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hree mobile communications companies Tuesday announced a new service that will deliver turn-by-turn spoken information to truck drivers via mobile phones.
The system, ALK Technologies’ PC*Miler|Mobile, will be available with a subscription on select Nextel Communications’ Java- and global positioning system-enabled handsets that provide specific routing information.
The service also will provide fleets and customers a real-time view of truck and shipment location, using Motorola’s Viamoto technology.
It will run on Nextel’s digital network, in which truck drivers will be able to access directions through the same handsets they use for the company’s direct connect walkie-talkie communication and text-messaging system.
“It's a major development in the convergence of transportation technologies and mobile phones,” said Craig Fiander, ALK’s director of marketing.
The system can be mounted in trucks for hands-free operation, the companies said. If the driver misses a turn, it will immediately recalculate directions to the destination.
Drivers will hear spoken turn-by-turn directions on the phone's speaker, and users will be able to select routes compliant with hazardous materials regulations and trailer-size restrictions, the companies said.
