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A Note About the MSQR-5000® and D.O.T. Requirements for Anti-lock Brake Systems The MSQR-5000® complies fully with the IN-CAB warning light regulation 49 CFR 571.121. The trailer warning light is excluded because the MSQR-5000® does not have electricity. {“49 CFR § 30113 (b) (3) (B) (ii) (emphasis added). “‘…, no special exemption would be necessary for a new device meeting existing (purely performative) standards; ….’” (Washington V. DOT, 95-9513)} The “warning light” requirement of the FMVSS 121 is a specific requirement for detecting malfunctions of the computer in electronic braking systems. The MSQR-5000® has no computer components. ABS Inc. has also taken steps for notice of the exclusion by posting a notice on every vehicle equipped with the MSQR-5000®. In 1995, I filed a civil action, Washington v. DOT, 95-9513, in the United States Court of Appeals For The Tenth Circuit, for review of the U. S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration requirement for a warning light for anti-lock brake systems. The requirement is regulated by 49 CFR 571.121. In the response to the civil action the DOT states: “…As NHTSA explained in promulgating the final rule, the definition of ABS ‘does not require electronics for the sensing of wheel rotation or controlling signals,’ and that although ‘it is likely that electronic systems will be used, given currently available technologies,’ these ‘functions could be performed using pneumatic, hydraulic, optic, or other mechanical means.’ 60 Fed. Reg. 13227” In reviewing the ABS warning light requirement, the Final Judgment of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals states: “This
provision mandates only a certain type of equipment, (footnote 2)
still constraining specific design choices chiefly through the preferred
means of performance criteria.” Footnote 2 states: “ABS
is broadly defined—and in predominantly functional, rather than
structural, terms—as a ‘portion of a service brake system that
automatically controls the degree of rotational wheel slip at one or
more road wheels of the vehicle during braking.’”
49 C.F.R. § 571.121 S4 (eff. until March 1, 1977); see also
49C.F.R. § 571.121 S4 (eff. March 1, 1977) adding further functional
detail to definition).” “Further,
any manufacturer that has devised a new means of obtaining the same or
better safety performance afforded by mandated equipment may (1) seek an
exemption to facilitate development or evaluation… (Footnote 3).
Footnote 3 states: “49
U.S.C. § 30113 (b) (3) (B) (ii) (emphasis added).
‘…, no special exemption would be necessary for a new device meeting
existing (purely performative) standards; ….’” Under the final rule, an “antilock brake system” is defined as: A portion of a service brake system that automatically controls the degree of rotational wheel slip during braking by:
60 Fed. Reg. 13256 William E. Washington President Air Brake Systems Inc.
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