Technology At The ATA
Big IT announcements highlight fall conference
John Bendel
Technology Editor
This was the year of the two-character technology advance at the ATA Management Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas. I'll explain in a bit.
This year's exhibitors included technology companies, service providers and equipment makers - but mostly technology companies. The annual ATA meeting has become a premier annual showcase for trucking technology. And it's now something of a tradition for vendors to save significant announcements for the event. This year was no exception.
Now about that two-character thing: T2, 3R and g3 all made their debuts at this year's ATA.
T2 is from Qualcomm Inc. and is part of the T2 Untethered TrailerTRACS Asset Management Solution, which is now available commercially. The system has been in development since Qualcomm left the untethered trailer tracking market in September of 2001, citing uncertainties about the analog cellular service upon which the product was based at that time. The new product, which shares at least part of a name with the old, uses digital cellular as its primary communications mode, with analog cellular as a backup. The company has continued to offer its tethered trailer tracking solution.
The T2 Untethered TrailerTRACS solution is programmable over the air and the solution is already integrated into many of the industry's larger enterprise software systems. T2 Untethered TrailerTRACS has an added auxiliary port for future sensor upgrades as they become available. Schneider National has begun implementing T2 across its fleet of more than 48,000 trailers.
3R comes from Terion Inc., which has a jump on Qualcomm in terms of trailer-tracking units installed and working. At this year's ATA, Terion introduced FleetView 3R, a trailer management system specifically for refrigerated trailers. FleetView 3R combines the latest digital wireless and GPS technologies with Terion's web-based application, designed specifically for operation on a refrigerated trailer.
According to Terion, FleetView 3R performs in the harshest environments, exceeding the stringent SAE-J1455 and NEMA 4 independent standards. The system installs inside the refrigerated cabinet in most cases, allowing installation when the trailer is loaded, and it supports over-the-air system upgrades and enhancements. FleetView 3R uses digital wireless networks, automatically switching among digital and analog cellular options and providing coverage through the U.S. and Canada.
The g3 designation belongs to PeopleNet Communications Inc., which introduced PeopleNet g3, the company's next-generation onboard computer. According to PeopleNet, the g3 computer communicates over multiple wireless networks - digital and analog. But it gets the most bang for the buck on a new so-called 3G (for third generation) digital network with a big increase in bandwidth over older cellular offerings.
PeopleNet's g3 includes a USB (Universal Serial Bus) 2.0 port like those found on most computers, which will enable connection to various ancillary devices including multi-media message displays and handhelds, in-cab scanners and printers, Wi-Fi access points, biometric scanners and more. The new device incorporates Wide Area Augmentation System technology that enhances the accuracy of GPS, which - when combined with all that bandwidth - will provide powerful tools to transportation application developers and eventually even in-cab entertainment for drivers.
NEXTEL LOOKS TO TRUCKLOAD<
In other notable news from ATA, Nextel Communications is taking aim at the truckload sector.
Nextel's walkie-talkie-style service has long been popular with local, mostly private fleets. The company offers a number of operations software packages for commercial customers, including local and regional fleets. Last year, the company expanded its walkie-talkie or push-to-talk service across the continent. Now, you'll occasionally see a driver in a truckstop talking walkie-talkie style with a dispatcher on the other side of the country.
At this year's ATA, Nextel took the next step, offering truckload software that integrates with its unique wireless technology. That software is Prophesy Transportation Software's DispatchSeries application.
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