 An Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) device makes use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) to enable a business or agency to remotely track the location of its fleet of vehicles from a website on the Internet. These devices combine GPS technology, cellular communications, street-level mapping, and an intuitive user interface, with the goal of improving fleet management and customer service.
For example, a company using an Automatic Vehicle Location system is able to pinpoint the longitude, latitude, ground speed, and course direction of a given vehicle. The vehicle's location can be quickly found and it could be rerouted to provide timely delivery to a nearby customer. AVL systems also enable companies to structure delivery routes more efficiently by compiling a database of vehicle information, including location of customers in relation to established delivery routes.
Automatic Vehicle Location systems generally include a network of vehicles that are equipped with a mobile radio module, mobile radio antenna, GPS receiver, and a GPS antenna. This network connects with a base radio consisting of a PC computer station as well as a GPS receiver and interface. GPS uses interactive maps rather than static map images on the Web. This means users can perform conventional GPS functions such as zoom, pan, identify and queries.
Automatic Vehicle Location can be used to increase the accountability of field personnel and boost the efficiency of a company's dispatching procedure. Dispatchers can get a real-time snapshot of driver adherence to a route, provide customers with an estimated time of arrival, and communicate directly with drivers. Public safety agencies, such as police department or fire departments, can use AVL technology to improve response times by being able to dispatch the closest vehicles for emergencies.
AVL systems use mouse clicks instead of keystrokes to page through a single vehicle, a designated group of vehicles or an entire fleet. GPS Radio Units usually transmit GPS location data on a regular time interval, in response to a command "ping". This data is then converted into mapping that is instantly available via the Internet.
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MARCUS® 3GW2 Radio Module |
GPS Receiver and Cable |
Shown above are two pieces of the MARCUS® V8 GPS Automatic Vehicle Location System - The MARCUS® Radio Module, and the GPS receiver.
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