Infrared beam technology, used extensively in household remotes and appliances along with military defense applications, has long been proven and reliable.

The widespread use of this technology lowers the cost of components, allowing TransCore's breakthrough infrared cargo sensor to be priced affordably for fleets. Prices are less than $100 for purchases in volume.

Trailers are a costly resource and the availability of trailers for new loads can determine whether a fleet operator is selected by a shipper.

As fleets face a tight economy, escalating gas prices and narrow margins, demand is increasing for technologies that increase asset visibility, usage and ultimately profitability.

The value proposition for satellite trailer tracking is improved trailer utilization and enhanced security as demanded by shippers and increasingly becoming a concern of regulators.

These requirements are quickly making TransCore's trailer tracking service and suite of sensors integral to today's modern trucking companies' operations.

"Adding satellite communication technology was an essential element of our strategic vision. The introduction of the additional GlobalWave sensors, and particularly the infrared cargo sensor, marks the beginning of a series of upcoming design innovations in satellite communications," said John Worthington, TransCore's president.

TransCore, the largest global manufacturer of transportation-based RFID wireless communication products, acquired the GlobalWave satellite tracking and global positioning system (GPS) technology in March of last year, making TransCore the only manufacturer to offer both major wireless monitoring technologies.

The GlobalWave system allows users to monitor, manage, track and communicate with remote and mobile assets from a Web interface. With six ground control stations providing service to five continents, the GlobalWave network supports more than 40,000 installed mobile terminals worldwide.

In addition to commercial trucking, GlobalWave products are used for many other transportation applications such as refrigerated goods management, railroad, marine, heavy equipment, and government requirements for defense and homeland security.

GlobalWave Sensors

Cargo Sensor: detects the presence or absence of cargo. An event trigger is used to notify fleet managers when trailers are loaded and ready for pick-up or unloaded and ready for assignment.

The cargo sensor transmits infrared (IR) light pulses down the length of the trailer, approximately 2 feet above the floor from the front of the trailer toward the rear door. Specific features include:

- Selectively enable or disable scans;

- Programmable scan interval from minutes to hours;

- Polled, pre-scheduled, and event triggered reporting;

- Reports include load status, position, and event timestamp;

- Fully compatible with the GlobalWave MT2000 system;

- Configurable "over the air" or independently via the RS-232 port.

Temperature Sensor: Allows a refrigerated truck temperature or even the inner skin of a tanker's temperature to be monitored. High or low temperature settings can be alarmed when settings are exceeded. These alarms are automatically sent by satellite to the fleet operations center.

Ultimately, all sensor data is fed into a GlobalWave data communications terminal mounted on the asset. The MT2000 can accept input from multiple sensors installed on a single asset.

The data is relayed via satellite to a convenient Web-based interface for immediate use by the customer's fleet operations center.

Using this interface, the customer can access data reports tailored to operational needs. Such reports can be requested on demand, triggered by an event such as a change in load status, or sent to the operator on a pre-scheduled basis. Email alerts can be generated as well.

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