April Extra Blog

Carl La Russa

North 

4/29/2015

This past month, I've been very busy working along with my mentor on a brochure for his tracking company and trying to boost sales on tracking units. We were able to create a good looking brochure that encompasses everything about the company and how our tracking system works. We ran into a couple problems along the way when we read over the content on the brochure and discovered that we had completely left out any information on the tracking website itself and that that is the main key to actually viewing vehicle activity. We had so much information on the tracking units and benefits of tracking that we had forgotten to include anything about the tracking software.

Independent Component 2

Carl La Russa

North 

4/24/2015

Independent Component 2 Blog

a.) "I, Carl La Russa, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work."

b.) My mentor, Del Shindell, Alex Weiss, and Steve Szczuka have helped me complete my 30 hours of work. 

c.) Senior Project Hours Log updated.

d.) Over the past couple months, I've been working alongside my mentor, Del Shindell, to secure deals with trucking companies in the Chino area by making a Sygmatech brochure, that we would be able to hand out to potential customers and business cards that I could hand out. During the month of March, my mentor explained to me that business has been a bit slow lately and that he wanted to begin finding new clients for his tracking system. For several days during the second week of March, I was over at my mentor's house designing a brochure with pictures and captions that would inform potential clients about the system and its capabilities along with the benefits of having a tracking system in their fleet. To go along with the brochure, my mentor wanted me to get my own business card in case I was confronted with a potential client. Another reason my mentor wanted a brochure for his company was so that he could use it to give to some of our neighbors up the street since one of them manages a fleet of construction vehicles and was interested in the system. During all of this, I spoke with Alex Weiss and Steve Szczuka, both experts that have worked in the field of GPS and GPS tracking. Mr. Weiss worked with my mentor at a company called Hughes Aircraft about 20 years ago where they contracted with the U.S. military building systems that could track submarine torpedoes and missiles. Mr. Weiss helped me answer some questions that had about GPS and how it has evolved over the years into becoming a major component of people's lives. Mr. Szczuka on the other hand helped me understand how GPS might evolve to meet future needs and how itself is changing the future of tracking and navigating. Over the last couple weeks, I've been making calls to trucking companies, trying to peak some interest about my mentor's tracking system and what it can do for these companies. 

e.) The second independent component has helped me a lot in answering my essential question. First of all, when I was out pitching the tracking system with my mentor, I was able to see how tracking systems have already benefited many businesses. For example, when I went into Frontier Transportation in Chino, one of the managers there explained to me how much time and money they've saved by tracking their vehicles. I heard the same story from Odyssey Tours when I visited their bus yard along with my mentor. Along with all the product pitching, I was able to speak with some great experts within the field who really were able to explain to me why GPS is so important whether it be in transportation of any other application.

Here is the front page of the Sygmatech brochure that my mentor and I designed.

This is the inside of the brochure that explains everything about the tracking system from the tracking unit specifications to the features of the tracking program.

March Extra Post

This month, my mentor and I have been pretty busy setting up the tracking software after one of the servers was wiped. What I was asked to was setup the geo-fences that my mentor used in order to locate vehicles more quickly. While I was working on setting those up, I helped my mentor setup the fences that are being used by the bus and commercial vehicle accounts. 

Here is my mentor by his computer working on the Odyssey account, setting up the Odyssey Bus Yard fence.

Blog 18: Fourth Interview Preparation

           

                                         Carl La Russa

                                                    North

                                                   #113

          Fourth Interview Preparation

1.) In your opinion, how has GPS revolutionized the way people travel and navigate?

2.) Do you believe there is anything that can be improved upon with GPS? Why? How?

3.) In regards to vehicle tracking, how is GPS a major factor in tracking a vehicle?

4.) While researching my topic, I discovered that there are two types of tracking systems, a cell-based system and a GPS- based system. What are the differences between the two and which one is better?

5.) How might a business employing a large amount of vehicles benefit from having a tracking system?

6.) What sorts of information do you think a fleet business would want to extract from their vehicles while out on the road?

7.) Are there any benefits for the drivers who are employed by these companies?

8.) Other than being used in business applications, how might a GPS tracking system be implemented in order to reduce congestion and traffic delays in a major city?

9.) During my research, I read about something called ITS or an Intelligent Traffic System that can monitor every single vehicle out on the road and be able to direct traffic so that there are no delays or backups. Is there something like this already in place somewhere? If not, is it possible to develop a system like this using GPS?

10.) If a system such as ITS would to be put in place, how do you think it would gather vehicle information?

11.) Is there a possibility that the government could mandate people to have a tracker in their vehicles?

12.) If so, do you think people would compromise some of their privacy in order to optimize traffic flow?

13.) In terms of personal use, how do you think a family might benefit from tracking a teen driver?

14.) If the tracking system identifies problems with a teen's driving, do you think the teen would try and improve his or her driving? Why?

15.) If an adult were to track themselves, do you think they would try and improve upon their driving?

16.) During my mentorship, my mentor told me about a certain word or piece of code that is used to determine the accuracy of GPS. What does the word consist of?

17.) How does the length of the word increase the accuracy of an object's location?

18.) Are there any restrictions as to how long the word can be?

19.) Are there different types of words or lines of code that can be used to track objects or is there just one that can be modified?

20.) While a vehicle is being tracked, is there any transfer of data between satellites and the unit in terms of code?

Blog 17: Third Answer

I'm 1.) Who benefits most from vehicle tracking software?

2.) Adult drivers will benefit greatly from vehicle tracking software in that they will always know where their vehicle is at in case it is stolen, keep track of maintenance on their vehicle and learn how to spend less time on the road getting from A to B.

3.) Vehicle tracking is beneficial for every driver, but for adult drivers like my mentor, they can view their fuel consumption through the daily reports generated on the tracking website, keep up on routine maintenance with their vehicle and have the peace of mind of knowing where their car is at all times.

4.) GPS Tracking 101: How GPS Tracking Works. I chose this article in particular because it really explains how tracking benefits everyone, whether you own a fleet business or need a tracker just for personal use. It explains the difference between passive and active tracking, the different types of units used to track vehicles and how information travels from the vehicle itself to a computer where it can be viewed.

5.) Although tracking can really be molded and shaped to fit anyone's lifestyle, it's ultimately up to the owner/driver of the vehicle to change their driving habits and/or maintain their vehicle.

February Extra Post

This month I've been very busy working with my mentor on testing two new units that are eventually going to determine if my mentor goes ahead with a deal in New Orleans. 

Here you can see my mentor installing a SIM chip in one of the units. 

This here is one of the units when we first pulled it out of box. We opened it up to install a SIM chip and to begin programming it and charging its internal battery.

Blog 16: Answer 2

1.) Who benefits most from vehicle tracking software?

2.) Commercial truck drivers; they benefit from reduced fuel consumption due to more efficient routes that they learn to take after reviewing their driving history. Along with efficient driving, drivers also learn how to be responsible when out on the road with someone else's property. Having a productive and safe employee driving a vehicle will not only make the customer happy when they arrive on time with the delivery but it will also benefit the vehicle owner's wallet with reduced operating costs and a solid customer base.

3.) Teen drivers will benefit greatly by having a tracking system in their car because it will make them better drivers. First of all teens are known for being distracted while they drive, whether it be with their friends in the car or with their cell phones. With a tracking system installed, parents will know immediately if their child is performing dangerous tasks such as speeding, braking abruptly, or texting while driving and will be able to take action accordingly. 

4.) My mentor has actually experienced his system have a bus driver fired for recording excessive amounts of driving hours. A company called Odyssey Tours located in Orange has been using my mentor's tracking software and units for many years. They have also had to relieve many of their drivers due to cheating on driving hours, speeding while on tours and excessive idling while waiting for passengers to return to the bus at a stop.

By having one of my mentor's tracking units in my own car, I have been able to improve my driving significantly by learning the spots where I speed on my daily commute to school and by being more conscious about when I sit in my car and run the a/c for too long.

5.) 

- "Why Track Your Commercial Vehicle" by Tag Guard

- "GPS Tracking- Talking to Employees" by How to introduce GPS Tracking to Employees

- "Hey, why did you floor it?" " Tracking junior behind the wheel" by Edmunds

- "Truvolo- A new device to keep teen drivers safe" by Blogcritics.org

6.) One of my mentor's friends that also works with GPS told me back in October that the most important factor that parents are looking for is peace of mind, knowing that their teen driver has arrived at their destination safely.

7.) Whether it be for commercial use or for personal use, GPS tracking benefits everyone from parents to teens to truck drivers. These people will begin to realize that they need to be responsible while driving and not put themselves or others out on the road in danger. A tracking system will keep a truck driver focused on his job while a teen will think twice about racing the guy next to him at a stop light. Nobody goes home empty handed with a tracking system.