Latest News & Insights

The transportation industry is a demanding industry, hungry for systematic improvements, technology assistance, and time.  Adding up maintenance fees, damage and equipment downtime can quickly tip the scales in profits and service.  Finding solutions to these challenges is a constant priority, and helping shippers track what matters can help.  As we seek additional ways to monitor occurrences that affect the bottom line, we develop and patent new products with the insight and innovation to bring reliable solutions.

Crew and load security are of constant concern and costly ongoing issues.  Temperature damage can spoil entire loads and reduce margins.  Flat Wheels from forgotten handbrakes total hundreds of millions of dollars each year in replacement costs.  All the while, efficient use of trailers and railcars is demanded to meet expectations and keep leasing costs lower.

If a magic device were able to manage these challenges, it would be all to welcome.  And the best instrument is knowledge.  Being able to learn where, what, when, and how these problems arise allow for a systematic set of solutions.

Our most recent patent awarded was for creating a multi-functional sensor that was self-contained for ease of installation.  The Orientation-Based Wireless Sensing Apparatus is otherwise known as the RF Sensor, is capable of monitoring security, temperature, and tilt.  The RF Sensor is the size of a deck of cards, but collects a large amount of data.  With a surface mount thermistor, digital temperature readings can be collected from a surface mount or with a small attached pigtail, and is frequently helpful for food safety.  Additionally, the RF Sensor contains accelerometers that provide a tilt reading given in degrees that can be mounted to detect if a load is empty or full, or the position of the handbrake on a railcar.  This can quickly payoff when flat wheel damage can be assessed to a specific rail yard and not a shipper.  Magnetic switches can easily monitor security breaches, and generate text or email alerts.

Case Study: A large chemical shipper faced concerns with safety, security, and product integrity.  The liquid chemical was being transported in tank cars traveling across North America, causing concern over temperature degradation in the varied climates.  Additionally, the product was valuable to illegal drug manufacturers and posed a security concern for crew and public safety.  The Lat-Lon Solar Tracking Unit with separate RF Sensor was installed on cars as a hatch security sensor, and temperature sensor.  Given that up to 10 of the RF Sensors can be paired with one Solar Tracking Unit, the shipper was happy to equip their fleet and monitor multiple points of data.  With the customizable web reporting system, they were able to make quick, easy to understand alerts to instantly know what happened, where, when and even take pictures of incidents.

Another shipper was spending a great deal of money on flat wheel repairs.

Learn more:  Coal Transporter: Handbrakes, Wheelsets; and Accountability

The article focuses on the damage incurred in overlooking the release of the handbrake prior to moving a railcar. Mitsui Rail Capital (MRC), a Lat-Lon customer, brought the challenge to us and now has a method to better understand what is occurring regarding their railcar’s handbrake. With GPS tracking and a RF Sensor Unit, MRC can see when and where the handbrake is applied and released, and even send an alert if applied while moving. Read More or contact us for more information at support@www.lat-lon.com.

Jones, P.L. & Kerr, D. (2012). Handbrakes; Wheelsets; and Accountability. Who’s Stuck with the Bill? Coal Transporter, (Issue 1) Pages 42-44

2G, or Second Generation Wireless Networks with AT&T will be shut down by 2017.  Friday, August 3rd, AT&T filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to shut down these networks as it continues to upgrade its systems to faster technology and better use its limited airwaves.

From a Consumer perspective, this will impact roughly 12% of AT&T Customers, but proactive measures will be in place to prevent interruption in service.  However, in Industrial Segments, the change will be more impactful.  Many M2M, Machine to Machine, devices rely on 2nd Generation networks.  If this technology is 2nd Generation, but Consumer Markets are using 4th Generation, why aren’t we up to speed?  The generational improvement in the networks is primarily driven for speed in transmission (bytes/second).  Given the compact nature of the data generated by a tracking device, or data packet, the transmission time is not a factor for performance (in comparison to a voice conversation or loading a web page).  For example, a 2G network can transmit up to 50,000 bytes/second versus a 3G network of up to 4 Million bytes/second.  But the typical data packet or tracking message is only 256 bytes!

The critical factor for M2M devices is coverage.  As visible with a smartphone, the 4G and sometimes 3G networks are not always available.  Often rural areas only have 2G network coverage, and in order to ensure that most complete information when tracking industrial assets, we factor to the lowest common denominator to enable a message to transmit almost anywhere, including internationally.  If Lat-Lon only offered 4G transmission, units would only transmit in densely populated regions where 4G network coverage is available.

What will happen in 2017?  The deadline may possibly be extended, but when the 2G network is shutdown, any unit still transmitting in 2G will no longer be able to communicate.

More specifically, this will impact Lat-Lon customers, but we also have a proactive plan in place to offer the best possible service available.  Lat-Lon is switching to CDMA as a standard due to improved coverage and extend operational lifetime.  Any unit with an ALPHA NUMERIC serial number has a CDMA modem which is estimated to remain unchanged until 2022.  Additionally, Lat-Lon has additional technicians to perform a health check on units and switch the modem if requested.  More questions?  Feel free to contact us for additional information at support@www.lat-lon.com or 877-300-6566.