Xora Seeks Permission To Offer New HOS Log System
Mobile communications provider Xora Inc. is asking the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for permission to test a new hours of service tracking system that uses global positioning linked to a cellular telephone.
Xora is billing its DOT Logs system as an easy, low-cost way to automate driver log-keeping.
Ananth Rani, vice president of products and services, explained that a chip in the Nextel phone communicates with a federal positioning satellite every two minutes, providing location, speed, miles driven, date and time of day. The information is sent to a Xora server that formats it into a log that the driver or an enforcement official can view on the phone, and that the dispatcher can view from the carrier home office.
Xora needs an exemption from the FMCSA rule that requires onboard recorders to be "integrally synchronized" with the truck. Rani said that increased frequency and accuracy of Global Positioning System readings make it possible to provide required HOS information without a link to the truck's engine.
The cost of the service includes a $24.99 one-time set-up charge, and a monthly fee of $21.99. That would be on top of the purchase price of the phone, typically around $150, and the monthly $9.99 Nextel service fee, Rani said.
As HDT went to press the safety agency had not responded to Xora's request, but Washington transportation attorney Ken Siegel said he expected agency action at any time.
Xora is based in Mountain View, Calif., and has product development facilities in Bangalore, India. Founded in 1999, it provides cellphone based location tracking services for a variety of businesses, according to its web site (www.xora.com). Among its customers are private carrier U.S. Foodservice, which uses a product that tracks employee time sheets and locations.
—Oliver B. Patton, Washington Editor
