Technology Briefs - April 25 - May 1
The Latest Headlines:
- GM Road Tests Fuel Cell
- Omni Information Converts Customers to Windows
- CFI Buys Tool to Help Load Management
- PrePass, E-ZPass to Link Up
- BNSF Unveils New Web Tools
- Van Measures Cracks in Highway
- Qualcomm Enhances FleetAdvisor Software
- N.J. E-ZPass Causing Motorists Headaches
- U.S. Warns of Possible Cyberattacks
- Calif. Fuel Cell Program Opens Methanol Station
- Omni Information Converts Customers to Windows
GM Road Tests Fuel Cell
General Motors Corp. demonstrated what it believes is the first drivable fuel cell vehicle that extracts hydrogen from gasoline to produce electricity, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.Some experts believe fuel cells hold the key to the trucking industry's effort to meet new, tougher clean air standards.
Fuel cells use a chemical reaction between oxygen and hydrogen to produce electric power. The technology, when operated properly, only emits water vapor instead of exhaust fumes, the AP said.
Omni Information Converts Customers to Windows
Omni Information Systems Inc. has begun converting customers of its OISwin Truck Package accounting and dispatch software to a new application that runs on the Windows operating system instead of DOS, according to Patsy Peppers, vice president of operations.Omni, Lawrenceville, Ga., has more than 200 customers on the DOS systems, many of which likely will seek the Windows upgrade, she said. The company will continue to support, and is still receiving orders for, its DOS applications.
DOS is an operating system generally found on older IBM-compatible computers that requires users to enter commands and codes. Although it is the world’s most widely used operating system, it is less user friendly than the point-and-click Windows system. Many types of hardware today, including printers, will not run on DOS applications.
Peppers said the real benefit of Windows is the ability to manage database searches on a network gateway rather than having each workstation individually access the database. If a database can’t handle the volume of activity at a particular time it can crash. Eric Kulisch
This story appeared in the April 29 print edition of Transport Topics.
CFI Buys Tool to Help Load Management
International truckload carrier Contract Freighters Inc. will use Logistics.com’s OptiYield Driver&Load to more efficiently match drivers with loads, Logistics.com said.Joplin, Mo.-based CFI, which owns more than 2,000 tractors and 6,000 trailers, joins nearly 70 carriers that already use Burlington, Mass.-based Logistics.com’s online rating system.
Logistics.com said the system can help reduce number of miles that companies run empty trucks, boost on-time delivery and help drivers to get home regularly.
Major Driver&Load customers include American Freightways Corp., Overnite Transportation Co., USA Truck Inc. and Prime Inc.
This story appeared in the April 29 print edition of Transport Topics.
PrePass, E-ZPass to Link Up
Beginning this summer, truckers will be able to use a single transponder for PrePass weigh station preclearance and for paying E-ZPass tolls.The new service, called PrePass (Plus), will enable participating carriers to electronically comply with state safety and credential requirements at about 200 weigh stations nationwide. It will also enable carriers to electronically pay tolls at nearly 400 E-ZPass toll plazas in New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts and West Virginia.
Discussions are under way to potentially expand the project to include border crossing applications.
The program is being run by HELP Inc. and the New York State Thruway Authority.
(Click here for the full press release.)
BNSF Unveils New Web Tools
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co. Tuesday unveiled a redesigned Web site intended to help customers get to real time information.The site, according to the BNSF press release, now includes four main customer buttons that immediately link to “pages containing information critical to doing business.”
The buttons link to BNSF Web tools that help in planning, shipping, tracing and payment; with market information; with price information and with information of the company’s products and services. Transport Topics
(Click here for the press release.)
Van Measures Cracks in Highway
Cruising along at 60 miles per hour, Kelvin Wang’s invention records every crack and flaw in a road’s surface, making the job of surveying roads safer and quicker, the Associated Press reported Sunday.Wang, a professor of civil engineering at the University of Arkansas, has developed a cache of gear, which he has attached to a van to survey roads and highways. The Digital Highway Data Vehicle uses strobe lights, a high-speed camera and the global positioning system to make accurate maps of the imperfections in a road.
Improved highways can reduce the maintenance costs for trucking because of reduced wear and tear on trucks.
The AP said the DHDV’s main shortcoming is its inability to sense flaws in three dimensions, skipping over misaligned pavement sections that cause bumps in a road. Transport Topics
Qualcomm Enhances FleetAdvisor Software
Wireless technology company Qualcomm Inc. said Monday that it has improved its FleetAdvisor software to include support for wireless local area networks.FleetAdvisor is a transportation logistics management system that allows for on-board computing, vehicle tracking, highly integrated back-office software and real-time wireless communications.
New version 5.1 also includes fleet status monitoring and expanded web-enabled functionality, the company said. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
N.J. E-ZPass Causing Motorists Headaches
New Jersey’s plan to implement the automated E-ZPass system for collecting tolls has been fraught with glitches, the Associated Press reported Friday.The electronic toll collection system is popular with truckers and frequent commuters.
The goal of E-ZPass is to alleviate traffic jams and reduce pollution from standing vehicles. However, New Jersey’s system has been mistakenly sending tickets to people who paid tolls, charging motorists for booths they did not pass through and created a bureaucratic nightmare for officials and motorists.
Some trucking companies operating in the state have even committed employees to do nothing but fight bogus violations, the AP said. Transport Topics
U.S. Warns of Possible Cyberattacks
U.S. officials said Thursday that the Chinese military might be looking for ways to penetrate U.S. computer networks, but that such penetrations wouldn't likely cause much damage, the Washington Post reported.Nearly all companies, including trucking, use computers for a variety of important business functions, and have spent large amounts of money trying to protect data from hackers and viruses.
The warning was included in an assessment by the Central Intelligence Agency, which also said there could be cybersecurity attacks from Chinese students, the Post reported. The CIA report said that there could be an outbreak of hackings in the next few weeks, similar to what took place last year. Transport Topics
Calif. Fuel Cell Program Opens Methanol Station
California's Fuel Cell Partnership program said Thursday that it has added a methanol fueling station and prototype minivan and to its test of the lower-polluting systems.Liquid methanol, which can be made from waste materials, provides power and can be stored more easily on a vehicle than hydrogen, the group said in a press release. The station is located in the Sacramento area.
Many industry observers believe that fuel cells are the key to the trucking industry's effort to meet new, tougher clean air standards.
General Motors Corp.'s HydroGen1 could be one of 70 vehicles on the road by 2003 using fuel cells. Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp., DaimlerChrysler AG, Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. all have previously submitted vehicles. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
