Spring 2006

This year's CV Show at the NEC saw a flock of new launches in the truck telematics market

Telematics suppliers still think there is plenty of demand from the commercial vehicle market, to judge from their displays at this year's CV Show.

There were admittedly fewer exhibitors of telematics and mobile fleet management products this year, possibly reflecting a degree of consolidation in the market. There has also perhaps been a recognition among some of the more general fleet management tracking specialists that tracking truck fleets is a rather specialised area.

However, the suppliers that were on hand had evidently concluded there were still plenty of sales opportunities out there, providing they could package the product in a way that suited operators.

 

The sector seems to be dividing into distinct areas. Smaller fleets want a Web-based integrated package, it seems, and so do those who want to add greater mobility or real-time capability to legacy systems without having to go back to square one. Then there are companies who want a low-cost solution for tracking unpowered assets. As a result, the show reflected plenty of interest in Web-based reporting systems, along with a renewed focus on real-time reporting and communication with the driver, plus navigation aids.

Digicore has added two applications to its C-track vehicle management application. Job-Go allocates jobs in real time to vehicles away from base. The software identifies the most suitable vehicle for the job, using parameters that include distance, work-load and remaining working time.

Drivers are contacted via SMS message and can accept or reject the job. The on-board device (a PDA or handheld computer) provides navigation to the destination. Workflow gives managers an overall view of fleet activity, including vehicle status and resource availability, in real time.

Tracker repots that sales of its Web-based Tracker Reporter have gone up by 150 per cent in the past 18 months. Stuart Brunger, national corporate sales manager, believes that one of the most appealing features is the alert function, which allows managers to create alerts for events such as over-speeding, idling and unexpected movements, and be notified by SMS text. Reporter can hold up to 2,000 events per vehicle - equivalent to about 30 days' worth of data. The data is collected by Tracker and accessed by operators from Tracker's secure Web site.

Paragon Software Systems focused on integration. It showed its Fleet Controller real-time tracking and reporting software, highlighting that fact that it can be seamlessly integrated with tracking systems from suppliers such as including Cybit, Masternaut, Minorplanet, Siemens VDO and Tracker. All that is needed is to add a Fleet Controller PC with an Internet connection.

Bluecom specialises in scalable, modular mobile data solutions that integrate into existing back-office systems or third-party applications. Its latest partnership is with 360 Technologies, and enables it to offer dynamic real-time scheduling.

Another trend is to pay for tracking and reporting services on a per-vehicle per-week or per-month basis. That keeps capital costs down and presents the ROI in terms the operator can understand. Often the fuel consumption reduction from monitoring driver activity will do that.

Tiss has regrouped is tracking products into three levels: bronze, silver and gold, all of which are Web-based applications. Bronze is for routine asset tracking of unpowered assets such as trailers, pallets and plant. It costs £1.91 per week. To check on the asset location you simply click on the map and the "get position" tab. You can do a search by depot or by fleet, which shows all the vehicles and how long it was since they were last moved. You only pay the communications charge when you "ping" the vehicle to locate it.

Silver tracking costs £5 per vehicle per week and provides an audit trail of events, allowing you to set up geofences to alert managers should a vehicle move, or when it arrives. You can also download reports on activity and utilisation.

The Gold level costs £6 per week and is configurable to customer needs. It can be integrated with vehicle routing and scheduling and include proof of delivery notifications. Additional alerts include door open and temperature alarms, speeding and route deviation and heavy braking. There is a panic button for drivers. Vehicle updates are done every 15 minutes, and the screen display has icons for location and status of each vehicle in the fleet.

The latest version of Chevin Computers' web-based Fleetwave vehicle management system includes a risk-assessment module that can be used to identify high-risk drivers. Chevin says the module was developed following requests from its fleet advisory panel, who stressed the need for fleet managers to be able to carry out risk assessments as an integrated part of their management systems. PDAs have been added to the in-cab terminals that Fleetwave data can be sent to.

For operations such as road sweeping and gritting, a GPS position fix may not give managers sufficient control over activities. Hence Masternaut's new turn-turn-by-turn tracking system, developed for operations such as road-gritting, street cleansing and vehicle-based asset surveying. The system logs extra data by sensing any turn of the steering wheel greater than 15 degrees. This ensures the beginning and ends of streets are accurately mapped, allowing councils to check that activities are being carried out thoroughly. The application even records if brushes on a vehicle are up or down on a street sweeper, and whether grit is actually being dispensed. Reports are downloaded from the Masternaut Web site.

CMS developed its SupaTrak GPS/GPRS-based tracking systems using an open wireless platform - which, it says, allows different modules to be added to the basic GPS/GPRS tracking application. Data is compressed to reduce GPRS costs, and CMS handles the GPRS session management to ensure data arrives at its destination.

Vehicles equipped with SupaTrak get a position update every minute. The Web-based browser provides unlimited access and a comprehensive reporting facility that includes start/stop and historic "snail-trail" functions.

SupaTrak can be upgraded to include a Mobile Worker job scheduling application and to capture vehicle CANbus data to monitor driving styles and vehicle performance.

There was evidence at show that awareness of duty-of-care obligations towards mobile workers is moving up the agenda. Wire3 introduced TracPac, a personal tracking device that combines GSM SIM card, GPS modem, holder, antenna and battery in a waterproof envelope.

It can be worn either underneath or on top of clothing.

MapMechanics says that many operators want an integrated solution that allows them to manage scheduling and servicing delivery as well as track vehicles, which the MapMechanics Mobile application is designed to do. The software now includes a dataset of 5,100 bridge heights in the UK including imperial and metric heights, along with the road number, the relevant authority and bridge owner, and the obstruction type.

TomTom is best known for its consumer satnav products, but is moving into the fleet management area with the TomTom WORK. This combines personal navigation solution with tracking and tracing technology, two-way communication and reporting capabilities. Users pay around £1.20 per day.

TomTom has also developed TomTomLink, a compact GPS/GPRS unit which is placed inside the vehicle and periodically uploads data to the TomTom Webfleet Internet site.

Skillweb has added a mapping and routing module, Route Finder, to its 2020ePOD proof of delivery system. The system uses ViaMichelin Internet-based maps, and aims to help drivers negotiate the last mile of each drop, and guide new drivers over established routes. Using Internet-based data for the maps and routes reduces the specification of he handheld device, says Skillweb, and there is no need to refresh the map data for each device.

2020 ePOD runs on any Windows CE-based handheld device. Delivery schedules are downloaded to the handheld via GPRS. The driver can then view a map showing the optimal route to the next destination, together with customer name and delivery address.