ID: nht95-6.36

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 5, 1995

FROM: John Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Angela Mickalide -- Program Director, National SAFE KIDS Campaign

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 7/21/95 LETTER FROM HEATHER PAUL TO PATRICIA BRESLIN

TEXT: Dear Dr. Mickalide:

Thank you for your letter asking about the child restraint registration form required by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 213, Child Restraint Systems. You ask whether a child restraint manufacturer could make certain modifications to the registration form to help SAFE KIDS obtain sociodemographic and other information about the families to whom SAFE KIDS will be distributing child seats. As explained below, Standard 213 does not permit the modifications, but does permit an alternative approach.

You explain in your letter that SAFE KIDS and its partners will be providing approximately 38,000 child seats to needy families through distribution sites. You would like to collect information about the recipient families' sociodemographic profile and other factors, by having the restraint manufacturer add questions to the child seat registration form. Distribution site coordinators would mail the completed forms to the manufacturer, who would then tabulate the data for SAFE KIDS' research purposes.

The registration form you ask about is part of an owner registration program that NHTSA established to improve the effectiveness of manufacturer recall campaigns. The form, required by S 5.8 of Standard 213, is standardized in appearance, and may not contain other material such as questions concerning the sociodemographic characteristics of the child restraint owners. A particular problem with such questions is that their presence on the registration form might cause some consumers to resist providing the information, or to conclude that the form was for warranty purposes rather than for safety recalls. As a result, they might not return the card.

While we understand that you would like to modify the registration form only for the purposes of your distribution program, unfortunately we lack the authority to grant a special exemption for your situation.

However, Standard 213 does permit an alternative that you suggested. In a telephone conversation with Ms. Deirdre Fujita of my staff, you said that you are considering asking the manufacturer to place the questions on a separate form and to attach that form to the child seat. That approach is fine. The registration form has to be attached to the child seat to ensure that owners will notice the form. While we want manufacturers to limit what additional materials they attach to child seats (to ensure that attachments do not distract from the form), your supplemental form should not cause a problem since your coordinators will be involved with registering the owners. Thus, there is no risk that the registration form will go unnoticed and uncompleted.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to call Ms. Fujita at (202) 366-2992.

Best wishes for success in your distribution program.

ID: nht95-6.37

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 6, 1995

FROM: Earl Eisnhart -- Vice President, National Private Truck Council; Larry W. Strawhorn -- Vice President - Engineering, American Trucking Associations

TO: John G. Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 10/30/95 LETTER FROM JOHN WOMACK TO LARRY W. STRAWHORN (A43; STD. 121)

TEXT: Dear Mr. Womack:

This letter is a request for an interpretation of Section 5.2.3.3, Antilock Malfunction Indicator, of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 121, Air Brake Systems, which requires an antilock malfunction indicator lamp to be mounted on trailers during an eight year transition period. This section reads (second sentence emphasized):

"S5.2.3.3 Antilock Malfunction Indicator. Each trailer (including trailer converter dolly) manufactured on or after March 1, 1998 and before March 1, 2006 shall be equipped with a lamp indicating a malfunction of a trailer's antilock brake system. Such a lamp shall remain activated as long as the malfunction exists whenever power is supplied to the antilock brake system. The display shall be visible within the driver's forward field of view through the rearview mirror(s), and shall be visible once the malfunction is present and power is provided to the system."

Since this requirement does not specify a specific "activation pattern", we interpret that the agency expects the industry itself to standardize on an activation pattern. This is consistent with the agency's position in Section 5.1.6.3, Antilock Power Circuit for Towed Vehicles, where NHTSA is relying on the industry to determine the most effective way to provide separate power to trailer antilock systems.

Section 5.1.6.2, Antilock Malfunction Circuit and Signal, which requires in-cab mounted malfunction lamps for towing and towed vehicle(s) antilock systems does not specify an actuation pattern for malfunction lamps on powered vehicles either. However, the section in the rule preamble which discusses the in-cab malfunction lamp on powered vehicles, Activation Protocol for Malfunction Indicators (page 13246 Federal Register/Vol. 60, No. 47), makes it clear that NHTSA wants the activation pattern for truck/tractor in-cab lamps to be such that "upon a failure, the lamp would activate and provide a continuous yellow signal" and would "have a continuously burning lamp in response to a malfunction." This preamble section does not discuss trailer mounted malfunction lamps.

The special SAE ABS task force, which was established last April to develop, or modify, standards and recommended practices in areas of vehicle design and performance affected by the new antilock requirements of FMVSS 121, has developed a recommendation for trailer mounted malfunction lamps which most effectively meets the needs for the lamp.

Among the task force's recommendations is one that the lamp activation pattern should be such that the lamp bulb be ON when the antilock system is working properly and OFF when a malfunction exists, the antilock system is not getting electrical power, or the lamp bulb is burnt out.

Adoption of this trailer malfunction lamp activation pattern for trailers during the eight year transition period provides significant safety advantages including:

(1) The lamp activation pattern becomes a fail safe pattern, i.e., it will signal an inoperative antilock system even when the system is not receiving electrical power or the lamp bulb is burnt out. A lamp system which activates by turning the lamp ON when there is a malfunction will not warn of antilock failures under these conditions.

(2) The recommended activation pattern fits in with pre-trip walk-around and other trailer inspections. In walk-around inspections, where drivers turn ON all the lamps including the stop lamps (brakes applied through use of the trailer hand valve, trailer air supply valve, stick prop, etc.) and then walk around the vehicle to detect if any lamps (this would include the antilock lamp) are not burning. This inspection is simpler and more reliable if the driver doesn't have to go through a lamp check procedure first. The same is also true when mechanics and officials inspect the trailer.

We respectively request that you advise us as soon as possible Whether our interpretation of Section 5.2.3.3, i.e., does not require a specific lamp activation pattern, is correct. New tractors must start complying with the new antilock system requirements in 18 months. In order for tractor manufacturers to efficiently design their vehicles to accommodate trailer antilock system malfunction signals, they need to know the standard protocol for these signals soon. In order for antilock manufacturers to standardize the protocol, they need to know if our interpretation is correct.

Please contact us if there is a need for further information.

ID: nht95-6.38

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 6, 1995

FROM: Earl Eisenhart -- Vice President, National Private Truck Council; Larry W. Strawhorn -- Vice President - Engineering, American Trucking Associations

TO: John G. Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 11/17/95 LETTER FROM Samuel J. Dubbin to Larry W. Strawhorn (A43; Std. 121)

TEXT: Dear Mr. Womack:

This letter is a request for an interpretation of the phrase "separate electrical circuit" in Section 5.1.6.3 Antilock Power Circuit for Towed Vehicles of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 121, Air Brake Systems, which states:

"Each truck tractor manufactured on or after March 1, 1997 and each single unit vehicle manufactured on or after March 1, 1998 that is equipped to tow another air-braked vehicle shall be equipped with one or more separate electrical circuits, specifically provided to power the antilock system on the towed vehicle(s). Such a circuit shall be adequate to enable the antilock system on each towed vehicle to be fully operable."

Our interpretation is that the phrase "separate electrical circuit" allows the continued use of the single SAE J560 connector if one of the seven pins provides full-time power for the ABS. It is also our interpretation that the ABS malfunction signal can be multiplexed on the power circuit or any other circuit of the SAE J560 connector and that the other trailer devices can be powered off the circuit as long as the performance required by the last sentence of Section 5.1.6....3 is achieved, i.e., the circuit is adequate to enable the antilock system on each towed vehicle to be fully operable.

The bases for our interpretation are:

We interpret separate to mean full-time power is supplied to the ABS. The preamble appears to use terms continuous, dedicated, full-time and separate interchangeably but fails to define these terms. In contrast, we interpret shared to mean that the power is supplied only when switched ON by some means, e.g., turn signal switch, light switch, brake pedal, etc. The preamble (FR60-47, p13250) states that "The agency further notes that requiring that trailer ABSs receive "full-time power will not prohibit multiplexing." Therefore, we interpret that the ABS malfunction signal could be multiplexed on the power circuit. We further interpret that other trailer devices could also be powered through this circuit if they were automatically switched OFF if the trailer is equipped with an ABS, except when the vehicle is stationary. This would require that the trailer be capable of signalling the tractor that it has an ABS. The tractor would

have to be capable of receiving that signal and automatically deactivating the power to other trailer-mounted devices that now recieve power through the auxiliary pin. This solution would protect these devices from being continually powered if the trailer was equipped with an ABS, yet would still allow for the provision of power when the combination was not moving. The majority of today's applications for powering trailer equipment through the auxiliary pin, only require power when the vehicle is stationary.

Our interpretation of the word circuit as used in FMVSS 121 is that it refers to a single conductor between the towing and towed vehicle(s). This interpretation is consistent with preamble statements and SAE's commone use of the term. For examples, Notice 3 of Docket 88-18 (FR57-134, p30911) states, "The stop lamp circuit is powered through one of the pins on a seven-pin connector" and in SAE Standard J560, Seven Conductor Electrical Connector for Truck-Trailer Jumper Cable, in Sectino 6.4 defines the function and color code each of the seven pins, each of which is defined as a circuit. With the understanding that a circuit refers to one conductor between towing and towed vehicle, one can comply with Section 5.1.6.3 without having to provide a separate ground return fro the circuit to provide full-time power to towed vehicle ABS.

Utilizing a single ground on vehicles is considered to be good engineering practice since multiple grounds can cause EMI problems and ground loops which have in the past resulted on severe damage to vehicle electrical systems and even caused numerous fires. Without the need to provide a separate ground circuit, vehicle/antilock suppliers have the flexibility needed to provide the desired level of trailer antilock power in the most efficient method.

Because of the need to finalize design decisions, especially for truck-tractor manufacturers who must meet the requirements of the final rule on March 1, 1997, we would appreciate an early answer to this request.

Please contact us if there is a need for further information.

Sincerely

ID: nht95-6.39

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 11, 1995

FROM: John Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Michael A. Knappo

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO: 7/01/95 (EST.) LETTER FROM MICHAEL A. NAPPO TO NHTSA CHIEF COUNSEL; 6/8/93 LETTER FROM JOHN WOMACK TO SHAWN SHIEH; 5/10/91 AND 3/21/91 LETTERS FROM PAUL JACKSON RICE TO CHRIS LAWRENCE; 8/17/89 LETTER FROM STEPHEN P. WOOD TO ALAN S. ELDAHR; 7/8/85 LETTER FROM JEFFREY R. MILLER TO DON BENFIELD (STD. 205)

TEXT: Dear Mr. Knappo:

This is in response to your letter regarding a product that you wish to offer for sale in the near future. You have asked for information on how this product might be affected by local and national laws.

According to your letter, "Auto Ad" is a portable advertising unit that is designed with a flexible screen that can be secured to a window with suction cups. The screen is illuminated with LEDs, controlled by a key pad mounted close to the driver. The unit will run off power from the car battery through the cigarette lighter, or "hardwired in." The diagram you enclosed shows "Auto Ad" mounted in the rear side window of a car and a van.

While we do not have information about State or local laws, I am enclosing copies of several letters we have issued in recent years concerning the applicability of Federal law to products which appear to be similar to yours (addressed to Mr. Shawn Shieh, dated June 8, 1993; Mr. Chris Lawrence, dated May 10 and March 21, 1991, Mr. Alan Eldahr, dated August 17, 1989, and Mr. Don Benfield, dated July 8, 1985).

I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions, you may call Taylor Vinson of this Office (202-366-5263).

Enclosures

ID: nht95-6.4

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: August 8, 1995

FROM: Bryan Couch -- Systems Zone Leader, Motor Coach Industries

TO: Office of Chief Council, NHTSA

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 08/28/95 LETTER FROM JOHN WOMACK TO BRYAN COUCH (REDBOOK 2; STD. 108)

TEXT: Dear Chief Council:

Please find enclosed preliminary drawing showing our proposed location for the front marker lamp and supplementary front marker lamp. We are requesting that you please critique this drawing and respond with your approval, or concerns.

The lamp identified as the front marker lamp will meet all FMVSS photometry requirements, and in our opinion is placed as far forward as practicable on this vehicle. The lamp identified as supplementary will not meet the 45 degrees rearward photometry requirement due to the shape of the vehicle.

Please accept our advance thank you for your input and we look forward to receiving your response.

(Drawing Omitted.)

ID: nht95-6.40

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 14, 1995

FROM: John Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Charles de Saint Martin -- Project Manager, The Fairchild Corporation

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 8/10/95 LETTER FROM CHARLES DE SAINT MARTIN TO JOHN WOMACK

TEXT: Dear Mr. de Saint Martin:

This replies to your letter of August 10, 1995, with reference to "Securiflash". Taylor Vinson of this Office phoned you on August 21 for a clarification.

We understand that, in the event of a deceleration of 0.8 g, such as caused by emergency braking, "Securiflash" automatically activates a vehicle's hazard warning system lamps; after 5 seconds, the lamps go off.

Enclosed is a copy of a letter that we sent Saline Electronics on April 24, 1995, which provides our views that a decleration system that operates through the hazard warning system is impermissible under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108.

However, we are interested in your remark that the product "was developed after different European studies showed that 60 percent of rear end collisions would be avoided if the brakes had been applied one second earlier." We are unaware of such studies, and would like to receive copies of them so that the agency may enhance its knowledge of the conditions under which rear end collisions occur.

If you have any further questions, please call Taylor Vinson at (202) 366-5263.

ID: nht95-6.41

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 14, 1995

FROM: John Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Colleen Grant

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 6/17/95 LETTER FROM COLLEEN GRANT TO NHTSA OFFICE OF THE CHIEF COUNSEL

TEXT: Dear Ms. Grant:

This responds to your letter asking whether your 1974 Chevrolet Blazer is "street-legal." You stated that an official of the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles has questioned whether your vehicle is street-legal because it does not have shoulder belts. According to your letter, the vehicle has a fiberglass removable roof, and was originally manufactured with lap belts. You also stated that inquiries at local dealers indicate that General Motors does not make a shoulder belt for this model "because there is no place to safely mount it."

We assume that you are asking whether your vehicle was originally required to have lap/shoulder belts, because many states require vehicles in use to be equipped with the same kinds of safety belts that were required by the Federal government for the vehicles when new. As discussed below, your vehicle was not originally required to have shoulder belts, but was required to have at least lap belts at each seating position.

By way of background information, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is authorized to issue safety standards for new motor vehicles and new motor vehicle equipment. One of the standards we have issued is Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection. This standard specifies, among other things, seat belt requirements for new vehicles.

Standard No. 208 generally required, for model year 1974 vehicles such as your Blazer, either a lap belt or a lap/shoulder belt at each seating position, at the manufacturer's option. Therefore, your vehicle was not originally required to have shoulder belts.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact Edward Glancy of my staff at (202) 366-2992.

ID: nht95-6.42

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 14, 1995

FROM: John Womack -- Acting Chief Counsel; NHTSA

TO: Mr. Bryan G. Nelson -- Director, Health & Transportation Services, Parents in Community Action Inc.

TITLE: NONE

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 6/15/95 LETTER FROM BRYAN G. NELSON TO WALT MYERS

TEXT: Dear Mr. Nelson:

Thank you for your letter asking for confirmation that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends, but does not require, school buses to be yellow.

Your understanding is correct. NHTSA's recommendation that school buses be painted yellow is found in Highway Safety Program Guideline 17, "Pupil Transportation Safety" (copy enclosed). Guideline 17 consists of recommendations for State pupil transportation safety programs. Guideline 17 will affect the operation of school buses in your area only if it has been adopted by your State or local officials.

We wish to note, however, that there are safety reasons behind Guideline 17's recommendation for the uniform school bus color. Motorists associate the yellow color with school buses, and quickly recognize that a yellow bus is transporting school children. The yellow color is a signal to motorists to be especially alert around the vehicles, particularly when the buses are loading and unloading children. For these reasons, NHTSA believes all school buses should be yellow.

We also want to highlight for your information that Guideline 17 is different from NHTSA's school bus safety standards, which by Federal law apply to all new school buses, regardless of State action. The school bus safety standards require new school buses to have safety systems such as energy-absorbing seats, school bus lamps, stop arms, and improved emergency exits and rearview mirrors. These requirements apply to all new school buses, no matter what the States have done to adopt them. The safety record of school buses has improved in the years since buses began to meet the school bus safety standards.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have further questions, please contact Ms. Deirdre Fujita of my staff at (202) 366-2992.

ID: nht95-6.43

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 18, 1995

FROM: Orlando Ferreira -- Orion Bus Industries Ltd.

TO: J. Medlin -- FTA

TITLE: Urban Bus, GVWR more than 10,000 LBS For NYCTA

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 10/25/95 LETTER FROM JOHN WOMACK TO ORLANDO FERREIRA (A43; REDBOOK 2; STD 101)

TEXT: Dear Mr. Medlin,

This confirms our phone conversation of this afternoon.

The master switch (# 2 on page 12-Drivers side control panel) has 4 positions: Engine stop, Run, Lights and Park.

These positions are engraved so that a back light allow liability in might driving conditions.

My questions is to comply with FMVSS-101-Controls and Display these positions of the master switch have to be illuminated?

If yes, please indicate where this requirement is established?

Thank you in advance [Illegible Words] in this matter.

(Drawings omitted.)

ID: nht95-6.44

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: September 18, 1995

FROM: Yoshiaki MATSUI -- Manager, Automotive Equipment, Stanley Electric Co.

TO: Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TITLE: Accessory Lamp with LEDs

ATTACHMT: Attached to 11/9/95 letter from Samuel J. Dubbin to Yoskiaki Matsui (Std. 108)

TEXT: We, a Japanese manufacturer of automotive lighting devices, are now developing a new type of combination rear lamp that contains red LEDs as accessory lamps. (Please refer to the attached drawing). Would you please advise us about the categorization of this kind of LED accessory lamps.

The operating condition of the LED accessory lamps are as follows,

a) Construction of the combination rear lamp

Tail & stop lamp and turn signal lamp vertically arranged. Red LEDs are disposed along the outer edge of the combination lamp to be used as accessory lamps.

Light source Colour of Colour of the lens light emitted Tail & stop Incandescent bulb Red Red Rear turn Incandescent bulb Amber Amber signal

b) Operating condition for the accessory lamps

When the tail lamp is switched on, the Accessory Lamp A of red LEDs, which is adjacent to the tail lamp, and the Accessory Lamp B of red LEDs, which is adjacent to the rear turn signal lamp, are lit.

Question 1: Red LEDs adjacent to the tail lamp (Accessory Lamp A)

The tail lamp is designed to comply with FMVSS No. 108 using incandescent bulb only, therefore red LEDs need not to be lit for the purpose of the regulatory requirements. Moreover, when the tail lamp and the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp A) are lit together, the intensity of the light emitted from them does not exceed the maximum intensity specified for one lighted section tail lamp.

In such a condition, we believe the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp a) could be regarded as an accessory.

As for the safety, red LEDs (Accessory Lamp A) will contribute to safety by improving the comspicuity of the vehicle, when lit with the tail lamp.

If our interpretation is not acceptable, please inform us of the conditions required in order to regard the red LEDs portion (Accessory Lamp A) as an accessory.

Question 2: Red LEDs adjacent to the rear turn signal lamp (Accessory Lamp B)

Q2-1: As for the red LEDs adjacent to the rear turn signal lamp (Accessory Lamp B), the LEDs emit a red colour light through the amber lens. The lighted section of the red section of the turn signal lamp by a parting rib prepared in the housing, so that the red light from red LEDs will not be emitted through the lens area of the lighted section of the rear turn signal lamp. Therefore, we believe the light from the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp B) will not adversely affect the rear turn signal function even if the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp B) continues to operate when the rear turn signal lamp is operated. Please advise us if our interpretation is acceptable.

Q2-2: If our interpretation described in the above A2-1 is not acceptable, are the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp B) regarded as an accessory provided that the red LEDs (Accessory Lamp B) are turned off during the rear turn signal operation?

Following table shows the lighting condition of Accessory Lamps and our interpretation.

Tail lamp ON Operating Accessory Lamp A ON condition Accessory Lamp B ON OFF Rear turn signal lamp ON OFF ON OFF STANLEY's question Q2-1 Q2-2 Question STANLEY's interpretation OK OK OK OK NHTSA's answer

Your answer will be highly appreciated.

(Drawing omitted.)