PeopleNet has partnered with Instructional Technologies, Inc. (ITI) to bring interactive driver training technology to PeopleNet customers via the new BLU platform. It will be
available some time in 2008. In practice, at-risk driver actions will be identified by data that’s being constantly collected, and then a remedial lesson will be immediately offered in the cab.

“This new capability will revolutionize safety and risk management for our entire industry,” says E. Bruce Weiss, executive vice president of ITI.

His company is a risk-management specialist that applies technology developed in advanced pilot training to the trucking industry. Its ‘Pro-Tread’ and ‘Tread-1’ programs
currently provide interactive computer-based and online driver training to some 170 fleets in the U.S. and Canada. These programs will be viewable on the BLU in-cab display,
which represents a new way for drivers to interact with onboard systems.

Pro-Tread will provide pre-emptive, targeted, in-cab driver training in response to real-time performance data collected from trucks on the road. PeopleNet customers can already use this data with the PerformX application to monitor driver behavior and the health of a truck’s engine, drivetrain and other operational systems. Driver-related performance data can include hard braking, speeding, hours of service, tailgating, excessive G-forces, and other recorded events.

PeopleNet says Pro-Tread uses “intelligent algorithms” and considers all reported events in detail and in context. It then makes smart training recommendations that drivers are far more likely to appreciate than resent, the company claims, which results in enhanced driving remediation. Critical training does not have to wait for drivers to arrive at company locations or to seek Internet connections. Drivers can fulfill training requirements in the cab at their convenience during non-driving hours or while waiting for loads. PeopleNet’s wireless network enables transmission of lesson-completion data to the private database which ITI provides to each client fleet for documentation of training.

PeopleNet’s BLU onboard platform provides a new interface for drivers using a 7-in. full-color display.