Good Guidance: VDO Dayton truck navigation now also available for retrofitting
Regensburg/Germany, October 16, 2007
VDO Dayton will launch an aftermarket commercial vehicle navigation system enabling truck, bus and van drivers to take a route that is suitable for their vehicle. When determining the route, the new PC 5200 TSN takes into account not only vehiclespecific attributes such as height and weight but also the special driving characteristics of large trucks. Initially, the system will be available as an embedded system. By the end of this year, VDO Dayton will launch a portable truck navigation system in the aftermarket as well.
While in the past, drivers of trucks, buses, and vans had to rely primarily on passenger car navigation systems for their route planning purposes, VDO Dayton, in cooperation with the map supplier Navteq, is now offering its first aftermarket truck navigation system. Exhausting U-turns when confronted with low bridges and difficult maneuvering in dead-end streets will soon be a thing of the past. The system software of the new PC 5200 TSN has been adapted so that the vehicle’s specific characteristics, such as height, width, weight and axle loads, are considered when calculating the route. The vehicle-specific attributes are matched with clearance heights, bridge weight restrictions, etc. contained in the map data. Furthermore, the algorithms for the route calculation have been modified to take the driving characteristics of large trucks into account. Truck-specific information has been added to the map display and the calculation of arrival times has been modified accordingly. U-turn maneuvers are avoided if possible.
Before the initial start, the driver first defines the length, width, weight, height, axle load, and hazardous materials class of his truck or bus in the navigation system. Based on this data, the navigation system only selects routes that present no problems for the vehicle. This information only needs to be entered once and is checked through each time the navigation system is restarted. For instance, the weight of the load or the hazardous materials class can be changed quickly and easily for the return trip after unloading. Once the vehicle data and the destination address have been entered the electronic route guidance starts automatically. As VDO Dayton has integrated a TMC receiver as a standard feature of the truck navigation system, the system provides the driver with traffic information and, if the driver wishes, suggests an alternative route in case of congestion. Once again, the special route restrictions for trucks are taken into account so the truck driver is not taken through narrow streets or across bridges that are not wide enough.
Today, the providers of digitized map material have already incorporated truck-specific restrictions and points of interest such as truck stops, restaurants catering to truckers, and gas stations for parts of Western Europe in their databases. Where bridge clearances or axle loads are not yet included, the VDO Dayton system guides truckers to their destination by using the conventional car navigation data that is automatically available for these areas. Two symbols on the navigation screen indicate to the driver whether his route has already been digitized in full with commercial vehicle data.
A special feature of the PC 5200 TSN is that it offers a module to monitor driving and rest periods. With this feature, the driver not only receives timely notification that his break is coming up soon, but he can even check the route list before he starts off to see where he will probably be when he is required to take his first break. This means that he can plan in advance at which rest area or truck stop he will stop.
The device is based on the VDO Dayton navigation computer PC 5200, which has won numerous awards, and in addition to pure navigation, also offers the ability to connect a reversing camera and DVBT tuner. It is offered in combination with a full range of different screens, from a monitor to be mounted on the rear-view mirror to a seven-inch 16:9 screen. With the VDO Dayton truck navigation system, the entire road network and all special destinations in Europe are compiled on a single compact SD card. By dispensing with a conventional CD or DVD drive, the navigation computer is made much more compact and robust.
VDO Dayton is also already at work on a portable truck navigation system. A device based on the PN 3000 truck navigation system is slated for market launch as early as at the end of 2007.
Siemens VDO Automotive AG (Regensburg) is one of the world’s leading automotive electronics and mechatronics suppliers, earning approximately 70 percent of its total annual sales in this segment. As an automotive industry development partner, the company's innovative products and solutions enhance safety, driving comfort, cost-effectiveness and performance, as well as reduce emissions and keep driv-ers informed and in touch with the world. In the 2006 business year (Sept. 30, 2006), Siemens VDO gen-erated sales of more than EUR 10 billion and achieved results of EUR 669 million based on US-GAAP, which corresponds to an EBIT margin of 6.7 percent.
Reference Number: SV 200710.002 en
