Clarios brings AI to idle management for heavy trucks

The predominant low-voltage battery maker Clarios announced that IdleLess, a sensor-and-AI-driven system for heavy-duty trucks that it says can save up to $3,300 per year per truck and reduce CO2 emissions by up to 8.6 metric tons per year, is commercially available in the United States and Canada.

Long-haul Class 8 trucks spend an enormous amount of time idling. Much of this time occurs when a driver is on rest at a truck stop or during loading/unloading at warehouses. Operators keep the truck running to power the air-conditioning and other systems without draining the four or more 12V batteries too much, which would prevent them from being able to start their diesel engines. IdleLess addresses that and is not the type of automatic start-stop system that has drawn the ire of truck operators and passenger-vehicle drivers, who routinely disable such systems.