Fifth Avenue South LLC

Cruise Control Has Come a Long Way

Cruise control, which is also sometimes known as speed control or auto cruise, is a system that moderates the speed of a car. Consisting of a servomechanism that takes control over the vehicle's throttle, cruise control provides a steady speed set by the driver.

At Fifth Avenue South LLC, we work around cruise control systems all the time when we repair today's vehicles. Many years ago, cruise control was a special feature on only higher-end cars, but new we see these systems on vehicles here in Anchorage, AK on a daily basis.

Speed control was prevalent in vehicles way back in 1900 when carmakers such as Wilson-Pilcher and Peerless installed them. Peerless touted the fact that their system would "maintain speed whether up hill or down".

Many years before, the technology was implemented by James Watt and Matthew Boulton in 1788 to control their steam engines.

Modern cruise control was invented in 1948 by Ralph Teetor. His concept was born out of the frustration of riding in a car driven by his attorney who kept accelerating and slowing down as he talked. The first vehicle with Teetor's system was the 1958 Imperial, where the device that looked like a speed dial on the dashboard.  This system quickly calculated the ground speed based on driveshaft rotations and used a bi-directional screw-drive electric motor to vary throttle position as required.

The evolution of cruise control continued when in 1950  a U.S. Patent for a "Constant Speed Regulator" was filed by M-Sgt Frank J. Riley. He installed his version of cruise control in his own vehicle in 1948. Even though he had a patent, Riley was not able to collect royalties from his invention.

In 1965, American Motors (AMC) unveiled a low-priced automatic speed control for its larger cars with automatic transmissions. The AMC "Cruise-Command" system was engaged by a push-button once the selected speed was reached and then the throttle position was regulated by a vacuum control directly from the speedometer cable rather than a separate dial positioned on the dashboard.

In 1968, Daniel Aaron Wisner designed "Automotive Electronic Cruise Control" while he was employed as an engineer for RCA's Industrial and Automation Systems Division in Plymouth, MI.

Right after the 1973 oil crisis and rising fuel prices, cruise control became more popular in the U.S. Consumers liked it, because cruise control can save gas by avoiding surges that burn more fuel.  In 1974, AMC, GM, and Chrysler began featuring cruise control systems on their card and priced them at $60-$70.  

So, the next time you're cruising on down that road and using your cruise control to maintain an even speed, give much respect to the inventors that made this convenient system a reality many years ago.

Sources: Wikipedia, Yahoo and AOL