Stuttgart – The issue of safety has always been integral to Daimler's corporate strategy and became part of its brand positioning at a very early stage. Mercedes-Benz Trucks is appearing at Europe's largest classic vehicle show, "Retro Classics 2016", under the banner "Safety systems on trucks in a historical perspective".
The brand that traces its origins back to automotive pioneers Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz and which, more than any other, is synonymous with the motorisation of passenger and goods transport, is marking the anniversary "120 years of the truck" in 2016: following several years of development, the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft delivered its first motorised truck to London on 1 October 1896. This truck, equipped with a two-cylinder engine with an output of 3 kW (4 hp), was configured for a payload of 1.5 tonnes. That same year saw Benz supply a "delivery vehicle" with a box body to the Paris department store "Du bon Marché". At the Retro Classics show in this 2016 anniversary year, Mercedes-Benz is drawing attention to the leading role it has always played in the development of (commercial) vehicle technology.
The development of the dual-circuit air brake and of the anti-lock braking system (ABS), on which the researchers and developers at the then Daimler-Benz AG began work back in the 1960s, are just two of the early highlights in the history of safety systems for commercial vehicles.
The first prototype ABS for passenger cars was presented in 1970. It reached production stage in 1978 and was initially introduced for the passenger cars of the S-Class.The Mercedes-Benz brand then went on to present the first truck ABS for truck/trailer and tractor/semitrailer combinations as early as 1981.
From Active Brake Assist to the Highway Pilot
The highlights in the development of safety systems for commercial vehicles in more recent years include the revolutionary Active Brake Assist system. Introduced on the Mercedes-Benz Actros heavy-duty truck in 2006, it has since more than proved its worth in practice. The third evolutionary stage of this life-saver has been available since 2012. Since the system's initial market launch, more than 66 000 emergency braking systems have already gone into service on board heavy-duty trucks.
And the development work didn't stop there: Blind Spot Assist and Highway Pilot are the latest innovations. With Blind Spot Assist the Daimler engineers anticipate a significant reduction in the type of serious accidents that can all too often occur when vehicles are turning. And, since fatal incidents involving cyclists and pedestrians are more common when the vehicle is turning right (left in RHD markets), the new electronic helper monitors this area in particular, acting as it were as an extra pair of eyes for the truck driver.
The system known as the Highway Pilot represents a first decisive step along the way to autonomous driving, by making semi-autonomous driving possible. This means that while the Highway Pilot is able to steer the truck by itself on motorways, the driver retains full responsibility, needs to monitor the traffic at all times and must be able to intervene at any time. The Highway Pilot can therefore be compared to the autopilot commonly used, and seen as quite normal, in aviation.
Safety has always been integral to Daimler's corporate strategy – accident-free driving its vision. And work continues unrelentingly on this vision.
From the N1 of 1926 to the Safety Truck
The commercial vehicles from Mercedes-Benz are represented by 14 exhibits at the Retro Classics show (17 to 20 March, Stuttgart exhibition centre). The vehicles on show demonstrate the long-standing traditions of truck expertise at the Trucks division of Daimler AG, the global leader in light-, medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles and special-purpose vehicles such as the Unimog.
The journey through time begins with the truck model bearing the concise name N1. This 1.5-tonner built in 1926 handled the payload that a Sprinter deals with nowadays. In terms of vehicle safety, the now archaic-seeming brake system on the exhibit shows in particular what an tremendously long path of technical development still lay ahead. By complete contrast, the Actros 1863 Safety Truck demonstrates just what is available today as standard, especially in terms of active vehicle safety.
Some of the safety technologies developed by Daimler over the years have meanwhile found their way into legislation. One very recent example is the EU's requirement for the installation of emergency braking and lane-keeping systems in trucks and buses newly registered since November 2015. Both have already been available from Daimler for ten years (Active Brake Assist) and 16 years (Lane Keeping Assist) respectively, first in trucks and shortly afterwards in touring coaches. Another example: since the autumn of 2014, the Electronic Stability Programme ESP has been mandatory for newly registered vans – but ESP has been standard equipment in the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter since as far back as 2002.
