Technology has become interwoven into the means of production and how road construction businesses are run. What technology has done is provide valuable information—real-time information, which allows for better decisions to be made. Access to information benefits the road construction contractor in all areas from the heavy-equipment operator to the site superintendent to the business owner. Large amounts of data can be filtered and selectively used by individuals in their jobs to help them be more effective, productive, and accountable.
The concept of telematics has become a catchall term for much of the information-based developments and systems in the marketplace.
In simple terms, telematics is any integrated use of telecommunications with information and communications technology. It is seen as the sending, receiving, and storing of information via telecommunication devices. Typically, this is in conjunction with machine or device control. Telematics includesGPS.
Even though the mere transmission of data can be impressive, it is the application of the information that is truly impressive. The application is where the advances from telematics in construction are occurring—the software. The software uses the information collected to control production; monitor progress; alert to any problems; and help manage the machine, the project, and the business.
Innovative software has usurped engineered hardware as the definer of the edge in cutting edge. Behind all new remarkable products and machines is the software that operates them. Software development is where systems and solutions are that help make the construction contractor more productive, more accurate, and more profitable.
Telematics currently offers contractors the ability to monitor where their fleet of equipment is currently located, which machines are running, and the level of productivity being achieved. With GPS and three-dimensional digital site models, machines can grade, compact, mill, and pave with astounding accuracies. Machines can “tell” owners when it’s time for scheduled maintenance and diagnose the cause of mechanical and hydraulic issues.
It’s in this area of diagnostic software where cutting edge developments are occurring. Remote diagnostics can provide real-time data, which can address a contractor’s worse nightmare: a stalled machine.
“We have developed a custom remote diagnostic system for our machines that can address a problem and correct it to maintain the contractor’s productivity,” states Max Peters, Guardian account manager with Roadtec. “Our Roadtec Guardian Telematics System consists of software, on-machine viewing screens, and wireless signal boosters to send and receive data from the machine.”
Numerous functions such as engine data and fuel consumption can be viewed at the machine or on a computer screen from a remote location.
With telematics, construction contractors have access to engine information—a lot of data that can make certain the machine’s engine keeps operating efficiently. The data can tell company personnel if an engine is faltering, how much fuel is being burned, if the engine is idle, how long it’s been idling, and where the engine, i.e., the machine, is located.
With the emergence of telematics, contractors are experiencing the benefits of technology. Fleet management can help track assets and save time when a need emerges for a piece of heavy equipment that may be sitting idle on the other side of a job site or at another location.
Engine diagnostics can prevent costly workflow slow downs or stoppages. A machine that’s dead on the site not only affects the workflow, but can mess up a contractor’s timetable. Missing a deadline can incur penalties and affect the contractor’s ability to move on quickly to other jobs and opportunities.
The engine diagnostics feature of telematics has certainly helped contractors meet the demands of today’s expectations for shorter completion deadlines and slimmer margins. There is little room for errors.
There is a flaw in the most current evolution of the telematics engine diagnostics picture: the tremendous amount of data and benefits are there, if the engine is running. What happens when the engine has stopped?
“We’ve taken the next logical step with telematics and can diagnose why a machine’s engine has stopped,” says Peters. “Telematics can tell the contractor that the engine has stopped, where our system tells why.”
This technology innovation promises to address the following:
- Show why the engine won’t start, such as a failed neutral switch on a propel joystick or possibly an E-Stop that isn’t activated because a wire is loose—or perhaps a circuit breaker didn’t “pop,” but failed internally. Additionally, the contractor will be able to see what the battery voltage is when trying to crank the engine.
- Provide a visual guide—so the machine operator, technician, or machine owner can see where the voltage path stops in the circuit under test.
- Create customized fault codes for the machine, not just the engine. With this advance, a contractor can be notified when a steering or grade sensor fails, as well as receive warnings when hydraulic pressures or temperatures are out of spec.
- Educate a new technician who is not familiar with the circuit/system by guiding them directly to the problem.
- Provide access to engine operating data in real time with fault code reporting. The fault codes are decoded and provide the fault description in text, not just an SPN number.
Clearly, the ability to troubleshoot and know why an engine has stopped can help technicians be better prepared to repair and restore a machine back to productivity. In this way, telematics is geared toward increasing job-site productivity and uptime for business owners, and clearly reflects a continued evolution of the benefits of technology in construction today.
Telematics systems consist of software, on-machine viewing screens, and wireless signal boosters to send and receive data at the machine. Numerous functions such as engine data and fuel consumption can be viewed at the machine, on the owner’s computer screen from a remote location, and by a system providers’ support personnel.
“Let me give you an example of the benefits of having a contractor’s machine connected to our support,” states Peters. “Our support center received a notice from a milling machine working in Florida reporting that the signal from the left front pulse pickup was lost. A pulse pickup monitors the speed of the hydraulic motors that drive the tracks. On this particular machine, the left front track pulse pickup value showed zero and all other track pulse pickup values were normal.”
Peters continues, “An engineer at our place logged into that machine in Florida and confirmed the condition. The engineer called the owner of the milling machine and told them, and the customer quickly found a broken wire. The problem was corrected within 30 minutes of the time we received the notice.”
With telematics, it is possible to monitor and troubleshoot everything from the machine’s fuel consumption to engine codes; starting circuits to cutter circuits; and the machine’s propel functions, load controls, hydraulics, steering circuits, and grade and slope settings. Everything can be seen instantly, even the exact location of the machine via GPS.
Help from technical service is only a phone call away. With Roadtec’s Guardian, for instance, technicians are available 24/7. The support staff technicians can see the same machine circuits and systems as live schematics that the contractor sees and can guide them through a fix or do it for them remotely.
Telematics appears to be helping milling and paving customers stay ahead of the technology evolution occurring in road construction today. Telematics innovations appear to offer options that can help contractors control production; monitor progress; be alerted to any problems; and help manage the machine, the project, and their business.
