HCI's Participation in Government TPMS Studies

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has been conducting TPMS studies for commercial vehicles since the early 2000’s. Actual TPMS system tests started in 2005 with Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH), a global strategy and technology consulting firm, being the primary contractor carrying out many of the testing assignments for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Other government agencies, such as NTRC and NHTSA, have also been conducting various TPMS tests.

2005: Track Test (Test Report Available)

In the spring of 2005, BAH has conducted a study that focuses on testing the overall performance of a representative sample of commercial tire inflation and monitoring products. In separate week-long testing periods, the study team installed several tire pressure monitoring and automatic inflation systems on an 18-wheel tractor and on a motorcoach, and tested both vehicles on a test track at the Transportation Research Center (TRC) in East Liberty, Ohio.

HCI participated in this test with a tractor-trailer system installed on the 18-wheeler.

2006-2007: Field Test (Test Report Available)

In August of 2006, BAH started a year-long test to evaluate brake and tire sensors on commercial vehicles in revenue generating service. This assignment builds on previous track test and is carried out with transition buses. US DOT interested in performing study with transit buses because of their harsh environmental conditions- low speeds, frequent stops, and high axle loadings. Data generated is applicable to trucks because brakes and tires are similar.

Three products were selected among the nine previously tested systems: HCI TPMS, WABCO IVTM, and Michelin eTire. Four systems of each product were installed on a total of 12 buses at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) – The test was completed in late 2007.

2008: Compliance Test (Test Report Available)

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) has conducted yet another TPMS test at the Vehicle Research and Test Center (VRTC) for a study of compliance on future implementation of TPMS technology with commercial carriers. In March of 2008 VRTC has procured two 10-tire HCI TPMS systems, one external flow-through and one internal rim-mounted, for tests in their Ohio facility

2009-2010: Field Operation Test (Test Report Available)

BAH is conducting a year long Field Operational Test with the FMCSA on tire pressure monitoring systems. TPMS systems were installed on a fleet of 18-wheel tractor-trailer combos and monitored over the course of a year as they operated under normal highway conditions, and HCI TPMS was the only TPMS product to be tested. For this test the our internal rim-mounted systems with automatic trailer drop-and-hook capability were installed on 13 10-tire tractors and 15 8-tire trailers in a commercial fleet in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The test started in February 2009 and was completed in late 2010..

2009-2010: Operational Test

National Transportation Research Center (NTRC) is conducting a commercial vehicle Operational Test with Tire-Safeguard near its Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee. For this test HCI TPMS systems with flow-through sensors were installed on three 6-tire trucks, and the TPMS communicates with a NTRC’s test data collection system over the J1939-CAN/RV-C interface protocol. The test started in March 2009 and was completed in 2010.