Germany - JOST-Werke Deutschland GmbH (JOST) in Neu-Isenburg, a company world renowned in the truck and trailer components markets, announced its entry into the passenger transport sector at Busworld this month, with its own design of articulation system for articulated city buses.

Called BusLink, the new articulation pusher bus system, JOST explained, regulates the transmission of the thrust force from the drive axle of the rear vehicle to the front vehicle safely and efficiently preventing the rear of the vehicle from lurching or breaking away. The two vehicle elements are connected via an articulated swivel joint and an elastomer-coated bellow.

Jost Articulated Bus System called JOST BusLink

JOST explained that the articulated turntable controller (ATC) is a core element of the system; it controls two hydraulic proportional damper cylinders and prevents the vehicle from buckling and swerving uncontrollably. A special feature of the ATC is the individual parameterisation of the input and output variables according to the requirements of the bus manufacturer. The articulated front bearings, which cushion the pitching and rolling movements of the bus chassis, can also be adapted to the requirements of the driving dynamics.

Jost’s Articulated Turntable Controller (ATC)

Roland Ramirez, Director Program Management Global BusLink at JOST said that the development of the articulated swivel joint had drawn on decades of experience in welded constructions in the commercial vehicle industry. The benefits of being welded instead of cast, Ramirez explained, is that the articulation system is more easily and flexible to adapt to specific customer requirements , for example to be weight-optimised to increase the payload of the bus significantly. The articulation itself uses a tried-and-tested JOST ball bearing turntable, the first of which JOST developed in 1952. The energy forces of the rear chassis are controlled by the proportional damping cylinders and the ATC. . The energy line management can be routed through the top, the sides or centrally through the articulation depending on the customer’s bus specification. A special high-voltage cable solution makes the system run seamlessly for electric bus applications. The BusLink articulated bus system can be customised and is particularly suitable for the requirements of electric buses.

Ramirez said that the launch date of BusLink in Europe with an unnamed large European OEM was set for the end of 2025. BusLink is to be made at its state-of-the-art plant in Nowa Sól, North Poland, where it has robotic welding and KTL treatment facilities for manufacturing its fifth wheels, trailer axles and landing legs.

Development of the BusLink for Europe has been spurred on by development of another articulation system for BRT systems in Latin America. In Brazil, JOST Brasil Ltda at Fenatran 2022 in November last year announced its entry into the articulated bus system market with the launch of the JOST BusLink Articulation system. JOST said at the time the new solution was already being used by Mercedes-Benz do Brasil in Brazil and marked JOST's entry into a new market segment. Ramirez said the bus articulation had been developed specifically for the South American markets at the request of the OEM. Ramirez also pointed out that it had taken 5 years from initial discussions to nomination in 2017 and subsequent series production with the OEM in Brazil. One of the main reasons for its development was so that it could be produced locally in Brazil with high levels of localisation to ensure cost-price competitiveness. The system is built at its new JV facility with the Randon Group in Campinas.

About BusLink and JOST, Ramirez said: “With BusLink, we are entering new industry territory. In Brazil, the system has already been in use in Mercedes-Benz do Brasil buses since 2022. We are pleased to be able to demonstrate our comprehensive expertise in commercial vehicles for buses as well. It was a logical step to take. The innovative features of our transport and agriculture solutions, such as weight savings, flexibility, service-friendliness and high-tech materials can be excellently transferred to bus systems.”