Truck Parts and Service | Heavy Duty Trucking, Aftermarket, Service Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/897934
A utonomy is a big word in the future of trucking discussion, but a bigger word looms over the industry as the shift toward driverless vehicles takes place: connectivity. Connectivity will be a key component in how the truck tells the world around it of its needs and where it's going, and will play a role in shifting the parts distribu- tion and maintenance networks. "Connected truck means a truck connected to the world outside," says Sandeep Kar, chief strategy offi cer at Fleet Complete, a global commercial vehicle telematics and Internet of Things fi rm. Additionally, Kar says a truck will never be fully able to drive itself without the ability to connect and communicate with its environment. Two of the most prominent current trends in trucking are the electrifi cation of the truck and the connected truck. Kar says each will have an impact on auton- omy, adding powertrain electrifi cation and autonomy are mutually independent but will have overlap areas where they will converge in the future. "If we're stuck in a fossil fuel world in the next decade, we'll continue to see great advances in the connected truck," adds Drivewyze Chief Operating Offi cer Leo Jolicoeur. "The industry is not waiting." Connected to the outside world Today's driver information displays offer an array of helpful information to the driver while remote diagnostics help fun- nel vehicle health reports to a mainte- nance provider. However, Kar says drivers and repair shops of the future will be only a small part of the truck's communication loop. "The world outside needs to know what is the status of the battery … The battery needs to know where is the nearest charging station, or how can it increase its range," he says. "That is what some of the connected technology would help is that ensuring that the battery and the powertrain systems are in optimal shape and form." Such a leap in communication would be a shift from what is currently being shared. 18 Cover Story T R U C K P A R T S & S E R V I C E | N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 7 By Jason Cannon, Equipment Editor JasonCannon@randallreilly.com How connectivity will change the face of vehicle maintenance Technology's future in trucking