On Tue, Feb 16, 2010 at 3:51 AM, John Reames <jwrea...@comcast.net> wrote: > The mechanical linkage is dead, gone and unable to be > resurrected;mandated > traction control has seen to it.
Ridiculous. The two have nothing to do with each other, though car company accountants and marketeers would probably like you to think otherwise. The electronic stability brain needs a couple of inputs and a couple of outputs. Inputs include pitch/yaw sensors, wheel speed, throttle position, and steering wheel position. Outputs can include engine power reduction, selective braking, and/or selective transfer of torque to a wheel or wheels. None of these require the computer to have control over the throttle. Engine power reduction can be accomplished by retarding timing, cutting spark to a cylinder (in the case of a gas engine), or cutting fuel to a cylinder (in diesels or in gassers). Selective transfer of torque among wheels can be accomplished by application of brakes to one wheel forcing torque to the other side on the same axle (given an open differential), or by electromagnetic clutch packs. None of this prevents manual control of the accelerator by the driver, including the ability to close the throttle completely (or stomp on the brakes!) to slow the car regardless of what the computers want to do. Electronic throttle control is an artifact of cost-cutting. It's cheaper to have one embedded computer controlling the entire car and connected to everything via fiber optic bundles than to have discrete electromechanical systems as in our beloved '80s Benzes. > I am hoping that we don't see some sort of overreaction which > brings parity > between the QC (and QC regulations) of automobile > parts/repairs andthose of > airplanes. I'm much more interested in seeing some kind of mandatory licensing based on competence for software engineers. Anyone who has worked in high-tech knows that the majority of programmers are barely competent, and that there are no accepted or enforced standards for testing their work. And we trust our lives to these people every time we get in a modern car. Alex _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
