The era of h mart cars;'
- cars with electronic brain
- . f: t approaching,
General otors executive
y .
An audi nee at the
Automoti orld Congre
told by G vice presi­
dent artin J. Ca rio that
the demand of tighter
emi . on controls and bet­
ter fuel economy m e
sophisti ted electronic ys­
terns "ab lutely e sential. '
The b and most fuel
efficient y to meet th
requirements is with a cata­
Iyti con erter and electron­
. ally controlled fuel meter­
.he added.
Other control functions
the computer can carry ,
h . d, are electronic
timing Web aid
both emi . ons and fuel
nomy, idle ed control
to aid fuel economy and
dri bility cani ter purge
to provide efficient bum-
of fuel pors that
b n to red in
coal cani ter exhaust
g recirculation cho e
control' air control and
oc limitin - the latter
alre dy d on 8uic
trubo-charge engin . �
"An onboard computer
could provide a control
y tern for up-shift, down
ift and 10 -up point
onc computer i vail­
able, he id. One of the
more obvio on i mul-
n
ould in ant feedb c
on how much energy e
cut our con umption?
After this umrn r and next
winter, may know the
an er.
Over the next fe
month a device to chec
daily energy -a ell
cos -will b installed
in certain home in
citie in the U.S. and
Can da. The U.S. Depart­
ment of Energy will or
with local utilities to install
the feedbac meter in
randomly selected house.
The m ter 100 like a
digital cIoc but h two
I I I
• • •
,
tiplixing of the car wiring
hame .
"This proces employs
based on all appropriate
drive train parameters,"
Caserio noted. ' Smooth
transmission control is not
desir ble for fuel econ­
omy, but also contributes
to pleasant shifting."
If there was com-
puter coritrol of the trans­
mi . on he said, it ould
be po ibl to take the
next tep and disconnect
the throttle from the floor
pedal. The floor pedal
ould then rye to trans­
mit the dri er' desired
rate of celeration to the­
computer. The computer
ould then open or clo
the throttle in ccordance
with an optimum fuel effe­
ciency urve, based on the
engine and transmissi on
requirements and perfor­
mance characteristics.
Som feature now
available on cars, but cer­
tain to g t more sophi
ticated ith computer us-
, are electronically tuned
entertainment � ems, digi-.
tal clock elap d time in­
dicator, power boosters,
graphi equalizers, theft
deterrent automatic level­
ing nd anti-Ioc braking
systems, Caserio told the
automotive - oriented aud-
nee.
"Theft deterrent sys-
c r
,
AUGUST 9 - 15, 1979 l THE CITIZEN
PAGE 11
terns are becoming more
important particularly in
urban areas, here reduc­
tion in insurance premiums
are being offered for their
in tallation," the GM
automatic said, "With an
onboard computer, incor­
porating electronic starting
codes become relatively
easy."
Radar braking will be­
come more attractive as
large memory devices be­
come cheaper, he said.
"If radar braking sys­
terns become practicable,
daptive braking, collision
avoidance provision, and
head ay control could add
to their sophistication," .
Caserio said. "Perhaps the
first step in this direction
would be an obstacle warn­
ing ystern based on ele­
men tary radar or ultrasonic
techniques. The logic for
th applications is not
particularly difficult for
an on board. computer, but
the rest of the system
will require. significant tech­
nological dvances."
any other applica­
tions not associated with
the functioning of the
automobile, are possible
pedal electronic ignal de­
vices to code each input
signal that it may be
o
n
r
row of number. The top pressing other buttons, it's
ow the time. The bot- po tble to get a reading
tom displays the cost of on the cost of energy
energy used in the house-Lseensumed in the previous
hold since the previo 24- our period or how
midnight. much the total month's
People in the house bill will be.
can judge their ving in A previous study indi-
dvance, too. By touching cated that people use air-
a switch labeled "next conditioners' furnaces,
hour,' the feedback meter ovens, lights and other
wili show the estimated appliances Ie if they get
cost of the energy the immediate feedback. In one
house will se in the next study conducted by the
60 minutes-if nothing is department, energy con­
done to decrease present sumption dropped 10 to 15
consumption. The number percent.
will change to reflect chan- Energy use in house-
ge in energy u By holds with the meters will
BOYS
I I ,
• • •
G I R LS
1
•
EAR 0 E�!!!
GET A JOB DELIVERING
z
directed to only the act­
ivity for which intended,"
C erio explained.' ulti­
plexing permits remote con­
trol of veral operating
devices, uch a power win­
do , po er seats, or head­
ligh through a common
control wire.
"Automatic door loc S
are widely available on pre-
nt wehicles-but with the
increased usage of digital
computers in cars, it would
be po ible to eliminate the
door ey, or implement a
"keyless ignition," a part
of the keyle door lock,"
Caserio said.
"Low cost logic may
also make it po ible to
design a "amart se t"
. which would permit adjust­
ment for differnet sized
people. The computer
ould "remember" their
positions and automatically
re t for the appropriate
person.
"Trip information sy
tms are pre ntly avaliable.
s computer. capacity
grows, they could permit
greater driver interaction
with the vehicle. The on­
board computer could alerts
or rout selections.
Diagno tic capabilitie
of onboard computers
could be extremely helpful
y
compared with 100 control
homes in each city. And
the energy department
hopes the feedback meters
may be available to the
public soon. The meters
could be istalled for bet­
ween $50 to 100. People
who use them would b
eligible for a t credit.
Co rsing energy save
money and also cuts pol­
lutoin, says the American
Lung A ciation of ich­
igan-the Christmas Seal
people, To flnd out more
ways J to curb pollution,
contact them. It's a matter
of life and breath.
Patronize
our
advertiser
in dealerships, here el - ring to a diagnostic rvice
troni engineers and com- procedure. Followi the
puter experts are not gener- ep in the procedure will
ally part of the service staff, lead to proper correcti
Caserio said. General 0-. ctioo.
tors' current engine control While" If-repair''or
systems include limited If- "by- "cap bilitie for
diagno tic capablility. In the . certain faul could be pro­
event of certain ystem aIm- gramrned into an on-board
function, a lamp in the system, it' . ey th t
instrument panel will glo , diagnostic sy ems Will re­
warning the driver of a need main primarily sy e to
for rvice. advise the driver of the
He take the car to a ne d or rvice, C rio
service center where the td.
machanic ground the test Virtually every G car
point. The instrument panel will have an onboard com­
lamp then flashe a coded puter in 1981, primarily
number to indicate the pee- for control of emi '0
mc malfunction. By refer- and fuel economy, he id.
ByCHRISHED
Grooming.
what the ord means. e
groom ourselve everyday,
so e are clean and pre­
sentable. ell your plants
need to be groomed, too.
It is one of the most im­
portant pects of plant
care, rating up there with
light, ater and food.
Grooming your ho
plants is not a hard job.
only take a couple of
. utes every other day or
so. When you chec your
plants once a day. simply
take along with you a
pair of pruning shears. Snip
off any dead leaves or
prune back any over­
growth. In general, m e
your plants 100 presentable
and neat.
By checking your
plant e eryday or so will
also lessen the chance of
bugs taking 0 er because
you would catch a bug or
the beginnings of di
right y just by checking
your plan do ly.
, about once
month clean the lea of
your ho plan ts. This .
very importan t to their
health. e er anything
but plain arm ater or
ter and mild detergent
mixtur. Do not u a
- comm rcial leaf shine.
e pray do more harm
that good by coating the
leaves cells with a sti y
thi sub tance that blo
the stomata or breathing
cells of the leave .
So chec your plan
every other day and keep
them looking ell-groom d.
Both of you will fe I
better Oh, and by the y,
touch each and e ery plant
gently on your y
around you w by
whether they need it or not.
That y non of them
will feel lift out!!
Real hickory-smoked BAR-B-QUE!
• 11 •• -2 11 •••••