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Automotive Industry

Tread power - WIP

Automotive Design & Production, May, 2002 by Gary S. Vasilash

The name of the act is, well, somewhat disconcerting for those who are most interested in designing and building quality cars and trucks: Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation Act. Or TREAD. Part of it is about having automakers installing tire pressure monitoring systems in their 2004 models. The act was actually passed in November, 2000. One of the intents is to have the wherewithal to detect low-inflation situations that could lead to rollovers. At issue is exactly what type of tire pressure monitoring system will be deemed appropriate:

* Indirect: Makes use of the vehicle's antilock braking system (ABS). Essentially, this checks the rotation of each wheel and determines whether there is deflation based on rotational differences.

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* Direct: Uses sensors located in the tires that directly measure pressure losses.

One of the big differences between the two is that of cost. For example, if a car already has ABS. then the additional cost of sensors in the tires is hard to justify. However, given some of the limitations of the indirect approach (e.g., the tires need to be rotating before the system will work, and the response time may not be as quick as it might need to be) and given that not all cars and trucks are equipped with ABS, there is something to be said for direct.

With hopes that the direct sensor approach will be the right one, Rayovac Corp. (Madison, WI) has developed a new lithium battery that has an extended temperature range. The lithium BR-ETR cells can operate in a range from -40[degrees]C to +125[degress]C. According to Jim Pilarzyk, national account manager, OEM Engineering & Technical Products, this 3-v battery not only has solid performance characteristics (e.g., three times the power of ordinary lithium batteries; a flat discharge of energy), but it is also non-toxic, non-corrosive, and is recognized by the EPA as standard household waste.

Of course, in the event that the direct tire pressure monitoring approach doesn't become the norm, this coin cell battery is also applicable to design engineers working on Bluetooth-enabled devices as well as radio frequency (RF) systems.

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Automotive Industry

Tread power - WIP

Automotive Design & Production, May, 2002 by Gary S. Vasilash

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