AOBRD or ELD – The LiveViewGPS Difference
14 Dec 2017By next week fleet customers will have to have done two things to remain legal on the road.
First, they will need to have purchased an Electronic Monitoring Device. The second choice they have- for this week only- is “should I run in AOBRD mode or ELD mode?” What are the pros and cons of each choice?
I have been driving in both modes to test the LiveViewGPS software and have some observations.
Choose AOBRD
Pros:
AOBRD mode still allows me to make manual transitions that allow me to choose when to note the time that I’ve spent driving.
The Engine Bus Monitoring device still reports the actual Odometer reading so there is no difficulty tracking mileage driven for each trip segment
IFTA report generation is the same in AOBRD mode and saves a lot of time and clerical work.
Logs can be edited without noting every edit.
A company can switch to ELD for a new vehicle easily with no additional training.
Cons:
The only con that I observed was that you needed to remember to transition of On Duty Not Driving whenever you stop. Otherwise, an edit might be needed.
Choose ELD
Pros:
ELD is easier, you can’t make a mistake, and the app does everything in the world that I can think of for you. Remember, the HOS rules have not changed a
bit with this new legislation.
Cons:
On Duty Driving is automatically selected when the commercial vehicle exceeds 5 MPH
Drive time can’t be edited
Any edit to other time entries are noted on the device and in the portal as Edited Entries
Then By next week fleet customers will have to have done two things to remain legal on the road. First, they will need to have purchased an Electronic Monitoring Device. The second choice they have- for this week only- is “should I run in AOBRD mode or ELD mode?” What are the pros and cons of each choice? I have been driving in both mode to test the LiveViewGPS software and have some observations.
The LiveViewGPS HOS software was created for use in ELD mode (395.20) originally and has every exemption in every jurisdiction in the US and Canada available to a driver. Several revisions ago, we had fleet owners come to us telling us that their customers wanted an AOBRD choice. We listened and made some changes to the HOS app based on their inputs. You still get all the advantages of a comprehensive software package written to the latest standards and to take advantage of the latest technology available in engine bus monitors. Fleet owners will have more flexibility and once they choose to put a vehicle into AOBRD service. They can replace that vehicle and still use it in AOBRD mode until December 2019.
The engine bus monitor is still synchronized with the HOS application and every mile driven by the commercial vehicle is still reported. Drivers can select automatic transitions at a range of speeds all the way up to 100 miles an hour, a threshold where all transitions are manual. Even if you choose an automatic transition at 25 mph, we have disabled a helpful feature that was required by the FMCSA for ELD – the automatic transition to “On Duty Not Driving” when the vehicle is stationary. This could be helpful to conserve eligible drive time for even a short stop at a railroad crossing but the driver must remember to make the transition manually in AOBRD mode. The engine odometer reading is automatic and will be recorded in the log at any automatic or manual transition made by the driver. Border crossings automatically note odometer readings. IFTA reports will still be accurate and the LiveViewGPS app has a great way for the driver to take a picture of the fuel receipt and enter the information at the time of purchase so you avoid the headache of keeping track of small bits of paper. The truck is selected for AOBRD, not the driver. If the truck is placed into service under AOBRD rules, it can be used in this mode until December 19, 2019. Go into the settings menu on the portal, choose Equipment, and where you enter the VIN and license plate, choose ELD or AOBRD mode on a pull-down menu. Technically, new trucks added to the fleet next month will need to be in ELD mode, but “replacement” trucks can still be in AOBRD mode.
You can edit logs in either mode. In ELD mode, there is a notation made on the log and in the back-end server that this entry was edited. In ELD mode, you can edit everything but “Drive” time. In AOBRD mode, you can edit the time of manual transitions but not the automatic transitions. All edits have the edit notation suppressed in AOBRD mode allowing much more flexibility.
AOBRD Implementation with LiveViewGPS
All logs still show manual transitions versus automatic transitions.
When the vehicle is in motion, the lock screen is still in place, so the driver can’t edit on the device while the vehicle is in motion. You can still choose a screen that shows time until violation or the four clocks screen that shows daily drive time left, shift and cycle time and time until break.
Violations are not displayed in red on the logs screen for the driver. The Roadside Inspection mode is the same for both modes and we do not show violations to compliance officers highlighted in any way. The driver must enter his password before removing his device from Roadside Inspection mode.
Using LiveViewGPS, the software interface is the same in either mode, so it is easy to transition drivers when new vehicles are put in service that must comply with ELD. We worked hard to make the software easy to use and understand and we have a lot of feedback from drivers confirming that this is the best HOS application available.HOS software was created for use in ELD mode (395.20) originally and has every exemption in every jurisdiction in the US and Canada available to a driver. Several revisions ago, we had fleet owners come to us telling us that their customers wanted an AOBRD choice. We listened and made some changes to the HOS app based on their inputs. You still get all the advantages of a comprehensive software package written to the latest standards and to take advantage of the latest technology available in engine bus monitors. Fleet owners will have more flexibility and once they choose to put a vehicle into AOBRD service. They can replace that vehicle and still use it in AOBRD mode until December 2019.
The engine bus monitor is still synchronized with the HOS application and every mile driven by the commercial vehicle is still reported. Drivers can select automatic transitions at a range of speeds all the way up to 100 miles an hour, a threshold where all transitions are manual. Even if you choose an automatic transition at 25 mph, we have disabled a helpful feature that was required by the FMCSA for ELD – the automatic transition to “On Duty Not Driving” when the vehicle is stationary. This could be helpful to conserve eligible drive time for even a short stop at a railroad crossing but the driver must remember to make the transition manually in AOBRD mode. The engine odometer reading is automatic and will be recorded in the log at any automatic or manual transition made by the driver. Border crossings automatically note odometer readings. IFTA reports will still be accurate and the LiveViewGPS app has a great way for the driver to take a picture of the fuel receipt and enter the information at the time of purchase so you avoid the headache of keeping track of small bits of paper. The truck is selected for AOBRD, not the driver. If the truck is placed into service under AOBRD rules, it can be used in this mode until December 19, 2019. Go into the settings menu on the portal, choose Equipment, and where you enter the VIN and license plate, choose ELD or AOBRD mode on a pull-down menu. Technically, new trucks added to the fleet next month will need to be in ELD mode, but “replacement” trucks can still be in AOBRD mode.
You can edit logs in either mode. In ELD mode, there is a notation made on the log and in the back-end server that this entry was edited. In ELD mode, you can edit everything but “Drive” time. In AOBRD mode, you can edit the time of manual transitions but not the automatic transitions. All edits have the edit notation suppressed in AOBRD mode allowing much more flexibility.
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