Two Scandinavian companies are unveiling a new series of GPS fleet tracking services at the Lastbil International trade show for the transportation and road haulage sector. This new line of is also utilizes GPRS technology to transmit the GPS data back to the central processing station.
These new products will be web based (this is the growing trend in GPS fleet tracking solutions) and will allow companies to determine vehicle location from any personal computer that has access to the Internet. The new line will also feature improved customer service, cost controls, protect employees, and that meet the tight laws of the European Union.
The line offers products that range from the entry-level (and therefore the low cost) to a complete telematics system – including such perks as in-cabin communication between driver and headquarters, navigation screen, advanced trip scheduling, and signature capturing for customers. You can even integrate these with third-party applications such as inventory and bar code software.
These features are all made available by a small GPS device that is place inside the truck. It receives data from the Global Positioning System (GPS) every 20 seconds which it logs in its internal memory. Then through GPRS technology this information is transferred back to the companies central processing servers.
Once there the server side computers log the information into a database which can then be accessed via the Internet for the subscriber to access at any point that they wish to. All that they need is a username and password to be able to view your real time tracking information as well as a nice amount of history on each vehicle in your fleet.
The accuracy of these devices is very good, but is dependent upon a few different factors. These variables can include the number of satellites in range of the receiver as well as conditions in the atmosphere such as cloud cover, precipitation, and overall humidity. All these factors can in some way hinder the devices ability to get a strong or direct signal from the twenty-four GPS satellites in orbit around the earth. But have no fear, even under these extreme conditions GPS fleet tracking is still relatively accurate.
Normally, GPS is precise to within 5 meters – and is even more precise as the number of satellites in range increase. This is because it has much more data to work with in its calculations and can provide more robust data to the user. The accuracy can be further improved by using some type of mapping software that will match the GPS derived location with one that makes sense given the road structure in the area.
With this accuracy will come the ability to track and report such things as vehicle location, total mileage driven, current speed, historical speed, and host of other metrics. GPS fleet tracking is definitely a solution that any fleet seeking to maximize efficiency should use. It will help you improve your business and get the work out of your workers that your company deserves. It can also improve your overall efficiency and the on-timeness of your workforce – a big plus for any sized business.