PHILADELPHIA — Trucking technology supplier Omnitracs is expanding its product line with the upcoming launch of a new navigation system.
Omnitracs Navigation provides information such as posted speed and traffic light locations and current traffic and weather conditions to help the driver be as safe and efficient as possible, the company said.
The navigation product also uses data collected by the company’s onboard telematics systems to analyze how particular roads are used at certain times and pinpoint locations where accidents frequently occur.
Users receive automatic updates so they have the most up-to-date data available, Omnitracs said.
Rick Turek, Omnitracs’ new chief navigation scientist, said navigation has evolved with the introduction of smart phones and GPS, and “the days of folded paper road maps are gone.”
“I was hired back in December to build a leading navigation solution — not just a ‘me, too,’ but we wanted to focus on being the leader out there in navigation,” Turek said during an Oct. 20 press briefing here at American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition.
“We wanted to make sure we addressed the issues in the industry today with navigation, and the No. 1 issue is stale data,” he said. “We focused our energy on trying to solve that. Our solution out of the gate is going to ensure that the driver has current and accurate data on the device. Basically, we’re turning ourselves into a data publisher.”
Turek said the 250,000 Omnitracs telematics units on the road now have collected billions of position reports “to determine what is safe for drivers.”
“All of that’s great if you can get the data to the device,” he said.
At launch, the navigation product will receive daily updates, but next year the company plans to provide updates every 15 minutes without having to touch the truck, which will save companies considerable money, Omnitracs said.
When the system goes live in November, it will run on Omnitracs’ MCP units and Windows. Early next year, it will also run on Omnitracs’ XRS product line and Android mobile devices.
Omnitracs Navigation also incorporates driver feedback into the data-editing process. The system also closes the loop by responding to that input from drivers, whom Turek said have been frustrated by their feedback “going into a black hole.”
