Testing with the Wisconsin State Patrol

The photo above shows some of our test equipment on a MCI Motorcoach. The bus was outfitted with two VC-4000 tri-axial accelerometers. The bus's motion was also measured by a Stalker RADAR and high-speed video. This bus was equipped with air disc brakes, an automatic transmission, and a DDC Series 60 engine with DDEC IV ECM.

We had several goals when conducting this test, including examining the effects of specific driver inputs on the Last Stop Record. Like the rest of the tests we conducted at Fox Valley, the goal was to replicate real-world post-crash scenarios to see how the Event Data Recorder interpreted what happened.


The photo above shows us creating a Hard Brake record with an International tractor and DDC motor. If you look closely at the left-hand side of the photo, you can see the smoke boiling from the drive axle. This was a really, really fun day!

The results of all of this testing (as much as we can fit, anyway) will be presented at the Midwest Association of Technical Accident Investigator's Annual Conference, during the second week in June.

More About the DD-15

The DD-15 is such a cool engine that we couldn't help posting one more picture of it, this one from the passenger side of the tractor. Some of the things we learned on the forensics side were that there is much more calibration data in this ECM (which makes sense since its a more sophisticated motor); the proclivity of the clock-time to "drift" still exists (an endearing little tick!); and the DDEC Reports data are pretty much identical.

The links below have some info on the DD-15:

DD-15 Brochure

http://www.detroitdiesel.com/pdf/engines/2009-dd15-brochure.pdf

A comparison of DDC's engines

http://www.detroitdiesel.com/engines/compare.aspx

The DD-15 homepage

http://www.detroitdiesel.com/engines/dd15/

Downloading Event Data from Detroit Diesel's new DD-15

Yesterday, Ron DeMonia and I had the privilege of doing some testing with Detroit Diesel's new DD-15 engine (pictured above). DD-15 is the replacement for the Series 60 engine, a workhorse that's been around for 21 years. From a performance standpoint, DD-15 is awesome: 14.8L of displacement and up to 560hp and 1850ft-lbs of torque. On the forensics side, DD-15 is a little difficult: it's a 2-module ECU, comprised of a Motor Control Module and a Common Powertrain Controler, and it somewhat resembles an MBE or VMAC IV.

The issue we were looking at yesterday was how the calibration files should be accessed and downloaded. If you do forensic downloads and haven't seen the DDDL 7.x, take a look: it is completely different from any of the ECM /EDR software out there.

June is National Safety Month, an event sponsored by the National Safety Council to raise awareness about specific safety issues and injury mechanisms. This year the Safety Council and its members will work to provide information and educational material related to a separate issue for each of the four weeks:

1. June 1 - 7 Teen Driving
2. June 8 - 14 Fall Protection
3. June 15 - 21 Overexertion
4. June 22 - 30 Distracted Driving

MSC is proud to have been a member of the NSC since our inception in 2006. All of us believe that along with the ability to analyze accidents comes the obligation to use that ability so that future mishaps, accidents, and injuries can be prevented.

ECM Testing in Wisconsin

Bill Messerschmidt conducted Electronic Control Module (ECM) testing with the Wisconsin State Patrol in Appleton, Wisconsin, at Fox Valley Technical College on May 4 - 5. The testing involved using heavy vehicles to simulate real-life events, such as a loss of power, to better understand how ECMs record data during accidents.

MSC would like to thank Trooper Tim Austin and Sergeant Duane Meyers and the rest of the Wisconsin State Patrol Technical Reconstruction Unit; Ben Smith of ASI Investigations; Rob Behnke and the staff of Fox Valley Technical College; Chris Voeglie of the NTSB; Vericom Computers; and Lamers Bus Service for their help in facilitating this testing event.

Watch news footage about the ECM testing.

Research to be Included in SAE Transactions

On April 21st, Bill Messerschmidt presented his research paper titled "A Statistical Analysis of Event Data from Heavy Vehicle Event Data Recorders" at the 2009 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) World Congress in Detroit, Michigan. The paper was co-authored by Jeffrey W. Muttart.

Bill and Jeff's paper was nominated for inclusion in SAE Transactions, a compilation of the year's most significant technical research. At the World Congress, session organizers announced that the paper was selected for inclusion in this prestigious collection.

Bill Speaks at Georgia Trial Lawyers Association's Annual Convention

On April 16th, Bill Messerschmidt was an invited speaker at the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association's Annual Convention. Bill spoke about GPS/GLS-enabled fleet management systems and Electronic On-Board Recorders (EOBRs). The convention, which was held at The Four Seasons Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, was filled to capacity. Bill and MSC thank Mr. Buck Rogers of Fried Rogers Goldberg LLC for the invitation to speak in the Trucking Litigation session of the Convention.