DETROIT – Stepping on the brakes. Hitting the accelerator.
Turning the steering wheel. Motorists of the future might have
little tolerance for such old-fashioned ways of operating their
cars, thanks to the emerging drive-by-wire technology. In most
cars, it takes an assortment of cables, fluids and mechanical
gizmos to translate what the driver does into what the car does.
Drive-by-wire, already used widely in planes, where it is known
as fly-by-wire, means employing electronics, rather than
mechanical and hydraulic systems, to operate a vehicle. Steering
columns and brake lines give way to sensors and actuators.
Steering wheels can be replaced with joysticks or driver control
units and human-machine interfaces. SKF, a Swedish auto supplier
known best for making bearings and seals, is one of the
companies trying for a piece of the market. Among the others are
Delphi, Siemens VDO Automotive and Robert Bosch. SKF has placed
drive-by-wire technology in several prototype vehicles,
including the fuel-cell-powered