Pointer Telocation’s New Compact Firmware 28 Brings Enhanced Tracking Functions for Fleet Managers and Transport Logistics Professionals
Rosh HaAyin, Israel, May 27, 2009 – Pointer Telocation Ltd., (Nasdaq Capital Market: PNTR, Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange: PNTR) - a leading AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location) solutions provider for fleet management, car and driver safety, public safety, roadside assistance, vehicle security and asset management, announced today the highlights of version 28 of the firmware installed in Pointer's Compact™ family of hardware. New features include integration capabilities with Garmin Ltd. in-car GPS navigation systems, via the Garmin Fleet Management Interface, as well as functions that reduce energy consumption, and provide for enhanced communications and security.
“The new version of the Compact firmware introduces many innovative features and groundbreaking technology that will give fleet managers and transport logistics professionals unprecedented vision in tracking their vehicles and valuable assets,” said Israel Ronn, General Manager of Cellocator, the Product Division of Pointer Telocation. “The new version testifies to Cellocator being a leader in the integration of tracking and navigation devices, as well as in the field of enhanced remote vehicle diagnostics.”
A central new feature is the integration with Garmin GPS navigation systems. The integration delivers high-end navigation and two-way visual communication between fleet managers and their drivers. Control centers can enter numerous required destinations into the Garmin system via the Compact unit, and receive various details that include the preferred route of traveling, estimated time of arrival, and more. This enhanced navigation assistance gives managers easier and better route optimization, and a greater ability to track the driver’s current location and manage daily tasks.
Firmware 28 also features important updates to CAN bus event logging and improvements to the triggering algorithm for CAN events. These improvements include the added capability of technicians to build complex scenarios at the field level, adapting the tracking unit to a given protocol in ways that allow them to build a full and complex application within the unit. A trigger can now be generated based on the status of two sensors, along with a definition of how long the state of those sensors should be valid before a message is logged or sent.
The new firmware 28 also supports up to 30 Dallas Key codes, allowing for enhanced onboard driver management. In addition, driver identification and control capabilities have been enhanced for fleet applications in a way that enables not only the identification of a driver according to his key, but also for barring unauthorized drivers from using the vehicle, adding a valuable security component.
Other features include:
-- Versatile geofences that warn drivers when they enter a prohibited geographic area
-- Greater tracking of go/halt events
-- Indications of when a tracking unit is about to enter a state of hibernation
-- Ability to decrease transmission frequency when a vehicle is stuck in traffic, or conversely, when a driver is at a high-speed on a highway in order to decrease unnecessary communication
-- Automatic GSM band sensing and GPRS authentication sensing
-- Secure SIM cards
-- Improved triggering mechanism for CAN-originated events
-- Sophisticated LED patterns that provide additional visual cues
-- Enhanced tracking that adapts the transmission frequency to the speed of vehicle
-- Improved battery management
-- Support of two analogue inputs according to the HW specifications
About Pointer Telocation
Pointer Telocation Ltd. is a leading provider of products and services to the automotive and insurance industries, offering a set of services including Stolen Vehicle Recovery, Road Side Assistance and Fleet Management. Pointer is publicly traded company on Nasdaq and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (Tickers: PNTR). Pointer Telocation has a growing client list with products installed in over 500,000 vehicles across the globe: the UK, Greece, Mexico, Argentina, Russia, Croatia, Germany, Czech Republic, Latvia, Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Costa Rica, Norway, Venezuela, Hungary, Israel and more. Cellocator, a Pointer Products Division, is a leading AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location) solutions provider for fleet management, car and driver safety, public safety, vehicle security and asset management and more. For more information: www.pointer.com .
“The new version of the Compact firmware introduces many innovative features and groundbreaking technology that will give fleet managers and transport logistics professionals unprecedented vision in tracking their vehicles and valuable assets,” said Israel Ronn, General Manager of Cellocator, the Product Division of Pointer Telocation. “The new version testifies to Cellocator being a leader in the integration of tracking and navigation devices, as well as in the field of enhanced remote vehicle diagnostics.”
A central new feature is the integration with Garmin GPS navigation systems. The integration delivers high-end navigation and two-way visual communication between fleet managers and their drivers. Control centers can enter numerous required destinations into the Garmin system via the Compact unit, and receive various details that include the preferred route of traveling, estimated time of arrival, and more. This enhanced navigation assistance gives managers easier and better route optimization, and a greater ability to track the driver’s current location and manage daily tasks.
Firmware 28 also features important updates to CAN bus event logging and improvements to the triggering algorithm for CAN events. These improvements include the added capability of technicians to build complex scenarios at the field level, adapting the tracking unit to a given protocol in ways that allow them to build a full and complex application within the unit. A trigger can now be generated based on the status of two sensors, along with a definition of how long the state of those sensors should be valid before a message is logged or sent.
The new firmware 28 also supports up to 30 Dallas Key codes, allowing for enhanced onboard driver management. In addition, driver identification and control capabilities have been enhanced for fleet applications in a way that enables not only the identification of a driver according to his key, but also for barring unauthorized drivers from using the vehicle, adding a valuable security component.
Other features include:
-- Versatile geofences that warn drivers when they enter a prohibited geographic area
-- Greater tracking of go/halt events
-- Indications of when a tracking unit is about to enter a state of hibernation
-- Ability to decrease transmission frequency when a vehicle is stuck in traffic, or conversely, when a driver is at a high-speed on a highway in order to decrease unnecessary communication
-- Automatic GSM band sensing and GPRS authentication sensing
-- Secure SIM cards
-- Improved triggering mechanism for CAN-originated events
-- Sophisticated LED patterns that provide additional visual cues
-- Enhanced tracking that adapts the transmission frequency to the speed of vehicle
-- Improved battery management
-- Support of two analogue inputs according to the HW specifications
About Pointer Telocation
Pointer Telocation Ltd. is a leading provider of products and services to the automotive and insurance industries, offering a set of services including Stolen Vehicle Recovery, Road Side Assistance and Fleet Management. Pointer is publicly traded company on Nasdaq and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (Tickers: PNTR). Pointer Telocation has a growing client list with products installed in over 500,000 vehicles across the globe: the UK, Greece, Mexico, Argentina, Russia, Croatia, Germany, Czech Republic, Latvia, Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Costa Rica, Norway, Venezuela, Hungary, Israel and more. Cellocator, a Pointer Products Division, is a leading AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location) solutions provider for fleet management, car and driver safety, public safety, vehicle security and asset management and more. For more information: www.pointer.com .