Late in 2010, Rand McNally took an ownership stake in DriverTech, an in-vehicle mobile computing technology. That pairing has produced TruckPC, a solution that uses DriverTech’s secure onboard computing platform combined with Rand McNally’s IntelliRoute TND truck navigation solution.
Now, the pairing has produced another product that takes advantage of each company’s expertise. The Rand McNally TND 760 Fleet Edition is a mobile communication and truck navigation device that will retail for less than $800, Rand McNally said.
“This product is one of the main reasons we did the deal with DriverTech,” said Dave Muscatel, CEO of Rand McNally. “We thought if we could port their software over to our hardware platform, we could create a product that leverages the best of both companies while at the same time fundamentally altering the cost paradigm in this space.”
The TND 760 Fleet Edition integrates with a truck’s onboard computer and can send information over both WiFi and cellular networks. Setup takes less than 30 minutes and does not require a “black box” monitoring unit, the company said.
Even without a black box, the unit “offers 90% of the functionality of higher-end mobile communication systems for less than half the price,” Muscatel said.
Among the features of the new system are communications via email, driver and vehicle performance monitoring, electronic hours-of-service compliance, and truck-specific navigation. Information on fleet activity is managed via Rand McNally’s FleetWatcher web-based portal.
Other features include HOS alerts and warnings; simplified log certification and correction; Rand McNally Workflow; text and form-based messages; text-to-speech email playback and verbal turn-by-turn directions; detailed mapping and vehicle proximity search; more than 200 distinct vehicle-specific metrics; comprehensive fuel- and driver-performance reporting; and visibility to engine diagnostics.
