Freightliner makes Virtual Technician standard on Freightliner, Western Star Trucks equipped with Detroit Diesel engines, BlueTec emissions systems

Daimler Trucks North America’s Virtual Technician - the trucking industry’s first real-time remote diagnostic system - now comes as standard equipment on 2011 Model Year Freightliner and Western Star trucks with Detroit Diesel engines equipped with BlueTec emissions systems.

BlueTec is DTNA’s version of SCR emissions control technology.

An exclusive and proprietary program offered by DTNA, Virtual Technician offers real-time vehicle system analysis through remote telemetric vehicle tracking systems, says Brian Cota, vice president - sales, Freightliner Trucks.

The program formulates vehicle insights based on engine diagnostic codes from sensors and components that are then packaged and analyzed. The real time data is analyzed, and a series of reports and recommended corrective actions for the vehicle operator is provided, by the Detroit Diesel Customer Support Center.

The value of Virtual Technician “is predictive, preventive and productive,” he says. Its implementation will help trucking companies maximize uptime by improving vehicle servicing and repair.

The innovative system significantly reduces unscheduled downtime by remotely diagnosing and accurately determining the failure and repair procedure required, explains Cota. This provides the shops with advance knowledge of the parts required and service technician skill needed in advance of the vehicle’s arrival.

Fleets are provided a choice of service facilities within range of the vehicle to schedule service procedures.

Smart tools

“Daimler Trucks North America understands that there is more to shaping future transportation than truck design and production,” says Dave Hames, general manager marketing and strategy, DTNA. “Our commitment is to offer smart tools and networks that deliver every business advantage possible.

“One of the advantages coming out of the development of 2010 technologies, is the ability to gather new levels of information in ways that help truck owners control the cost of their operations by improving vehicle maintenance cycles, responses and repair processes.”

With Virtual Technician, maintenance teams “will be solving problems as they occur, and better yet, before - making today’s numbers on both the frequency and the severity of problems in the field a thing of the past,” notes Hames. “Uptime will increase because parts and technicians will be standing by. Labor costs associated with problem diagnosis at the service outlet will be reduced due to electronic reporting and, best of all, productivity will be increased.“

System benefits

Benefits of the Virtual Technician system include:

• Improved diagnostics for reduced downtime. • Real-time communication to the fleet of the vehicle event, type of event and status of the vehicle. • Provides the fleet with a choice of repair facility and the opportunity to schedule a repair with the service procedure and parts required identified. • Advanced notice provides the repair facility with opportunities to obtain the required parts. • Remote diagnostics eliminates unnecessary repair facility referrals. • Accurate diagnosis and “fix it right the first time.” • Fast, dedicated and accurate communication of the event. • Strengthens the customer relationship with Freightliner and Western Star dealers.

Phase II of the Virtual Technician program, set for Spring 2012, includes the addition of a Visibility Package, says Cota. This will include programs for asset management, such as ground traffic control, IFTA/IRP mileage, vehicle location and DDEC reports.

There will also be the capability for navigation, hours-of-service and two-way messaging.

He says future opportunities will include the ability to update ECM programming without the need for a physical connection; customer values reset to change the top speed limit, PTO operation and idling time limits; down stream transfer of service bulletins for up-to-date recall data on the ECM; and remote vehicle shutdown and Geofence restrictions.