New enforcement regulations from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration allow Hunter's B400T Brake Tester to be used to test brake compliance without a follow-up physical inspection to take non-complying vehicles out of service.

In 30 seconds, the B400T determines whether a vehicle can continue to its destination or should be be taken out of service for further inspection and repair.

The B400T uses a PC-based system with Hunter's exclusive WinSI software to measure brake forces and vehicle weight at each wheel on multi-axle vehicles such as tractors and semi-trailers, tandem-axle tractors, buses and two-axle vehicles, including passenger cars and light trucks. Single-, tandem- and triple-axle vehicles can be tested with full loads.

To perform the test, a technician drives the vehicle onto the tester plates and applies the brakes. The precision load cells within the plates automatically measure a variety of brake performance conditions, which are then digitally transferred to the computer, analyzed and displayed on the monitor in color-coded charts.

The B400T identifies many conditions that affect brake performance:
• Axle-to-Axle Imbalance: Tests unequal brake performance comparing axles to determine if one would lock up first causing a loss of steering control or jackknife.
• Left-to-Right Imbalance: Tests unequal brake performance comparing each side of the vehicle to find a pull and potential to skid.
• Static Weight, Dynamic Weight and Weight Shift: A measurement of weight of the vehicle and
load at a stop, weight of the vehicle and load when braking and rear-to-front weight shift when braking.
• Rollover Propensity: With the various weight measurements, the software can determine the
vehicle's center of gravity and potential of rollover.
• Parking or Emergency Brake: A test for both mechanical brakes on straight trucks and spring brakes on air-brake systems.

More info: www.hunter.com