Husco GenSteer Steer-by-Wire Reduces Design Costs and Complexity
Husco has introduced its GenSteer steer-by-wire (SbW) technology for mobile off-highway machines. It was developed to overcome some of the challenges associated with other SbW systems currently in the market, particularly those related to design cost and complexity.
As Ben Holter, Product Director at Husco, explains in this interview with Power & Motion, most SbW systems currently in the market use several electronic controllers, sensors and other components to ensure safety. However, all those components add cost and design challenges in terms of determining how best to integrate them into often space-constrained machine designs.
Although many OEMs and their customers are interested in using SbW systems, these factors have hampered widespread adoption of the technology in on- and off-road applications.
Husco will unveil its GenSteer steer-by-wire technology at CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2026, one of the largest events for the construction industry. Attendees can see the system on display at Husco's booth S81415 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center.
GenSteer has also been named a finalist for the show's Next Level Awards. You can find this and other news related to the show on our dedicated CONEXPO 2026 page
GenSteer, on the other hand, eliminates redundant electronics and backup systems to reduce costs and complexity. If a fault occurs, Husco’s system instantly switches to operator-powered control to ensure safety.
“In normal operation, we do the same thing every other steer-by-wire solution can do - we give force feedback to the operator through a motor, and we're able to make it feel like a car or a combine or a tractor or a wheel loader,” explained Holter. “But if something were to fail…we go into a backup mode where we harness that operator power with the same motor we use for force feedback…but we invert the equation to where now we take that power from the operator to turn the hydraulic valve which turns the steering.
“Now we've got a fail-functional solution without extra systems and extra redundancy,” he continued. “It is something the operator can trust and doesn’t require all the ancillary parts other solutions require.”
Watch our interview with Holter above to learn more about what prompted Husco’s development of the GenSteer technology and the benefits he sees it offering to mobile equipment manufacturers interested in adopting steer-by-wire technology.
About the Author
Sara Jensen
Executive Editor, Power & Motion
Sara Jensen is executive editor of Power & Motion, directing expanded coverage into the modern fluid power space, as well as mechatronic and smart technologies. She has over 15 years of publishing experience. Prior to Power & Motion she spent 11 years with a trade publication for engineers of heavy-duty equipment, the last 3 of which were as the editor and brand lead. Over the course of her time in the B2B industry, Sara has gained an extensive knowledge of various heavy-duty equipment industries — including construction, agriculture, mining and on-road trucks —along with the systems and market trends which impact them such as fluid power and electronic motion control technologies.
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