What Are Vehicle Telematics & Vehicle Tracking?

Introduction to Vehicle Telematics

Every few years a new technology appears that changes forever the way people communicate and do business with each other. GPS Vehicle Tracking Systems have been spawned from the evolution of personal computers, mobile phones, the GPS Global Positioning System and the Internet. These all converged to form a new technology; vehicle telematics. The more general topic of telematics can cover many areas.  The focus of this website is with vehicle telematics, which can be defined as;  "The use of computers and telecommunications to enhance the functionality, productivity and security of both vehicles and drivers."

A prominent part of many vehicle telematics solutions is Vehicle Tracking. Typical vehicle tracking systems are comprised of two core parts; tracking hardware (or tracking device) and tracking software. The tracking device is most often hardwire installed in the vehicle; connected to the ignition switch, battery and antennae. The typical tracking hardware for a fleet management solution uses GPS to pinpoint its location and then updates are transmitted (often in the UK by GPRS) at  a regular timed interval or after an event trigger, e.g. ignition on / off.  The location data is made available for viewing more often than not with many of the solutions sold today, via a website, accessed over the internet, where fleet activity can be viewed live or historically using digital maps and reports.

Telematics Service Providers have also been keen to show that Telematics is more than just vehicle tracking; with the advent of combined two way messaging and  satellite navigation products, fleet managers can now choose to do more than simply locate a vehicle or group of vehicles.  In addition, using so called Connected Navigation solutions, fleet managers and job dispatchers can track, locate, then transmit and receive job messages to and from drivers, while enabling the driver to calculate the journey route and automatically send back the time of arrival to the office. This can lead to more jobs completed per day, reduced journey times, fuel savings and improved customer satisfaction.

When used in a commercial environment vehicle telematics can be a powerful and valuable tool to improve the efficiency of an organisation. The fleet activity can be analysed and decisions taken based upon actual information, not guesswork.  Key Performance Indicators including, journey times, fuel economy and drivers hours, can be improved.

The challenge is finding the right tracking and telematics solution and then using the information it provides to ensure the maximum benefit is returned against investment.

Other terms used in relation to vehicle telematics might also include,  fleet management, GPS vehicle tracking, GPS tracking, fleet telematics and satellite tracking  All of these terms generally relate to the content found on UK Telematics Online.

As vehicle telematics technology has developed and it's use becomes more widespread, an ever increasing number and variety of vehicle tracking systems are available to small business users.  Understanding the technology behind these products and knowing what benefits they can deliver, while being wary of some of the potential pitfalls will save money and aid implementation.

For more information related to Vehicle Telematics and Vehicle Tracking, please visit

UK Telematics Online

UK Telematics Online provides users of Vehicle Telematics and Vehicle Tracking with an independent source of free information, tips & advice to assist buying decisions and better implement vehicle tracking solutions.