iTECH: Volvo Sentry ‘Integrates’ Actual Human Response

By Thomas M. Strah, TT Magazines Editor

This story appears in the August/September 2007 issue of iTECH, published in the Aug. 20 print edition of Transport Topics. Click here to subscribe today.

In a time when a computer is more likely to answer a business phone than a live human being — “please select from the following menu” — getting a call from a breathing, thinking person at 2 a.m. telling you that your Volvo is showing some unusually serious departures from its normal coolant temperature has to qualify as unique.

An in-the-flesh technician is a pivotal element in Volvo Trucks North America’s approach to exception alerts and telematics. Although the dashboard still shows a warning light, triggered by fault codes, Volvo apparently has managed to integrate an active human response with the onboard computer.

Technicians are on duty 24/7 in Greensboro, N.C., watching for signals sent over Orbcomm satellites from the big VT880 road tractors that owner-operators like to buy. If a fault code is active for more than five minutes, the truck’s engine control unit automatically sends a message to Volvo’s service center.

If the fault is likely to knock the truck out of service anytime soon, a technician calls the driver’s cellphone. Greensboro also will tell the nearest Volvo dealer to expect a visit and recommend procedures to correct the problem.

“We wanted to offer [buyers] the warm and fuzzy feeling that they have a truck technician onboard with them,” said Don Philyaw, director of business solutions for Volvo.

Customer reaction convinced Volvo last September to make the package — Volvo Link Sentry — standard on its entire product line and provide communications and breakdown service for three years, with no additional fees.

The engine control unit, coupled to a satellite frequency transmitter, has “some memory” capacity, Philyaw said.

Fault code alerts can be delivered to pagers and cellphones, and they appear on the vehicle’s gauge cluster as a brief text message (to call the Volvo center). As with other telematics systems, the fleet manager goes online — his computer needs to be loaded with Windows XP Professional operating system — to see reports.

Volvo generates weekly reports on the basic indicators, including fuel mileage, over-speed events, idle time and any stability control and antilock brake interventions.

Options include half-hour location updates, fuel tax filing, route and fuel-purchase optimization, dispatch-driver messaging and auxiliary equipment monitoring.
Volvo partners with TMW Systems for dispatch software, ProMiles for routing and Maptuit for map navigation.