Vehicle breakdowns cost public transport operators a lot of time and money. Disruptions and delays across the network are detrimental to users and have an adverse effect on confidence in the public transport system.
In this context, ACTIA is upgrading its fleet management solution MyACTIAFleet, with a new maintenance module for public transport vehicles which harnesses all of ACTIA’s expertise in diagnostics and remote maintenance.
Remote maintenance: a growth driver for public transport operators
Remote maintenance gives fleet managers the possibility to save time and money through optimised monitoring of the physical condition of their vehicles. It involves anticipating breakdowns in order to prevent vehicle downtime.
The major components of the vehicle managed through MyACTIAFleet are constantly monitored using CAN data. The collected data is analysed and used by on-board and off-board algorithms to alert the operator of any malfunction.
The major components monitored are:
- doors;
- engine cooling;
- air intake system;
- alternator;
- auxiliary battery;
- brakes;
- gearbox;
- engine;
- traction batteries for electric vehicles.
The MyACTIAFleet maintenance module makes it possible to:
- alert about technical incidents in real time according to their level of severity;
- optimise maintenance operations and even reduce them;
- reduce the premature wear rate of vehicles;
- and anticipate maintenance schedules.
Ongoing analysis of technical data aims to reduce or even eliminate breakdowns and therefore make public transport and the service more reliable for users.
“Our solution monitors the risk or the risk level of a component with great accuracy. In addition, we are currently working on new developments for the solution that aim to foresee a breakdown based on weak signals in order to eventually prevent potential vehicle downtime.”
Explains Laurent Guerci, Director of the Connected vehicles Business Unit for ACTIA Group.
MyACTIAFleet is upgrading its maintenance module for public transport vehicles
In addition to optimised ergonomics that are more dynamic and offer new vehicle views, the new MyACTIAFleet module includes monitoring for New Energy Vehicles.
MyACTIAFleet includes a powerful alert rules engine
With MyACTIAFleet the operator can configure dispatch and maintenance alerts to be triggered when some situations require specific attention. These triggers allow the maintenance service to schedule repairs when the vehicle is out of service, thereby reducing service disruptions and costs.
Some examples of these alerts on internal combustion vehicles may concern an engine fault, when it shows signs of overheating. On an electric vehicle, signals may relate to a high-voltage battery imbalance.
These alerts also apply to the systems found on the majority of public transport vehicles, such as low coolant level detection, a jammed door sensor triggering locking or low voltage on the 12/24 battery.
The system generates alarms when:
- thresholds are exceeded: levels, pressures, temperatures and voltage;
- warning lights are illuminated (tts).
Data collected comes from the FMS interface as well as the CAN, when a CAN clip is connected to the J1939.
Managing New Energy Vehicles
MyACTIAFleet covers 2,500 vehicles monitored in France, including more than 300 electric vehicles, in cities such as:
- Paris;
- Mulhouse;
- Dijon;
- Avignon;
- Marseille;
- Nîmes;
- Toulouse;
- Bordeaux;
- etc.
The ACTIA solution modules have been upgraded to integrate the very specific data from new energy vehicles that make up today’s fleets: NGV, electric, hybrid and soon hydrogen. ACTIA therefore provides the public transport network manager with support to manage the energy transition of their fleet.
This module offers indicators specific to electric vehicles such as SoC (State of Charge) or SoH (State of Health) when provided by the vehicle. A new telemetry module has been developed to meet the needs for accurate monitoring of new parameters, such as the variation in the vehicle’s charge level or the temperature of the batteries. Analysing this data can therefore help to optimise the life of a vehicle’s batteries by observing the detailed charge and discharge cycles, and thus keep the manufacturer’s warranty valid.
Did you know?
ACTIA is also making good use of its technological edge in terms of electric vehicles, as the group has recognised expertise in vehicle electrification.
The group’s offer focuses on the four main components of electric vehicles:
- battery pack;
- electric converter;
- electric motor;
- electronic systems (BMS, PCM, etc.).
ACTIA is therefore able to automatically incorporate upgrades and developments related to these drive units as soon as they are integrated into the vehicles.
ACTIA as a vehicle architect
The group has been designing electronic systems and architectures for commercial and industrial vehicles for more than 35 years. This experience in vehicle architecture guarantees a holistic system approach to vehicle design.
Like each of the modules designed and manufactured by ACTIA, the electronic architectures for industrial and commercial vehicles meet the life cycle requirements for harsh environments.
Another specific feature of the group is its ability to support its customers from the vehicle’s design phases and throughout its life cycle, this being due to the group’s established know-how in electronic diagnostics.
Optimising the vehicle’s service rate by taking into account its maintenance and its “repairability” in advance is a key asset for vehicle manufacturers as well as for their operator customers.
The synergy of these skills in vehicle architecture, diagnostics and telematics therefore comes into its own in the solutions offered by ACTIA to operators and in the close management of their fleet.
The new maintenance module for public transport vehicles, MyACTIAFleet, is already deployed on the networks of major European operators such as RATP, TRANSDEV, KEOLIS, TISSÉO, RTM, etc., thus proving ACTIA’s ability to integrate the data from new vehicles very quickly, as soon as they hit the market. Through its comprehensive understanding of vehicles, the group therefore offers solutions that foreshadow the vehicle of the future: electric, connected, autonomous vehicles. A future for which data is already portrayed as a new black gold.
