GPS equipment tracking can be a huge boon for businesses that tend to operate during summer weather and with plenty of sunshine. If you’re like many seasonal businesses, you rely on a lot of tools and equipment to keep your business going. Tools that are often left unattended while your workers are busy and that sometimes, by mistake, go home in workers pockets, hanging on their belts, or in the backs of their trucks.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the public education and outreach campaign called its electronic logging device (ELD) Implementation National Tour that’s tailored for assisting commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers with their switch to ELDs.

Across the country, in several cities, experts in FMCSA subject manner will lead ELD implementation based panel discussions and presentations that are driver-focused. All carriers, by law, who are accountable to the ELD Rule and don’t have an Automatic On-Board Recording Device (AOBRD) by 12/18/2017, must switch from logging software or paper logs to a registered ELD. At their exhibit booth, FMCSA agency staff will provide materials and resources that are consumer-friendly, answer questions, and review carriers’ and drivers’ responsibilities.

The rule will gradually switch AOBRDs with ELDs over a 4-year implementation period for carriers using AOBRDs prior to the 12/18/2017 rule compliance date.

The intention of the ELD rule is to provide drivers with a safer work atmosphere. It’s also designed to make it faster and easier to track, share, and manage records of duty status (RODS) information accurately.

An ELD integrates with the engine of a vehicle to record driving time automatically for more accurate and easier hours of service (HOS) recording.

The ELD Rule:

• Details who’s secured by the rule and who’s an exception.
• Accommodates for ELDs to be registered, certified and indexed on a FMCSA website.
• Ensures ELDs are compliant and standardized by including technical specifications.
• Ensures carriers and drivers have enough time to comply by including a phased implementation timeline.
• Helps prevent harassment of drivers and data tampering by including certain provisions.
• Makes it quicker to share RODS and demonstrate compliance with safety officials by creating standard data transfer and data displays processes.

ELD Rule Impacts

Drivers and carriers accountable to the rule are required to install ELDs and use them by the appointed deadline.

Drivers and carriers are required to switch to ELDs by 12/18/2017 who are using logging software and paper logs

Drivers and carriers are required to switch to ELDs by 12/16/2019 who use AOBRDS before the compliance date

ELD Manufacturers are required to certify their ELDs, conform to ELD technical specifications, and register both with FMCSA

Enforcement Partners are required to comprehend compliance and enforcement procedures and which regulatory guidance is relevant to each during every implementation phase

Click on the ELD events page to learn more about FMCSA’s ELD Implementation National Tour 2017, and its dates and locations.

You can read about common frequently asked questions about the ELD Rule here.

To learn more about our electronic logging software solution available at LiveView GPS, contact a LiveView GPS expert at 1-888-544-0494, complete our online form, or join our online chat.

Giraffes have long, elegant necks. You’d expect that these would be perfect for attaching GPS trackers to. But, not so. The collars fall right off when the animals lean down to take a drink. Partners and scientists from Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) are trying out a new collar design to combat this problem.

GPS collars were secured around the ossicones (the horn-like structures on top of the heads) of 11 reticulated giraffes in Kenya back in June 2017. These are reporting back hourly information with regards to their location on a daily basis. The Friends of the National Zoo’s Conservation Nation program are funding the GPS trackers with the support of donors.

The study brings together various bodies. Namely, San Diego Zoo Global, SCBI’s Conservation Ecology Center, Senckenberg BiK-F, Smithsonian’s Global Health Program, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya Wildlife Services, Loisaba Conservancy, Giraffe Conservation Foundation, The Nature Conservancy and the Northern Rangelands Trust.

The researchers are looking for answers to many questions such as what are the biggest threats to giraffe’s survival, where do they regularly go, how far do they travel and more. They’re also looking at the potential causes of the newly emerged giraffe skin disease. They need to know how it’s spread and how the skin of an infected animal compares with that of one that’s not infected.

Very little is known about giraffe ecology. The team hope to gain an understanding of giraffe movements. They’re looking to find out what their home range sizes are in northern Kenya and how far they tend to move. They’re focusing on whether potential changes in the surrounding environments might block some movement routes. The scientists also want to understand whether giraffe habitats differ during the dry and wet seasons with a view to figuring out how they can best be protected.

Giraffes haven’t been studied much, although they’re very popular animals. However, this has changed in the past ten years or so. There are the problems with the GPS collars to take into account too. To combat the issue with collars slipping off in the past, head units and ones that were similar to dog harnesses were used. However, these restricted eating and movement and had to be removed.

Giraffes are in rapid decline. It’s hoped that this study will help save the species from potential extinction.