A method for managing a control software of a braking system of a vehicle, the method including downloading, a vehicle-adapted control software from a server via a wireless interface of the vehicle, and flashing a control unit of the braking system with the vehicle-adapted control software.

A system for monitoring a trailer having a plurality of light emitting diode devices includes a master control unit attached to an outside surface of the trailer. The master control unit includes a solar panel, a GPS receiver module, a cellular data transceiver module for communicating with a central tracking computer via a cellular data network interfaced to the Internet, and a local wireless network master transceiver module in wireless communication with a plurality of wireless sensors and a light out detection system. A microcontroller is provided for controlling the local wireless network master transceiver module to periodically obtain sensor data from the wireless sensors and light out detection system, and for controlling the cellular data transceiver module to transmit the location and the sensor data to the central tracking computer for storage in the tracking database.

A soft body system adapted to form the body and exterior surface of a Guided Soft Target for testing crash avoidance technologies in a subject vehicle is disclosed. The soft body system is adapted to be mounted atop a motorized Dynamic Motion Element (DME) and when so mounted is adapted to collide with the subject vehicle while the DME is moving. The soft body system includes a semi-rigid form with an exterior surface. The form is sufficiently yielding so as to impart a minimal force to the subject vehicle upon impact. The form may be shaped like a vehicle or a part of a vehicle. The exterior surface includes a side skirt made of radar absorptive material (RAM), radar reflective material (RRM) or a combination of both, which is positioned adjacent to the ground and constructed to prevent radar wave from entering the soft body system.

A method for operating a braking system, wherein a switchable connection between two connection points is open in normal operation, and a voltage difference across the switchable connection is reduced by recuperation before said switchable connection is closed, which serves to compensate for a disturbance in an on-board electrical system. As a result, it is possible to avoid excess currents in the event of the closing of the switchable connection.

A control valve (12) for applying a spring-loaded brake pressure (p3b) to spring-loaded parts of a rear-axle wheel brake is provided. The control valve (12) is activatable pneumatically via a second control input (12b) with a parking-brake control pressure (p5). The parking-brake control pressure (p5) can act in such a manner on a control mechanism (14b, 15b, 17c, 22, 23, 24) arranged in a valve housing (12f) of the control valve (12) that a spring-loaded brake pressure (p3b) arises at a control output (12c) of the control valve (12) as a function of the parking-brake control pressure (p5) for bringing about a parking-brake braking specification with the spring-loaded parts of the rear-axle wheel brakes. The control valve (12) has a first control connection (12a) connectable to an adjustable first control chamber (14a), which is operatively connected to the control mechanism (14b, 15b, 17c, 22, 23, 24).

A method for testing a pressure-medium-operated electronic brake system of a vehicle having a valve and sensor device including a control pressure inlet, a control pressure outlet, a plurality of valves selected from electrically activated inlet valves, outlet valves, redundancy valves, and pressure valves, an actual pressure sensor for measuring an actual control pressure, a setpoint pressure sensor for measuring a setpoint control pressure, and an electronic control unit, which has a signal-conducting connection to the electrically activated valves and pressure sensors, for receiving pressure signals and actuating the electrically activated valves, includes testing the setpoint pressure sensor while the control unit is in a passive operating mode, passing the setpoint control pressure directly through to the control pressure outlet, measuring the actual pressure at the control pressure outlet using a sensor, and transmitting the measured value to the control unit for plausibility checking against the setpoint pressure measurement.

Hybrid or fully electric vehicle comprising: a conventional braking system based on friction bodies to brake the motor vehicle by interaction of the friction bodies in response to the operation of a brake pedal or any other equivalent control member, a reversible electric machine operatively coupled to the wheels of the vehicle and electronically controllable to operate selectively as an electric engine to generate a mechanical power to propel to the vehicle and as an electric generator to convert the kinetic energy of the motor vehicle into electrical energy, and an automotive electronic control system comprising a sensory system to measure automotive quantities, and an electronic control unit to control operation of the conventional braking system and of the electric machine in response to the operation of the brake pedal or any other operationally equivalent control member. The electronic control unit is further configured to control operation of: the electric machine to selectively perform one or more functions including regenerative braking, in which the electric machine is operated as an electric generator to recover the kinetic energy of the motor vehicle during braking and convert it into electrical energy, and the conventional braking system to clean the friction bodies of the conventional braking system based on the number of brakings performed by the conventional braking system and counted starting from the start-up of the motor vehicle.

Systems and methods carried out in a truck (TW) configured to be coupled to a trailer (TR), wherein a trailer connection status (CST) is determined by a pneumatic line test performed on a test pneumatic line arranged to pneumatically couple the trailer to the truck, the method comprising determining a line test circumstantial criterion, such criterion allowing or not a pneumatic line test to be performed, performing the pneumatic line test, whenever the test circumstantial criterion allows it, and updating therefrom the trailer connection status (CST), from a result of step b- and/or as time passes by,wherein the line test circumstantial criterion comprises at least a first condition representative of an air pressure prevailing in the pneumatic line below a predefined test threshold, a second condition representative of a presence, and/or activity of a driver of the truck in the truck’s cabin.

A method for evaluating the behavior of a vehicle component, including: issuing a control signal by a control unit of a motor vehicle to a vehicle component; detecting a response of the motor vehicle to the control signal; determining the behavior of the vehicle component; classifying the behavior of the vehicle component; and adapting the actuation of the motor vehicle component by the control unit. Also described is a related system.

A test arrangement for functional testing of a brake control system in a vehicle, in which either a first parking brake system or a second parking brake system can be installed, wherein the brake control system has a control device with a first control module for controlling the first parking brake system, and has a second control module for controlling the second parking brake system, and wherein either the first control module or the second control module can be activated by means of a coding unit, in order to control the associated parking brake system, while the non-activated control module remains inoperative. The brake control system has a test unit with which a swap plausibility check can be carried out, which can be used to check whether the correct control module for the installed parking brake system is activated.