Organizations with fleets of vehicles to manage do not find it an easy task. It is important for them to focus on the bottom line without sacrificing service, response time and customer experience. Tracking mobile assets is a complex issue for fleet management that organizations in numerous verticals have to grapple with every day.
Saving operating costs can help pay for an investment in fleet management solutions. A good solution provides savings with optimized vehicle utilization, operator compliance and lowers training costs, besides saving fuel and maintenance costs through Information – the key to reducing costs. Typically, a fleet manager has to know whether drivers are operating safely, choosing efficient routes while staying within authorized boundaries; whether any vehicle is being used for unauthorized purposes, is under-utilized or idling needlessly; whether a vehicle will need preventive maintenance to avoid expensive repairs; location of the vehicle closest to an urgent call that just came in; when an older vehicle should be cycled out; which vehicles do not use fuel economically, etc.
You can monitor all this and more with the 4G LTE router and associated tools from CalAmp. Their flagship router, the LMU-5000LTE has support for a broad range of wireless connection options. It comes equipped with interfaces for all types of vehicles, including light and heavy-duty vehicles and it can monitor the vehicle status, location and behavior of the driver. With the Programmable Event Generator, PEG, which is the industry-leading on-board alert engine, the fleet manager has access to real-time information. With this, he can define rules that enable the application to take action as values exceed a threshold that he has specified.
Running embedded Linux on a 400MHz ARM9 processor, the LMU-5000LTE features fleet tracking and the user-programmable PEG monitoring software. It is equipped with multiple IO, a 5-channel GPS, EVDO, HSPA, and LTE routers. LMU-5000LTE is a cellular router and gateway for AT&T networks.
If you are looking for greater flexibility in designing your solution, CalAmp has the LMU-4230. This includes an even greater set of fleet features using cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and option for satellite connectivity. A three-axis accelerometer assesses Vehicular performance such as impacts, aggressive acceleration or hard braking. An optional interface, the JPOD ECU or Engine Control Unit allows reading and transmitting heavy-duty engine conditions and performance data. This includes engine temperature and fault codes to provide the optimum real-time picture of the health of your vehicle.
With the LMU-5000LTE, organizations can set up managed cellular networks via AT&T’s mobile broadband network working on 4G LTE. The device combines gateway, routing and M2M monitoring functions. According to CalAmp, the unit supports remote monitoring and control, enterprise fleet management, industrial and energy remote asset management, point-of-sale applications and workforce automation.
The Linux-based firmware on the device and CalAmp’s PEG alert engine monitors external conditions and responds to exception-based rules defined by the user. The user gets a feedback on violation of any threshold such as time, date, motion, location, geo-zone and inputs. CalAmp also provides PULS or Programming, Update and Logistics System for management and maintenance for over-the-air devices.
