David Marsh, director of advanced technology for Rand McNally, noted that improvements made to the fourth generation of the company’s IntelliRoute TND 730 and 530 LM devices represent “an amalgam of small things,” such as improved map appearance and functionality, two new graphical user interface options, and twice as much processing speed. Other new features include:
- Estimated toll road costs are now included for better informed trip planning, allowing drivers to incorporate toll costs in the “Compare Routes” feature;
- “Advanced Lane Guidance” instruction, combined with “Enhanced Junction Views,” to show drivers the best lanes in which to drive when approaching a turn or heading toward a complicated intersection;
- An “Avoid Areas” option allows drivers to avoid areas permanently – such as residential locations – or temporarily to accommodate closures of bridges or other roads;
- “Multi-Stop Trip Planning” hat now provides detail for upcoming legs of the journey, color-coded for easy differentiation;
- Text and road shield upgrades along with new map coloration options for certain reference points like shopping centers and parks.
Rand McNally said the 7-inch screen version of its revamped IntelliRoute devices is being priced at $399.99, with the 5-inch screen model priced at $299.99.
Both units are also now compatible with Rand McNally’s HD 100 device, which adds compliant E-Logs to the IntelliRoute TND units, and the company noted its HD 100 can now be synched with tablet computers and smart phones as well.
The HD 100, a small black box about the size of a deck of cards, plugs into a truck’s on-board diagnostic port and records the truck’s GPS position along with vehicle-specific information and driving behavior.
Rand McNally is also introducing a new web-based application dubbed “TrueTrack” to deliver more accurate truck arrival time information and reduce fuel usage by curtailing out-of-route driving.
The firm said TrueTrack works in conjunction with the TPC 7600 and TND 760 devices and is available via the Rand McNally Connect web portal – the company’s cloud-based access point that includes dashboards and reporting for its mobile fleet management customers.
