New tachograph Data Collection and Fleet Management Solution from MiX Telematics Features Remote Reading and Upgrade Enabled by Wavecom’s Wireless Microprocessor^®

HANOVER, Germany & ISSY-LES-MOULINEAUX, France (Business Wire EON) September 23, 2008 -- Regulatory News:

The decision to select Wavecom as our preferred technology partner was the result of a thorough evaluation of the major industry players. We were looking for a company that can match our desire to innovate and improve our products. The technology roadmap offered to us by Wavecom will allow our products to keep up with the rapid evolution of wireless communication technologies.

MiX Telematics is a company that builds long term relationships and we are pleased that this product will be the beginning of a long term and mutually beneficial arrangement.

MiX Telematics and Wavecom SA (Paris:AVM) (NASDAQ:WVCM) announced the launch of a new tachograph data collection and fleet management solution, marketed exclusively by Continental as the VDO DLD. The VDO DLD is the first in a new breed of intelligent remote data harvesting systems which will make life easier and business more profitable for fleet managers worldwide.

Developed by MiX Telematics exclusively for Continental, the VDO DLD collects digital tachograph (DTCO) data from vehicles such as trucks and buses. Tachographs are used to record information including driving time to ensure compliance with government regulations, which are mandatory in most European countries. Traditional analogue tachographs recorded the data on a waxed paper disc, whereas modern DTCOs record data on on-board computers. Until recently, the only way of accessing DTCO data was a manual extraction from the on-board computer of each single vehicle at the end of the trip, using a combination of a memory card and an authentication smart card.

The new VDO DLD system revolutionizes this process by securely connecting to vehicles via GPRS cellular networks and directly transferring the data to backend archiving systems over the Internet, with no manual intervention. This remote data access is enabled by Wavecom’s Wireless Microprocessor, an industrial microprocessor which also acts as a wireless modem for voice and data transmission over GSM/GPRS networks.

Taking full advantage of the Wireless Microprocessor’s capabilities, MiX Telematics has made the VDO DLD into a complete, autonomous fleet management system. In addition to the remote harvesting of DTCO data, the VDO DLD features the ability to unlock fleet management capabilities to fleet owners, including driver and vehicle performance monitoring, real-time tracking, trip reporting and more. The product has been designed to be re-programmable and upgradable over the air, thus protecting the fleet owner’s investment and ensuring an ongoing ROI.

Charles Tasker, Managing Director of MiX Telematics (International), says: “We have created a new class of solution that goes far beyond the regulatory requirements for recovery of tachograph data. It leverages the potential of wireless communication to collect DTCO data in a much more efficient manner, and it also provides investment protection via over-the-air product upgrades. As a result, customers will see a significant reduction in the time needed to collect this data which is truly cumbersome using current methodologies and they know that they can upgrade to an industry-leading fleet management solution any time without new equipment installations.”

Ron Black, CEO of Wavecom, comments: “We are extremely pleased that a company as experienced in the fleet management field as MiX Telematics has selected our Wireless Microprocessor technology to enhance its product portfolio and provide added value to its customers. Tracking and fleet management are perfect illustrations of how wireless machine-to-machine communication can improve business processes and generate new revenue streams, and we are delighted to have teamed up with one of the leaders in this field.”

Charles Tasker adds: “The decision to select Wavecom as our preferred technology partner was the result of a thorough evaluation of the major industry players. We were looking for a company that can match our desire to innovate and improve our products. The technology roadmap offered to us by Wavecom will allow our products to keep up with the rapid evolution of wireless communication technologies.” Tasker also added, “MiX Telematics is a company that builds long term relationships and we are pleased that this product will be the beginning of a long term and mutually beneficial arrangement.”

Find out more about the MiX Telematics solution at http://www.mixtelematics.com or visit our stand (Hall 24, A21) at the IAA automotive event in Hanover between 25^th September and 2^nd October.

MiX Telematics – the Fleet Management experts

MiX Telematics is a global provider of information and related services for the efficient and effective management of mobile assets. Founded in 1997, MiX Telematics has built a solid reputation for designing, developing and selling innovative fleet management technology and services for the consumer and commercial vehicle market, primarily in four specific categories: Tracking & Tracing, Driver Safety, Fleet Management, and Compliance.

For ten years, MiX Telematics designed and developed the Siemens VDO “Fleet Manager” (FM) product range, VDO-branded and sold by Siemens worldwide. In May 2007, the business acquired the distribution rights for its Fleet Manager range of products from Siemens VDO and bought Siemens VDO’s UK-based fleet management and commercial vehicle outfitting businesses, including the Datatrak product range and network. These transactions significantly strengthened MiX Telematics’ international distribution network for its products, giving the business a truly global footprint.

The MiX Telematics range of products and services is sold in over 75 countries and boasts an install base of over 450 0000 units worldwide.

http://www.MiXTelematics.com

Wavecom – the wireless M2M experts

Wavecom is a leading provider of embedded wireless technology for M2M (machine-to-machine) communication. We provide a range of GSM/GPRS, CDMA, EDGE and 3G Wireless CPUs; programmable processors which also act as wireless modules or wireless modems. These are backed by a C and Lua-based cellular wireless software suite which includes a real-time operating system (RTOS), a software development environment based on Eclipse™, and several Plug-Ins (GPS, TCP/IP, security, Bluetooth™, Lua script and more). We also offer a wide range of professional and operated services. Our solutions are used for automotive telematics, smart metering, fleet management, GSM/GPS/satellite tracking, wireless alarms, wireless POS (point of sales), WLL (fixed voice), remote monitoring and many other M2M applications.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Issy-les-Moulineaux (France) near Paris, Wavecom has subsidiaries in Hong Kong (PRC), Research Triangle Park, NC (USA), Farnborough (UK), Munich (Germany) and Sao Paolo (Brazil). Wavecom is publicly traded on Euronext Paris (Eurolist) in France and on the NASDAQ (WVCM) exchange in the U.S.

http://www.wavecom.com

Continental

With targeted annual sales of more than €26.4 billion for 2008, the Continental Corporation is one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for the powertrain and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, the corporation contributes towards enhanced driving safety and protection of the global climate. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Today, the corporation employs approximately 150,000 at nearly 200 locations in 36 countries.

Supplying both OEMs and the aftermarket worldwide, the Interior Division of Continental AG develops and produces electronic systems which allow the information in a vehicle to be controlled and communicated according to the requirements of the driver and the driving situation. The Division achieves annual sales of more then € 6 billion (based on 2006 figures) with a workforce of more than 33,000 currently. The range of products includes instruments clusters and multifunctional displays, control units, electronic car entry systems, tire information systems, climate control systems, radios, multimedia and navigation systems, telematics solutions as well as cockpit modules and systems. The Interior Division develops vehicle electronics enabling car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure communication, Internet access and the seamless integration of mobile devices (car-to-device).

The focus on systems integration offers customers less complexity and ensures efficient and cost-effective solutions for the management of information in passenger cars as well as commercial and special vehicles.

With the Commercial Vehicles & Aftermarket (CV / AM) business unit, Continental caters to the specific requirements of those sectors. Covering the brands Continental, VDO, and ATE, the business unit offers electronic products, systems, and services. Its spectrum of products for commercial and special vehicles includes tachographs, control systems for drive and onboard electronics, components for human-machine-interface such as instrumentation, panels and cockpit solutions, onboard toll units, and telematics units for public transit. Its offerings for the independent parts trade and non-affiliated workshops range from fuel systems and components for windshield and headlight cleaning systems to replacement parts for brakes and diagnostic instruments. CV / AM is also responsible for supplying replacement parts after a series is discontinued by the vehicle manufacturer. A global network of marketing and service companies completes the unit’s range.

http://www.continental.com

Post Comment:
Trackback URL: http://www.prweb.com/pingpr.php/Q291cC1Qcm9mLUhvcnItRW1wdC1IYWxmLVNpbmctWmVybw==

fleet management, fleet management system, dtco, tachograph data

Bookmark -  Del.icio.us | Furl It | Technorati | Ask | MyWeb | Propeller | Live Bookmarks | Newsvine | TailRank | Reddit | Slashdot | Digg | Stumbleupon | Google Bookmarks | Sphere | Blink It | Spurl