T he Orchid and Tracker systems both use the satellite-based Global
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Positioning System (G PS) to determine the position of a vehicle anywhere in the UK (or, in theory, the world) to within room. The GPS receiver, a small electronic module powered by the vehicle's battery, communicates its position to a GSM module: this is essentially a mobile phone unit, which uses SMS (the Short Messaging System) to provide a link to a computer base station. The base station can be in the operator's office or at the service provider's headquarters.
Position and speed information is transmitted to the operator's PC, providing a map. based display or generating text reports. Software can also alert the operator that a vehicle is outside (or within) a specified area, or that a vehicle has moved when it should not. The system could also form part of a fully featured fleet management system. The GSM unit can also communicate in the other direction, with the option of providing a voice or text link between the vehicle and the operator. The Orchid system provided by Global Telematics is connected to the operator via Orchid HQ; the Tracker Communicator system is linked directly to a PC in the operator's office, with the option of access via Tracker HQ.
Installation
We had both systems installed in CM'S own vehicles: an Orchid tracking unit with an SMS text display in our long-term test Vauxhall Astravan: a similar set-up (without the display) in a Ford Monde° saloon; and the Tracker system (with a limited voice capability) in our long-term Ford Ranger pickup.
Each installation was handled at CM's base by a mobile engineer in less than two hours. All the basic hardware was easily installed behind the fascia without any drilling or cutting, and the aerials were small and discreet.
All the hardware is equally suited to 12V or 24V operation, via earth or wired return. The primary limitation is that the vehicle needs a permanently charged battery, so trailers cannot be tracked independently. Both Orchid and Tracker are understood to be working on self-powered systems which can be fitted to trailers.
Using the software
Both software packages were sup plied to us ready installed on high
Structure
Communicator comprises three separate pieces of software: TrackBase Client (textbased vehicle information), TrackX (mapping software) and TrackAdm in (a configuration and administration package). Orchid's system was also made up of different parts. but everything we needed to track and map was accessible through its main Fleet Mapper software.
The main difference this seems to make is that while the Orchid system provides a screen featuring both text-based vehicle information and mapping, Communicator uses separate pieces of software running concurrently and updating each other.
This means that with Communicator you need to physically switch between map arid text as required. You can tile the windows to display the map window along with the text, but selecting one of the text windows still makes the map disappear.
Unfortunately. if you close down the Tra ckX mapping side of Communicator. there is no way to restart it from within TrackBase Client. In fact the only option is to close down all the software entirely and restart it, as it is all opened simultaneously by a single icon on the desktop.
Both packages were similarly configured to provide the key vehicle information—location. speed, direction, time and date; and both of them can be configured. with suitably equipped vehicles, to offer other information, such as opening or closing of trailer doors.
Both can be used to update vehicle information automatically at pre-set intervals, to replay past trips and to set up virtual "zones" on maps and alert the user when vehicles enter or leave those zones. Both also have decent reporting facilities.
So how did we find their performance?
Love or hate?
The short answer is that both Communicator and Orchid generally worked well during our test period, polling vehicles as often as we wanted and faithfully reporting the latest positional information back to us. Both also showed vehicle positions correctly on their maps, and were capable of generating a variety of reports based on the information gathered.
In terms of what you see on screen, Communicator's text-based main screen features a notice board listing your vehicles and their most recent location; another window defines server and comms activity (which includes a nice but somewhat pointless graphical display of server response time); and a very useful window outlining historical vehicle data, set to whatever period of time you require (data outside these limits can still be accessed as special reports).
The separate map screen was fine, apart from the annoying problem described above when you close it down. The map supplied to us was a UK overview map—essentially like your average UK road map—which was fine for general positioning information, but was not able to track a truck from street to street. However, street-level mapping is available for some UK towns.
By contrast, Orchid's UK-wide street-level map is quite superb. Even quiet country lanes are included, and if you click on a road a little box pops up with postcode. road name and house number information. This means you could use this system to guide a vehicle street by street to its exact destination anywhere in the country, within the limits of that loom accuracy.
The text-based information on Orchid's main screen consists of a list of vehicles with a compact set of boxes above detailing key positional information on whichever one you've got highlighted. There's also a small window at the bottom that updates you on any communications activities—a very welcome addition to the previous version of the software. A vehicle's historical data can be accessed via the main menus.
Reporting functions
Orchid's Fleet Reporter will give detailed status and position events for a vehicle between two defined dates and times, with a summary of maximum speed during that period, total distance, and total time spent with the igni
tion on or off. It's a nice set of data, giving all the basic information plus a summary. It can also be tailored to include running time, standing time, distances, average speed, number of trips and so on.
Communicator's reporting is more complex. You can get either a basic TVC report (rather like the Orchid one just described, but without the summaries of speed. distance. etc). or you can get a selection of Microsoft Access-based reports for all the summaries you could ever want. A nice touch.
However, switching between these options is not straightforward, and nor is closing down either one. You can't, for instance, select "File" and "Exit", nor can you use the cross in the top right hand corner of the window. Instead you have to minimise the report and from the main "Notice Board" screen select an option to close the reporting application.
Then you go into the configuration screen, select the other report type, exit this, restart the reporting application and generate your fresh report, re-entering time and date...if you still have the stomach for it. Phew!
Ups and downs
Most things worked very well with the Orchid system, though we were frustrated for a while by the fact that it kept on disconnecting itself from the dial-in connection: most annoying. We rang the company at 3pm one weekday afternoon to discuss this and found there was no dedicated help desk, and all the technical people who could help were "currently unavailable"—even more annoying.
It's a shame there isn't a proper bo.
help desk manned during office hours, although we did get a call back i5 minutes later The problem turned out to be no more than an automatic time-out setting to prevent the user accidentally leaving himself on-line and totting up a needless bill.
However, on occasion we also had some problems trying to reconnect, with the software reporting it was permanently connecting without getting to connected status, and on another occasion giving no information at all about connection status. This problem remains unexplained. Global Telecom st gests that problems with modems m occur if they are operating on a line shar with a standard phone (which it was) or the line is routed through a digital switc board (which it wasn't).
Apart from this, there was also one ho disputed report of one of our test vehicl reaching a highly illegal speed during o journey; the driver is adamant he didn't within 15mph of that speed.
Assuming he didn't reach the report speed without realising it, this might b( cause for concern. We looked at the oth test vehicle fitted with the Orchid syste and found that its maximum reported spe again sounded a little on the high side to t driver in question, but wasn't really cone] sive either way. The Orchid system al seemed to round speeds to the near( 5km/h, or the equivalent in mph.
The one other query we had with t Orchid system was that the map doesn't au matically update if you change the vehi4 selected in the text list next to it. So if, havi: located one vehicle on the map, you selec second from the list in the adjacent windo the map remains on the first, even though t text information above the vehicle list h been updated to show details for the secor This means a casual glance at the scre, could easily mislead.
But this is a small gripe and overall, the vi sion of Orchid Fleet Mapper we had-1.5a ran very well indeed (in marked contrast version 1.5 with which we were initially su plied and which was beset by many odd prc lerns, including a sudden inability to track test vehicle at all).
Communicator was rather less convinci: all round. Apart from the problems alrea described, there were one or two moments marked inconsistency. At one point, for exai pie, the mapping software showed the vel cle's last reported position in one place wh the text-based information showed it another. Oops!
Communicator was also a lot less easy use in general. Apart from the problems dosing down maps and reports described e; lier, there were a number of other glitches. F
D example, in defining dates and times for historical reports to work on, the four short-cut buttons designed to make selection of times and dates easy with preset options (for today, yesterday, the past 24 hours and the past week) didn't set them correctly. A nice
idea—if only it had worked properly.
And the gazetteer, tested on CM'S home town of Sutton. Surrey, came up with 18 different entries on a list with no indication of which was where, leaving us to find out by trial and error, then go back to square one to try the next. Ever heard of counties, Tracker?
Summary
Despite this, both systems generally worked well, proving capable of tracking vehicles and reporting on them efficiently.
Overall we preferred the Orchid system for its smoother interface, ease of use and general reliability (in its latest version). Communicator, we felt, remains a decent option, but was too awkward to use for us to ever really warm to it.
The main problem with both systems and, as far as we know, all current systems, is that they can get up-to-date information out of a vehicle only if the ignition is on, or has been on recently.
It's a major disappointment to get hold of the latest tracking equipment only to find you can't always tell where your
■ •• cvehicles are, instead being restricted to where they were when they last set off. What you really want to know is where they are right now—at all times
Simply assuming that the last reported position is still current and that all the equipment is working properly doesn't necessarily provide the kind of peace of mind you were probably looking for when you invested in the system.
Faced with this, the chances are you'll do what you always did, and simply call your driver on his mobile for an update that, as long as you trust him, could still outperform CUTrent tracking technology.
• by Robin Moues and Toby Clark
CONTACTS: Tracker, 01895 234567 or www.tracker-network.co.uk; Orchid, 020 8974 Ito° or www.global-telemadcs.com.