IoT Dictionary
Acceleration
Acceleration is the rate at which the vehicle speed increases. It is the opposite of deceleration.
Accelerometer
A device that measures acceleration.
Alternative fuel
Alternative fuel vehicles, or AFVs, use combinations of alternative power sources and technologies to reduce the use of propulsion involving crude oil.
Active GPS tracking device
Also: Active GPS tracker. GPS tracking device that sends data at regular intervals to a central server. This allows real-time track and trace of a vehicle, including geo-fencing.
Analog tachograph
In-vehicle device that records speed, distance and driving time on an analogue device.
API
An application-programming interface (API) is a set of programming instructions and standards for accessing a Web-based software application or Web tool. It allows software applications to connect, communicate and exchange information or functionality with each other.
Asset tracking
Asset tracking is the process of monitoring and keeping track of the exact location, status, position and other relevant information of your company’s assets.
Active GPS tracking device
Also: Active GPS tracker. GPS tracking device that sends data at regular intervals to a central server. This allows real-time track and trace of a vehicle, including geo-fencing.
ADAS
Almost all vehicle accidents are caused by human error, which can be avoided with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). The role of ADAS is to prevent deaths and injuries by reducing the number of car accidents and the serious impact of those that cannot be avoided.
Essential safety-critical ADAS applications include:
Pedestrian detection/avoidance
Lane departure warning/correction
Traffic sign recognition
Automatic emergency braking
Blind spot detection
Active Safety
Active systems give the driver more control in dangerous situations. Simply put, active safety systems avoid or mitigate an accident pre-impact – so before it happens or contact is made. They are also known as ‘primary’ safety features.
Battery voltage
Battery voltage is one of the many items that can be tracked by a telematics system. By tracking battery voltage, you can better monitor vehicle health.
BeiDou
Formerly known as COMPASS. Chinese version of a Global Navigation Satellite System.
Bluetooth
A wireless connection used for everyday equipment like computers and phones. It only connects over a short distance, and basically replaces cable connections. This makes it especially useful for equipment used outdoors, such as mobile phones and portable navigation devices.
Business integration
The integration of a fleet management solution with existing business applications. An example of a typical systems integration is connecting a fleet management solution with a workforce management system. This enables optimisation of daily operations by dynamic scheduling of deliveries, resources and loads.
BSD
The blind spot monitor or blind-spot monitoring is a vehicle-based sensor device that detects other vehicles located to the driver’s side and rear. Warnings can be visual, audible, vibrating, or tactile.
Blind spot monitors may do more than monitor the sides and rear of the vehicle. They may also include "Rear Cross-Traffic Alert", "which alerts drivers backing out of a parking space when traffic is approaching from the sides."
Breathalyzer
A Breathalyzer a device for estimating blood alcohol content (BAC).
Body Camera
A body camera, bodycam, body worn video (BWV), body-worn camera, or wearable camera is a wearable audio, video, or photographic recording system.
CANbus
Controller Area Network bus. Vehicle bus standard that allows a vehicle’s electronic control units, such as engine, antilock braking/ABS, airbags, cruise control, electronic fuel injection, automatic gear box, and battery systems, to communicate with each other without a central computer.
Car connectivity
Connectivity is the linking of information and communication technology (ICT) between people, machines and the Internet of Things (IoT). Car connectivity enables the vehicle to share and receive internet access and data with other devices.
Cargo monitoring
Real-time cargo monitoring reveals what’s happening to the cargo while in transit in between logistics milestones. Monitoring the condition of cargo in transit verifies the quality of incoming components and monitors the fulfillment of safety and environmental regulations. The insights from cargo monitoring help to coordinate supply chain processes more efficiently and optimize them to increase agility in resolving issues, minimize costs, and increase operational efficiency.
Coasting
Keeping a vehicle moving without accelerating while the vehicle remains in gear. When coasting, no fuel is injected into the engine and therefore no fuel is consumed. It is advised not to coast while the vehicle is out of gear or with the clutch depressed as this is dangerous because it reduces driver control.
Connected car
A motor vehicle that is equipped with in-car telematics. This allows connections to other devices in the car or services, networks and devices outside the car.
Coordinates
A set of numbers, or references, that identify your position anywhere on the Earth. Your coordinates are usually stated in terms of latitude and longitude. By knowing that the coordinates of Amsterdam are 52° 22’ latitude and 4° 53’ longitude, you can pinpoint Amsterdam’s exact location on a map.
Dashboard
A dashboard is a visual display of Key Performance Indicators (KPI), shown in one view, making it easy to stay constantly updated on the information that is important to a business. For example, a fleet management dashboard delivers rich and real-time information about the vehicles in a fleet.
Deceleration
Deceleration is the rate at which the vehicle speed decreases. It is the opposite of acceleration.
Digital tachograph
In-vehicle device that digitally records speed, distance and driving time.
Driver terminal
Device and interface which drivers have in their cars that offer functionality such as navigation, work on orders, communication with the dispatch, analysing driving behaviour, levels of eco-friendly driving, driving style improvements, logbook, and more.
Driver Vehicle Inspection Report
A Driver Vehicle Inspection Report (DVIR) is an official record verifying that a driver has completed a full inspection of a commercial vehicle. A DVIR must be completed at the beginning of the day (pre-trip) and end of the day (post-trip) for each day the vehicle is in use.
Driving behaviour
Driving behaviour is an indication of how a driver drives the vehicle, and is determined from various inputs such as speed, braking, coasting, gear shifting, idling, and steering. Driving behaviour can positively impact fuel costs, maintenance, and insurance premiums and help reduce the total cost of vehicle ownership.
Driving event
A driving event occurs when a driver exceeds a certain level of deceleration or acceleration. It is measured by an accelerometer and recorded during braking, cornering and steering and sudden deceleration, such as a crash.
Driving style
How safely and efficiently drivers behave on the road.
Driver ID
When sharing vehicles amongst your personnel, Driver ID allows you to identify which employee is driving which car. You know exactly how much time they spend on the road, on-site or with your customers.
Dynamic dispatching
Procedures to assign jobs to drivers. In fleet management it allows order dispatching from start to finish. Status location and ETA information allows selection of the most suitable driver for a particular job. Instructions and job updates can be sent remotely to Driver Terminals.
Driver hours regulations
Driver hours regulations protect driver’s safety and other road users by ensuring all drivers are in a suitable condition to operate vehicles.
DMS
The driver monitoring system, also known as driver attention monitor, is a vehicle safety system to assess the driver's alertness and warn the driver if needed and eventually apply the brakes.
Engine diagnostics
An engine diagnostic is a test which is performed to learn more about why an engine is not functioning properly
Eco driving
Eco driving is a way of operating a vehicle to control and reduce unnecessary fuel consumption, improve drive and road safety and minimise risk.
Electronic logging device
An ELD (Electronic Log`ging Device) is a digital device that connects to the engine of a vehicle allowing drivers to automatically track all driving activities throughout the day.
ETA
The estimated time of arrival or ETA for short, is the predicted and expected date and time of a vehicle, shipment or delivery at a certain location.
Fleet maintenance
Fleet maintenance refers to all the processes that keep your fleet’s vehicles in good working order, ensuring that they’re as safe and effective as possible.
Fleet management
An industry term used for a broad range of solutions for vehicle-related applications that help companies manage their fleets of vehicles, such as cars, vans, trucks and busses.
Fleet management system
A combination of vehicle-based technology and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) that helps businesses improve vehicle performance, save fuel, improve driver safety, aid risk management and increase overall fleet efficiency.
Fleet manager
The person responsible within a company for everything related to company vehicles and drivers.
Fleet optimisation
All activities related to making a fleet of vehicles more effective and efficient through the use of a fleet management solution. For example, actionable insights that are derived from detailed reports about fuel usage by individuals and the fleet.
Fleet risk management
Minimising fleet risk ensures not only the safety and efficiency of your fleet and operation, but also helps avoid costly fines.
Fleet tracking
Track and trace of a complete fleet of vehicles such as cars, vans, trucks and buses. It allows detailed monitoring of a fleet's location, movements, status and behaviour.
Fuel consumption
Fuel usage of a vehicle measured in l/100 km or MPG (miles per gallon). These metrics act as a standard way of defining and comparing a vehicle’s fuel consumption and efficiency.
Fuel efficiency
The relationship between fuel usage and distance travelled.
Fuel management system
A fuel management system is a process of managing and improving fuel usage and costs.
Fuel monitoring
Monitoring of the fuel consumption and statistics of vehicles within a fleet in order to reduce fuel costs and improve driving behaviour.
Fleet operating costs
Minimising fleet operating costs is one of the top priorities of a fleet manager. If costs run too high, it directly impacts the trucking company’s profit and can lead to a big monetary loss.
Fatigue driving
Minimising fleet operating costs is one of the top priorities of a fleet manager. If costs run too high, it directly impacts the trucking company’s profit and can lead to a big monetary loss.
GALILEO
The European counterpart to GPS.
Geofencing
A geofence can be defined as a virtual fence around a delimited geographical location. Geofencing is the use of this digital fence to trigger an action when entering or leaving this perimeter.
GIS (geographic information system)
GIS (geographic information system) technology is designed to view and manipulate topographical information. Most commonly, GIS is used in the manipulation of maps.
GLONASS
Russian version of a Global Navigation Satellite System.
GNSS
A space-based Global Navigation Satellite System that provides geolocation and time information to a GNSS receiver anywhere on or near the Earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GNSS satellites. Various GNSS systems are available, such as GPS, GALILEO, GLONASS and BeiDou. Navigation and tracking devices will not be compatible with all GNSS systems. GPS is the most commonly-used system for vehicle tracking and navigation.
GPRS
General Packet Radio Service. A system for transmitting high-speed wireless information. It is used for the internet, mobile phones, computers and other data. GPRS is the world’s main system for transmitting mobile phone data.
GPS
Global Positioning System. United States version of a Global Navigation Satellite System. GPS is a satellite-based radio navigation system that consists of up to 32 space satellites, developed by the US Department of Defense. Anyone travelling with a GPS receiver can determine their own position and velocity, thanks to orbiting GPS satellites that are free to use, 24/7, anywhere in the world.
GPS tracking device
Also: GPS tracker. A vehicle tracking device which uses GPS technology.
GPS vehicle tracking
Tracking of vehicles using a device with GPS technology which captures the vehicle location and other information. There are active and passive GPS tracking devices.
Gross vehicle weight
Gross vehicle weight is the total weight of large trucks, hauling trailers and other large vehicles. This is a vital variable for fleet managers to consider for ensuring the safety of roadways.
Heavy goods vehicle
A heavy goods vehicle, or HGV, is any vehicle with a total weight over 3,500 kg including the cargo. An HGV can be also known as a large goods vehicle (LGV), the official EU term
Idle time
Idle time is the time a vehicle stands still with the engine running, or the time the vehicle is moving very slowly. Idle time is typically recorded after five minutes.
Idling
Running the engine of a vehicle when the vehicle is not in motion. Common idling situations are standing still at a red light or waiting while parked with the engine running. Reducing idling has a positive effect on fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions.
Informative tracing
Detailed information about the movement history of a vehicle, in the form of a trail on a map. It includes insights into vehicle movements, highlighting anomalies and exposing patterns.
IoT
The internet of things, or IoT, is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers (UIDs) and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.
A thing in the internet of things can be a person with a heart monitor implant, a farm animal with a biochip transponder, an automobile that has built-in sensors to alert the driver when tire pressure is low or any other natural or man-made object that can be assigned an Internet Protocol (IP) address and is able to transfer data over a network.
Latitude
Geographic coordinate that specifies the north–south position of a point on the Earth's surface.
Longitude
Geographic coordinate that specifies the east–west position of a point on the Earth's surface.
LCV
Abbreviation for light commercial vehicle and the official EU term for a vehicle that has a gross weight of up to 3500 kg.
Light goods vehicle
A light goods vehicle, or LGV, can be defined as a commercial motor vehicle with a total gross weight of 3,500kg or less. Light goods vehicles include commercial vehicles such as vans, pick-up trucks and three-wheelers.
Logbook
The administration of vehicle trips for tax purposes by classifying trips as business or private.
Mileage registration
The manual or automatic registration of miles or kilometers driven in a vehicle.
Mobile workforce management
A mobile workforce is simply described as a group of employees working outside of a physical office location.
Motorcade
A motorcade is the grouping of vehicles under single vehicle group with the same purpose\department.
Motorcade
A motorcade is the grouping of vehicles under single vehicle group with the same purpose\department.
Maintenance management
Maintenance management is defined as the process of maintaining the vehicles and assets of a company, which has as main objective to control and reduce costs, times, and resources. It goes through the regular monitoring of the functioning of machines, equipment, facilities, and tools.
OBD-II / OBD2
On-Board-Diagnostics is automotive terminology for a vehicle’s self-diagnostic and reporting capability. OBD systems were designed to monitor engine performance, but also provide early warnings of malfunctions. It assists in the service and repair of vehicles because it allows quick and simple retrieval of vital automobile diagnostics information from the OBD system using simple scanning tools. The OBD system was introduced in the 1980’s by car manufacturers and the most modern version is OBD-II. In most cars or light commercial vehicles, the OBD-II port can be found below the steering wheel.
OEM (original equipment manufacturer)
The term “original equipment manufacturer,” abbreviated as “OEM,” refers to companies that produce cars and trucks and also those that manufacture parts and equipment for vehicles. For more information on how Geotab integrates with third-party information provided through built-in OEM devices, read this article.
Over the air (OTA)
Over the Air (OTA) testing evaluates the performance of the integrated antenna on a telematics device (and many others) to understand the safety and risks behind using a particular type of device — consider all the safety labels seen on electronics in general. This particular test makes sure the device meets the minimum levels of radiation (total radiated power) and sensitivity (total isotropic power) and is only one of three main aspects of testing these types of devices. Read more here.
Passive GPS tracking device
Also: Passive GPS tracker. GPS tracking device that stores data without sending it to a central server. Data is downloaded and evaluated when the vehicle returns to its home base.
POI
Points of Interest or POIs are useful places on the map, for example fuel stations, garages or hotels
Route optimisation
The process of planning and optimising routes for a vehicle or a fleet of vehicles by taking into account location, driving time and distance.
RPM
Revolutions per minute. It is commonly used to measure the rotational speed of a mechanical component, such as engine speed.
Refuel
The amount of fuel fueled in the vehicle periodically.
SaaS-Platform
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is a software distribution model where a provider hosts applications and makes them accessible to clients over the internet. You pay for the usage instead of buying and being owner of the software. The SaaS provider is responsible for installation, maintenance and support of the platform and it removes the expense of hardware, maintenance and licensing from an organisation.
Service intervals
Service intervals are the frequency in which you should service a vehicle. Vehicle maintenance is essential for the longevity and overall health.
Speeding time
This is the total time that a driver has driven over the speed limit.
Satellite positioning
Satellite Navigation is based on a global network of satellites that transmit radio signals from medium earth orbit. Users of Satellite Navigation are most familiar with the 31 Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites developed and operated by the United States.
Satellite positioning is the number of satellites the tracking device may pick up(IE satellite modem signal strength)
Smart water meter
Smart water meters are devices that measure and communicate water usage from consumer to provider to facilitate water management and proper billing. These meters are equipped with an electronic computing unit, or ECU, that facilitates communication between the meter and the supplier.
Tachograph
A tachograph is a device that is placed in large vehicles, usually trucks and buses, to automatically record speed, distance and driving time. It is legally required to use a tachograph if the driven vehicle comes under EU (European Union) or AETR (from French: Accord Européen sur les Transports Routiers) rules. It forces drivers and employers to accurately record their activities, keep these records, and send them on demand to authorities in charge of the enforcement of drivers’ working hours.
Tachograph manager
Tachograph Manager is a complete digital tachograph solution that allows remote and manual data downloads. It also allows analysis of driver performance data, from driving time to rest periods. All data is securely archived for easy retrieval.
Telematics
Telematics combines two words: telecommunications and informatics. It is a range of technologies that leverage connectivity (Internet or short-range communications technology) with location, diagnostic or other information to provide convenience (for example tyre inflation notification or setting the vehicle's internal temperature), safety (for example location based warnings or road conditions), and communications services.
Total cost of ownership (TCO)
The total cost of ownership (TCO) is a comprehensive financial analysis on the complete lifecycle of a capital purchase.
Track & trace
The process of determining the current and historic locations (and other information) of a vehicle or fleet using GPS technology.
Trip
A trip is a movement of a vehicle from a start position to an end position.
Truck Tracking
Truck tracking is the process of monitoring the position, status and driving behaviour of your fleet’s trucks using GPS technology.
Tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS)
Tyre pressure monitoring systems help you avoid vehicle downtime by keeping the correct tyre pressure and keeping the vehicle safe on the road.
Two-way communication
Two-way communication involves feedback from the receiver to the sender. This allows the sender to know the message was received accurately by the receiver. Communication is also negotiated which means that the sender and receiver listen to each other, the messages then gather information to respond.
Urban analytics
Urban analytics is the collection and analysis of data on smart city processes and environment. Hazardous driving areas, intersection metrics, areas of idling and hyper-local precipitation are examples of datasets that smart cities can use to support traffic optimization, and improve safety and the environment.
Vehicle Offline
When a vehicle is not available for use for any reason, that period of time is referred to as vehicle downtime. Vehicle downtime can be triggered for a number of reasons, though often the cause is some form of malfunction or damage to the vehicle that requires repairs or part replacements.
Vehicle maintenance reporting standards
The Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards, also known as VMRS, is a universal coding system used to obtain, assort and communicate fleet information. In short, VMRS can be defined as the universal language for fleet maintenance.
Vehicle tracing
Vehicle tracing is the ability to see a vehicle's historic positions, movements, and other events.
Vehicle tracking
Monitoring the position, movement, and other events of a vehicle in real time.
Vehicle tracking app
A mobile application that compliments a vehicle tracking device and allows real time tracking.
Vehicle tracking device
A device equipped with GPS technology that is plugged into a vehicle and allows real-time track and trace of the vehicle's movements.
Vehicle tracking system
A device equipped with a GNSS technology, such as GPS, that is plugged into a vehicle and allows real-time track and trace of the vehicle's movements.
Vehicle type
Classification of a vehicle, for example car, van, truck or bus.
Vehicle utilisation
Vehicle utilisation is a measurement of vehicle performance. against resulting profitability.
Vehicle utilisation
Vehicle utilisation is a measurement of vehicle performance. against resulting profitability.
Vehicle GPS GSM alarm system
Vehicle GPS GSM alarm system is an anti-theft device which allows you to monitor and track your vehicle while monitoring for any vehicle intrusion.
Workforce management
A set of processes and features that an organisation uses to improve the productivity of individual employees. In relation to fleet management, it helps improve communication between drivers on the road and the office.
Working time registration
Automatic registration of a driver's working times using a Driver Terminal. It helps reduce administration time and optimise the performance of the team.
White label
White Label Software is software that a company uses and brands as its software
Zones
Zones lets you define virtual boundaries or "fences" around real geographic locations. Zones are simply geometric areas described by the radius from a given coordinate or a collection of coordinates that define the fenced area.