The information highway goes off-road

Initially, it seemed as though telematics systems were associated solely with on-highway truck fleets so fleet managers could keep track of the location and progress of their employees and shipments. While that may be where telematics started, the technology has come a long way and has adapted to off-highway equipment applications in industries like agriculture, construction, mining and military.

Beyond simply tracking a machines location, telematics technology is hooked into the machine’s diagnostic systems. Now, a super-sized mining dump truck can avoid collisions due to blind spots, an agricultural sprayer can know exactly where it just sprayed pesticides so as not to over-saturate a crop, and a heavy-duty wheel loader can tell its operator what maintenance work it needs before it becomes a problem.

Jeff Warner, product manager for PreCise MRM (a collaboration between FORCE America and Preco Electronics, recently acquired by FORCE) agrees that “telematics solutions tend to bias toward on-road. First, the off-highway market is perceived to be smaller than on-road with the number of over-the-road trucks and local fleet vehicles comparatively much larger. Second, the off-highway market is more demanding on hardware as the environment is more severe and the requirements are more difficult to meet.”

Regardless of the challenges, it seemed as though every month this year had an announcement of a new telematics system technology, company partnership or offering.

January 28, 2009

TruckWeight releases FleetLink

The beginning of the year opened with TruckWeight Inc., Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, introducing FleetLink, a system which gives fleet managers the ability to electronically capture and communicate axle-weight data generated by the company’s Smart Scale wireless scale for commercial vehicles.

The sensors of the Smart Scale monitor the subtle changes in the air-ride or mechanical spring suspension, then sends the data elsewhere — whether it is to a computer, cell phone or onboard communications device.

Peter Panagapko, president of TruckWeight, explained that normally it was up to the driver of the truck to manually interpret, log and report the data that FleetLink has now taken over. “Dispatchers and fleet managers can monitor payload capacity while the truck is in the field, eliminating the latency and errors associated with paper-based reporting,” he says.

January 29, 2009

Topcon releases Tierra

The next day, Topcon Positioning Systems Inc. (TPS), Livermore, CA, released Topcon Tierra, a web-based remote asset management telematics solution that maximizes efficiency, safety, and profits. The system can be used for surveying and machine control in construction, mining and agriculture.

“Topcon Tierra takes information available from any piece of machinery — regardless of age, make or model, analog or digital — and sets up two-way communications, transmitting data about the tracking or operation of the vehicle, plus behavioral aspects of the machines,” says Mark Bittner, senior vice president and general manager for Topcon’s Telematics Business Unit.

Comparisons between vehicle and operator performance can be drawn based on collected and organized data, along with basic reports such as path run, engine-on time and productivity.

Equipment diagnostics, machine metrics and performance statistics are readily available to both the equipment operator and project manager. The Tierra system ensures that each machine is running efficiently and allows for preventative maintenance to keep equipment running longer, helping the bottom line.

March 16, 2009

AGCO picks Tierra exclusively

Topcon soon thereafter announced that AGCO Corp. Duluth, GA, had selected its Topcon Tierra telematics system as its sole global telematics provider.