TCA

A Way of Sending the Data Over the Mobile Phone Network

a way to communicate the data over the mobile phone network

For a transport operator wanting to make use of the Smart OBM rules to get permission to run a heavier or longer combination on a particular route, the Smart OBM system, which is relatively straightforward to fit on the truck, needs a way of sending the data over the mobile phone network to the Transport Certification Agency servers monitoring the truck.

For the operator who already runs some form of telematics in their vehicle it is often possible to use the data stream from that telematics system to send the data through to the TCA system, for aggregating and recording. 

However, for many smaller operators which either don’t want or can’t afford the full suite of services a fully blown telematics system to run the fleet, there are alternatives emerging. These are much more simple data communicators designed specifically to process and send data to a required location, with no input required by either the driver of the operator. 

One example of this is the the Drive Easy Tag from V-DAQ, which is about the size of a thick credit card and can be stuck to the windscreen. The unit collects data directly from the Smart OBM and system and sends it through to the relevant portal for each productivity scheme.

“We’re seeing the beginning of the roll-out of these systems for productivity reforms,” says Gavin Hill, TCA General Manager, Strategy and Delivery. “We are at the beginning of the journey and many people, probably, don’t have a good strategic view of the way Smart OBM will work. 

“The initiatives which are taking place around Victoria with HPFV and opening up networks and making allowances for access over structures which were previously off-limits, is a really good case study. It present a way forward for the industry to understand what is possible. Where there used to be a ‘No’ response, mass data changes the paradigm.”

VicRoads understand that the data they get through these Smart OBM systems help them as a road agency. It enables them to make a case to the Victorian Treasury to make infrastructure upgrades. The vehicles and the data they send into VicRoads enables them to help the trucking industry by improving the roads where they are getting the most use. 

 a way to communicate the data over the mobile phone network

Bridge engineers are able to reduce the safety reserves they build into assessments of structures, because they have good data on the actual real life usage and are not making very conservative guesses on the strain on the bridges etc. This will tend to reduce those safety reserves and often opens up parts of the networks to the HPFVs. 

The advantages of the Smart OBM set up is that it is a nationally agreed system and can be used across borders. 

“One of the key things, is that the operator only needs one system,” says Gavin. “Jurisdictions have agreed, there is one system and one form of recognition. How they use the data is up to the individual road agencies. 

“I think the development of the Smart OBM concept will generate its own momentum. The way that Victoria have seized this and taken it up, will be the model other jurisdictions will be following.”

 a way to communicate the data over the mobile phone network
Gavin Hill, TCA General Manager, Strategy and Delivery

Road agencies in the Eastern States are already specifying Smart OBM and heading down this path. Something like Smart OBM will also have other benefits for the operator in terms of compliance and as part of accreditation schemes, chain of responsibility, particularly a mass management module. 

“We have been trying to get the message out there about the value of Smart OBM,” says Gavin. “We are going through people like the Heavy Vehicle Industry Association to help them inform their customers about the value of these systems. They are making the higher productivity vehicles which will go into these schemes. 

“The trailer manufacturer doesn’t necessarily have a good idea of what the end use of the trailer they are making is going to be. If you’ve got a particular kind of vehicle, PBS, for example, the trailer builder may want to ask the customer whether it will be used in certain scenarios, like HPFV in Victoria or the A-double run from Toowoomba to the Port of Brisbane. 

“The trailer maker needs to find out, if they are fitting an OBM, is the customer fitting it for a regulatory concession. Before fitting the system it will be useful to ensure the fitment will make those regulatory benefits possible. No-one should end up with a system they regret.”

Often TCA will have operators who are trying to get information about specific routes and the requirements in terms of Smart OBM or other technology, and where these productivity gains can be achieved. This kind of information can be difficult to find and it can be dangerous to rely on hearsay, but there is no central knowledge base operators can rely on. 

It is important for operators wanting to take advantage of the benefits of Smart OBM system to be as informed as possible about the system and its suitability fo the task in consideration. 

The Smart OBM does offer an easier solution for many access issues than the IAP, but information about how it works and how to access it seems to be travelling by word-of-mouth, rather than being properly publicised by the state authorities.

There are a number of state government sites which are designed to give information about what kind of Smart OBM allowances are available where, but these are often confusing and only state by by state.

V-DAQ, which is a supplier of the simple credit card sized plug-and-play road access solution which can communicate mass data from Smart OBM systems to the TCA, enabling operators meet compliance requirements for the various schemes. 

Where TMA is a required Telematics Condition

 a way to communicate the data over the mobile phone network

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