GPS: You've Come A Long Way

Back when GPS was still a twinkle in some entrepreneur's eye, my buddy Bill Cramer went to work for an outfit that was developing GPS-based vehicle tracking systems. Alas, the company had trouble getting established in the U.S. because fleet truck drivers didn't like to be tracked, and the antennas mysteriously tended to be broken off a few blocks after leaving the yard. Luckily, the company Bill worked for got a contract in Saudi Arabia where things like breaking your employer's antenna were taken a bit more seriously, if you know what I mean. Needless to say, the tests went well in that country.

But GPS tracking has come a long way since then. For instance, Remote Dynamics, a company that focuses on GPS-based vehicle tracking and fleet management for commercial fleets managers, contractors, and equipment rental companies, has released version 2 of its web-based GPS applications.

REDIview is hardware/software tool (that is, the hardware transponder is attached to the vehicle, and the software that interacts with hardware is back at the office) that has web-based UI, and provides minute-by-minute reporting. Managers can generate all kinds of reports, including trip reports, travel history, cost analysis, time at location, exceptions, and the like.

Features in REDIview 2.0 include:

• Map features. New icons for different types of assets, including color changes associated with the current status of the asset and the direction of travel for mobile assets.
• GeoFence Alert Schedule. Users can configure GeoFence activation based upon the work schedule of the assigned assets, therefore allowing alerts to occur only during specific days/times.
• Alerts. The system can notify users in real time of exceptions including speeding, excessive idling, and geofence crossings. Pop-up alerts with optional sound will direct the manager to the Alerts page where they can review and manage alerts. Alerts may also be sent via email and text message.
• Enhanced Administration Reports. Administrators will now be provided information pertaining to the usage of the system. This includes items such as user status, last login, login duration, and if a user is currently logged in. As with all reports, these can be generated in real-time or automatically scheduled to arrive via email.

Bill can probably attest to this much better than I, but GPS tracking has come a long way over the past few years. System development is easier and the results are more sophisticated. And you don't have to go to the Middle East to find this out.

There's also more money around these days, when it comes to GPS. At least the case with the news that Nokia is buying U.S. navigation-software maker Navteq for around $8.1 billion. Navteq maintains digital maps which it licenses to GPS and Web sites. Navteq has around 3,000 employees in 168 offices in 30 countries.

Posted by Jon Erickson at 12:02 PM  Permalink