AOBRD vs ELD: What’s the Difference?

7 Dec 2017

An Automatic on-board recording device (AOBRD) is an electric, electronic, electromechanical, or mechanical device capable of recording driver’s duty status information accurately and automatically as required by § 395.15. The device must be integrally synchronized with specific operations of the commercial vehicle in which it is installed and, at a minimum, must record:

Engine Use
Road speed
Miles driven
Date and Time

AOBRD’s are defined in § 395.2 and regulated in § 395.15. These regulations were introduced in 1988 and are nearly 30 years old. The systems that implement AOBRD technology tend to be based on older technology and will become obsolete on December 18, 2017.

ELDs Meet FMCSA’s 395.20 Regulations

Last year in the ELD Mandate, FMCSA introduced a new class of devices, Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs), that are defined in § 395.20 regulations. These new devices are required to be used by drivers who are subject to record of duty status (RODS) regulations by December 18, 2017.

ELDs represent the latest in technology and are much more sophisticated than the soon to be outmoded AOBRDs. Among other things ELDs must be integrally synchronized with the engine on a commercial vehicle and must capture:

Engine power status
Vehicle motion status
Total miles driven
Total engine hours
Engine power status
Vehicle speed
Vehicle location

ELDs are more advanced than AOBRDs and are required to automate the capture of RODS data automatically at each duty status change, every 60 minutes while the vehicle is in motion, at engine power-on and off events, and at the beginning and end of personal use and yard moves. In addition, ELDs must be capable of automatically transferring RODS data to FMCSA and must monitor themselves for diagnostics and malfunctions.

The LiveViewGPS ELD implementation uses an Android or iOS device that connects wirelessly to an dongle or telematics device that is connected the the vehicle bus. To meet the vehicle monitoring requirements, vehicle data is streamed continuously from the vbus device to the Android or iOS mobile device. The mobile device processes this information on a background thread, performs the necessary calculations, presents the information to the driver using the familiar grid chart, and synchronizes it with back office servers that run on Amazon Web services.

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About George Karonis

George Karonis is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of LiveViewGPS Inc., a company he established in 2008 with the vision of making real-time GPS tracking more reliable, affordable, and accessible for businesses of all sizes. Over the past two decades, he has built a reputation as an innovator in GPS tracking, fleet management, asset monitoring, and Push-to-Talk over Cellular (PTToC) communications. Under George's leadership, LiveViewGPS has grown into a nationally recognized provider of GPS tracking solutions, serving businesses, government agencies, educational institutions, law enforcement organizations, and public works departments throughout the United States. The company's technology helps organizations improve operational efficiency, protect valuable assets, increase driver safety, and reduce operating costs through real-time location intelligence. Before founding LiveViewGPS, George developed a background in security, surveillance, and emerging location technologies. His passion for innovation and practical problem solving has driven the development of products that combine dependable hardware with easy-to-use cloud software, giving customers actionable information when it matters most. In 2018, George expanded into nationwide Push-to-Talk over Cellular communications by launching PeakPTT, providing businesses with rugged, instant communication solutions that operate over LTE and Wi-Fi networks. His focus has remained the same throughout his career: delivering dependable technology backed by exceptional customer service and long-term customer relationships. George regularly writes about GPS tracking, fleet management, asset protection, business technology, and communication systems. Through this blog, he shares industry insights, practical advice, and emerging trends to help organizations make informed decisions about tracking technology and connected operations.