| | AUGUST 20168CIOReviewVehicle Telematics - Mobility Towards the Future By P. Ravishankar, EVP ­ Sales - Marketing - Aftermarket, Volvo EicherTelematics, a combination of Telecommunication + Informatics, is gaining attention in the Indian Automotive industry. In developed economies, vehicle telematics has already revolutionized the fleet transport scenario. In India too, it has vast potential to provide tangible benefits to CV users in operational economics. As the trends indicate, commercial vehicles are way ahead of passenger vehicle segment in adoption of telematics. It comprises of services like tracking and fleet management embedded in the vehicles to maximize fuel efficiency and productivity.In India, vehicular tracking and fleet management applications are taking a large portion of the total telematics market share. OPINIONIN MYConnected fleets is a primary trend that enables fleet operators and external stakeholders (governments, insurance companies and financial service providers). It manages vehicle operations, risks and revenues along with taxes and insurance premiums. A fleet tracking system utilizes GPS (Global Positioning System) to gather the location and fuel related information of the vehicle on a real time basis, under any weather condition and from anywhere in the world!Demand for technology that enables safety, information, navigation and remote diagnostics is on the upswing in the commercial vehicle space. The main drivers of the commercial vehicle telematics market are increasing fuel prices and small profit margins in the transportation industry. With technologies such as vehicle tracking, route calculation, checks on fuel pilferage; the fleet operators are able to gain a competitive edge. Other supporting factors that influence the need of vehicle telematics are safety and security concerns due to increase in road accidents and vehicle thefts. (E.g. smoke/alcohol/sleep/theft detector & alarm).Besides commercial vehicle segment, one interesting case of deploying telematics systems is Formula One Racing. The professional drivers have been utilizing telematics for years to determine the exact locations of opponents on race tracks. It is not only useful in fleet tracking and management, but proves critical during emergencies with call management. An innovative example of telematics in India is that of "She- Taxi" service launched in Kerala to ensure safety of women passengers. The technology in the car monitors and tracks the activities of the passengers and the drivers.Safety also holds prime importance in the school bus segment. We are seeing a progressive shift towards increased use of telematics, especially in this category of transport. Features like tracking location of the bus, monitoring driving patterns (e.g. harsh braking/driving), security checks (e.g. RFID sensing for kids' in/out of bus) help assure the parents of their children's security by keeping a record of their location.Over a period of time, CV manufacturing companies in India have realized that telematics is not just about monitoring, but also about achieving transparency in business processes and efficiency. Moreover, telematics transmits real time data generated by the vehicle to back end
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