The United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued a patent to PeopleNet for its OTAP (Over-The-Air Programming) technology. OTAP enables PeopleNet to update software on truck-cab computers remotely wherever the vehicle might be.

Customer trucks need not return to base for software updates and enhancements. PeopleNet was the first transportation technology provider to offer wireless software updates with the introduction of OTAP.
OTAP enables wireless software updates to onboard computers virtually anywhere in North America. Using OTAP, PeopleNet can send new computer code to both moving and stationary trucks so seamlessly a driver may not even realize his or her cab-mounted PeopleNet device is being updated. Existing software applications can be enhanced and new applications installed. OTAP eliminates the need for distribution and physical handling of software disks.
Before OTAP, trucks had to be brought in from the road and the software loaded one onboard computer at a time. PeopleNet recognized the counterproductive need to pull a fleet off the road every time computers required an upgrade. Depending on the fleet, that meant lost revenue or critical delays for important upgrades.
OTAP has been used to deliver nearly 30 new software features and applications to more than 1,000 PeopleNet customer fleets over the past six years. Those updates were installed as needed and were not subject to the arrival of trucks from the road.
One of the most notable revisions brought users of eDriver Logs, PeopleNet’s automated driver log application, into compliance with the revised hours of service regulations in 2004 and again in 2005. OTAP was used to deliver PeopleNet’s PACOS platform a transportation management application that combines geo-fencing with automated exception reporting to help managers keep trucks on route and on time.
OTAP was also used to distribute PerformX fault codes and diagnostic software to monitor a vehicle’s engine and other vital components to understand how the vehicle is being driven. Similarly, OTAP onboard event recorder software saves that information for later analysis and preserves critical operating data immediately before, during, and after an accident.
“We’re very pleased to receive this patent that recognizes the innovative nature of our over-the-air technology,” said Vikas Jain, PeopleNet’s chief technology officer. “We developed OTAP to better serve our transportation fleet customers, and it has done just that.”