Unfortunately this locks the steering too in most cars. G. VanRemortel Mechanical Engineer CPU Technology, Inc (r) 5731 W. Las Positas Blvd Pleasanton, CA 94588 (925) 224-9920 (Voice) (925) 227-0539 (Fax) (408) 375-4450 (Cell) www.cputech.com ************************************************ CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE The information contained in this transmission is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient of this information, do not review, retransmit, disclose, disseminate, use, or take any action in reliance upon this information. If you received this transmission in error, please contact the sender and destroy all printed copies and delete the material from all computers. ************************************************ -----Original Message----- From: tinwhiskers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tinwhiskers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Smith Sent: Friday, January 29, 2010 12:20 PM To: Bob Landman Subject: [tinwhiskers] Re: Perfect opportunity for tin whiskers induced failures - Toyota did not install brake override systems despite complaints Runaway cars are no fun; most people panic, and in a panic state intelligence goes to zero; they forget that they can stop the thing by just turning the ignition key to OFF. Steve Smith BL> Just as I predicted, the increased use of electronics in BL> automobiles when mixed with RoHS can make for a deadly cocktail. BL> We don't know (this article doesn't say) what the causative agent BL> was, but I have heard recently of brand new autos showing up at BL> dealers that will not start. That cause has been linked to tin whiskers. BL> I cannot fathom how foolish the industry was to rush to adopt BL> lead-free manufacturing without first solving the well known risks BL> such as tin whiskers. When I read comments such as "SAC405 is BL> known to suppress whisker growth" I have to laugh. There is so BL> much misinformation being cast about, it's ludicrous. BL> Toyoda better do as they've been advised if they are using BL> lead-free manufacturing (and even if they are not as the parts are BL> lead-free now so even IF you use SnPb solder you still will be BL> subjected to tin whisker induced failures. BL> And people will die, make no mistake about that. BL> Bob Landman BL> Life Senior Member, IEEE BL> President, CTO BL> H&L Instruments,LLC BL> BL> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/28/AR201001 2803971.html?wpisrc=nl_pmheadline BL> Toyota did not install brake override systems despite complaints BL> By Peter Whoriskey BL> Washington Post Staff Writer BL> Friday, January 29, 2010; A16 BL> Toyota Motor began facing complaints of runaway cars years ago, BL> but the company did not install "brake override" systems in those BL> vehicles, even as several other automakers deployed the technology to address such malfunctions. BL> The brake override systems allow a driver to stop a car with the BL> footbrake even if the accelerator is depressed and the vehicle is BL> running at full throttle. The systems are an outgrowth of new BL> electronics in cars, specifically in engine control. BL> "If the brake and the accelerator are in an argument, the brake BL> wins," a spokesman at Chrysler said in describing the systems, BL> which it began installing in 2003. BL> Volkswagen, Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz also install such systems BL> in at least some of their cars, the companies and industry experts BL> said, some as far back as 10 years ago. General Motors installs BL> brake override in all of its cars in which it is possible for the BL> engine at full throttle to overwhelm the brakes. BL> "Most other automakers have adopted this technology," said Sean BL> Kane, a former researcher at the Center for Auto Safety who now BL> works at Safety Research and Strategies. Not adding the systems BL> "is one of the mistakes that created this perfect storm for Toyota." BL> Toyota did not respond Thursday to questions about its decisions involving brake override. BL> But at the Detroit Auto Show in December, Toyota North America BL> President Yoshi Inaba said the company would begin equipping its BL> vehicles with brake override. His comments followed a November BL> statement from the company that the override system would be made BL> standard on Toyota and Lexus vehicles starting with some models in January 2010. BL> The precaution comes too late, however, to forestall a tsunami of BL> negative publicity that has engulfed the company since it halted BL> production and suspended sales of eight popular models after BL> reports of unintended acceleration. For a company that famously BL> aimed to become the largest automaker in the world by touting a BL> reputation for reliability and safety, it has been a striking turnaround. BL> The company has blamed the accelerations on faulty floor mats and BL> their installation, as well as defective accelerator pedals, which BL> they are seeking to redesign. The brake override systems, when BL> they come, will provide a measure of redundancy. BL> It was not immediately clear how much it would cost to install BL> the brake override systems, and industry experts said the costs of BL> the control technology are difficult to measure. BL> "There's really no cost, but it's a critical skill issue -- we BL> can only find so many people who can do this kind of work," said a BL> senior engineer at a major automaker, who spoke on the condition BL> of anonymity. "It would require a bunch of software and BL> development people to design it, but spread across lots of cars, BL> the money involved would be negligible. . . . No one wants a runaway." BL> As far back as 2004, government investigators were looking at BL> 2002-2003 Toyota Camrys and Solaras and Lexus ES 300s to determine BL> whether they were defective, gathering information about 37 owner BL> complaints of sudden acceleration, according to the Center for Auto Safety. BL> Automotive experts said that in at least some of those incidents, BL> a brake override system could have prevented harm. BL> In the accident that has drawn perhaps the most publicity, a 2009 BL> Lexus ES 350 raced through San Diego, weaving at 120 miles an hour BL> through rush-hour freeway traffic. Veteran California Highway BL> Patrol officer Mark Saylor was at the wheel, with his wife, BL> teenage daughter and brother-in-law aboard. BL> "We're in trouble. . . . There's no brakes," Saylor's BL> brother-in-law told a police dispatcher over a cellphone. As they BL> approached an intersection, and the end of the road, the BL> passengers could be heard urging each other to pray. All four died. BL> Afterward, investigators said that it appeared the brakes had BL> been applied for so long that the brake pads melted, according to BL> a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. BL> Had a brake override system been at work, the engine would have BL> been depowered -- not turned off, but slowed. BL> Until recently, an accelerator pedal opened the throttle BL> mechanically. But newer pedals control the engine via sensors and a computer. BL> The new throttle electronics and software have often themselves BL> been the focus of some suspicion in the runaway crashes. BL> Whatever the causes of accidents, engineers noted that there are BL> trade-offs in using brake override systems. For example, some BL> customers prefer to be able to apply the brake and step on the BL> accelerator without reducing power to the engine, especially in high-performance driving. BL> Toyota, moreover, is not the only automaker to eschew the fail-safe technology. BL> In an e-mail, Honda spokeswoman Christina Ra said that "Honda and BL> Acura vehicles do not apply any override logic between brake and BL> accelerator pedal inputs. . . . We continue to accept application BL> of the accelerator and brake pedals as representing the driver's intention." BL> But experts said that the value of the brake override systems is BL> that they can mitigate acceleration problems no matter where they BL> come from. Toyota, as well as the NHTSA, appear to have struggled BL> in diagnosing exactly what is causing the trouble. BL> "A brake override system can paper over a multitude of mistakes," Kane said. BL> __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of BL> virus signature database 4818 (20100129) __________ BL> The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. BL> http://www.eset.com -- Best regards, Steve mailto:steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx www.consultingscientist.us http://www.pickensplan.com/