposed to go round every corner with marker posts or fence posts next to the kerb at walking pace like this one here where I’ve had them slam on just in case it decides I’m going to hit them?
Other things it doesn’t like is say a 90 degree left bend with a junction going off to the right and a central right turn central reservation area with a car sat in it waiting to turn right. M42 J2 to Evesham road has such a bend and I had it whack the brakes on there once as well.
Well you seem to let the warning go off and let it apply the brakes. As has been pointed out you should tap the brake pedal the moment the alarm goes off, shouldn’t be hard for a super trucker like yourself, this then will stop it jamming on the brakes.
Are you reading all that Conor wrote? The system can slam the brakes on instantly! No second or two to react. This has happened to me more than once. Just because YOU have not experienced it does not mean it has NEVER happened. You may say it “shoundn`t” be like that, but I can assure you it can.
It’s faulty then, defect it, it’s supposed to sound a warning first
switchlogic:
It’s faulty then, defect it, it’s supposed to sound a warning first
Franglais:
shep532:
The actual EU legislation is quite complex and describes how the system must work, how they must be tested and even covers false alarms if I remember rightly, but this only applies to trucks made after 1/11/2015 and although some older trucks have AEBS they are not necessarily to the same standard.http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2012:109:0001:0017:en:PDF
As far as I know, braking should not take place unless the appropriate warnings have been given. 1.4 seconds is about the average time it takes a human to react and get the brakes on. Some of the warnings can be ‘haptic’ so perhaps a vibration or dip of the throttle, but as far as I know the 1.4 and 0.8 second warnings are lights and buzzers.
Get onto DAF and get detailed instructions for their system, then compare it to what happens and defect it if it is faulty.
Interesting reply. But, having defected it, or them, and been told that all is ok, how can a driver with no access to test equipment go on? As you say it is a complex bit of kit, and me saying "it ain
t right" isnt gonna carry much weight.
I do think it is a good idea, but was it Douglas Adams who said “technology is what doesn`t quite work right yet”?Juddian:
Well all i can hope is we don’t get any winters any more.The thoughts of this safety system jamming the anchors on when it sees something or nothing on a nicely icing road fills me with confidence.
Rare days like that are, but not rare are those early winter evenings where previously salted roads attract the damp and turn that salt residue into a fine lube, heavy traffic doing its thing and our errant finest euro 6’s (of which there will be thousands) likely to chuck the anchor out at any moment, reason or not.
Yeah can’t wait to get mine.Don`t worry the anti-skid technology will turn the brakes off so correcting the skid you wer… oh, the truck …was getting into…
Edit for typo.
As you`ll doubtless have already read It has been defected and deemed OK.
