NASHVILLE. Truck-Lite Co. LLC is jumping into the telematics market with the Road Ready trailer monitoring and communication platform—billed as the industry's first true "smart" trailer.
Unveiled at TMC's annual meeting here this week, the Road Ready system is built around the solar-powered Master Control Unit (MCU). Using military-grade solar power technology and a 10-year, quick-charging battery that can keep its charge for 60 days without any sunlight, the MCU continually monitors and cellularly transmits crucial data from customizable Road Ready sensors to an intuitive user interface—all without requiring power from a tractor.
The platform is designed to provide “a complete view of trailer road readiness,” explained Brett Jackson, market and product development manager in a presentation to industry media. Road Ready also has remote pre-trip inspection capability and, therefore, should reduce the need for roadside repairs, improve CSA compliance and boost driver productivity and retention.
The Road Ready system boasts a variety of wireless, peel-and-stick sensors that communicate with the MCU, relaying data regarding
- tire pressure;
- light-out detection;
- anti-lock brake system monitoring;
- unauthorized door openings;
- cargo fill/movement detection;
- temperature and auxiliary fuel levels for refrigerated trailers;
- trailer arrival and departure notifications; and
- GPS with Hypertracking capabilities.
The event-based data is reported in real time to a user-friendly desktop dashboard from the completely untethered control unit. And, with the range of sensors available, the Road Ready system can be customized for any fleet solution, according to Jackson.
“We’re working with a lot of partners to pull this together,” Jackson told Fleet Owner. “We’re not going to create a tire pressure sensor system—there’s plenty of them. We’re not going to create the tire inflation system. We wouldn’t want to do that. But what we want to do with the Road Ready telematics platform is help them in the areas they don’t have. The strength of Truck-Lite is we have these ties with different OEs and businesses; we’re just kind of flexing our muscles here.”
For more information, visit www.roadreadysystem.com
