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The United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards were amended in 1975 requiring Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS) to be installed on nearly all buses, coaches and motorhomes operated within the U.S. This paper reviews ABS operation and the components required for typical ABS installations. Recommendations for the ABS configuration most appropriate for common North American bus, coach and motorhome chassis, drivetrain, and suspension combinations are provided. Automatic Traction Control (ATC), an optional enhancement available with ABS, is also discussed. Application issues of integrating ABS/ATC with the electronically controlled engines, transmissions, retarders and air suspensions commonly applied on North American buses coaches and motorhomes are described.

An automatic steering system for agricultural tractors was developed using a network of seven microcomputers for the feedback controller. The computer hardware and software which comprise the feedback controller and design considerations in developing a computer network are discussed. Safety requirements of a manual/automatic steering system are presented, and the hydraulic circuit designed for operation with both manual and automatic inputs is described. The steering system uses sonar devices for position sensing. The sonar measuring system is temperature compensated to be reliable from -5° to 55° C. The steering system requires additional development to refine the steering gain function and optimize the position sensing technique.