SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Samsara is now offering a range of Smart Trailer features designed to give critical insights into trailer data to improve the efficiency, compliance and safety of trailer operations.
“We’ve added new features—including enhanced tire and power monitoring, as well as tractor-trailer mismatch alerts—to our existing trailer offering to create a comprehensive solution that allows organizations to improve trailer utilization and dispatch, driver productivity, revenue management and more,” Samsara said in a media release.
Economy Remains Top Concern
According to Samsara, the economy remains a top concern for the trucking industry, ranking as the number one issue in the American Transportation Research Institute’s annual report for the second year in a row. For fleets, cutting costs and improving efficiency is more critical than ever. As a core part of operations, trailers offer significant opportunities to reduce expenses, boost efficiency and enhance safety and compliance.
Samsara Asset Gateway
At the heart of its Smart Trailer solution is the Samsara Asset Gateway. It is a compact device that installs in under five minutes for rapid, scalable deployment. Its discreet design allows it to be mounted on trailer undercarriages, minimizing the risk of tampering or theft, according to the release.
Improve Safety and Reduce Maintenance Costs
“Samsara’s Smart Trailer solution gives drivers and the back office real-time visibility into tire and power status in the Samsara dashboard, enabling fleets to proactively maintain their trailers, stay in compliance and make their trailer operations safer overall,” Samsara said. “Smart Trailers can help fleets get ahead of tire leaks, blown anti-lock braking system (ABS) fuses and other issues with a range of advanced trailer health features.”
Automatic Tire Inflation System (ATIS) Monitoring
Samsara ATIS monitoring delivers real-time alerts on tire pressure issues to both drivers and the back office, giving fleets the proactive edge they need to catch leaks that may be hidden by automatic inflation. By identifying potential problems early, fleets can dramatically reduce the risk of costly tire blowouts and minimize trailer downtime. In addition, ATIS Monitoring promotes healthier tires overall, aiding in compliance efforts and helping fleet operations run more safely and efficiently, according to the release.
Power Monitoring
In addition to tire issues, anonymized Samsara customer data shows that 15% of trailers in North America experience power loss while driving, which can cause problems with real-time location tracking and increase safety risks on the road.
“We now offer comprehensive Power Monitoring, which provides trailer visibility—even when 7-way power isn’t operational—and helps fleet operators diagnose and resolve power issues on trucks,” Samsara said.
Power Monitoring includes:
- Trailer Visibility Even Without Power: Until now, when a truck failed to deliver power to a trailer, the trailer’s gateway also lost power, leaving operators in the dark about trailer location. Samsara’s Smart Trailer solution detects power loss and provide continuous, real-time visibility even when trailer power is compromised.
- Moving Without Power Alert: In addition to loss of trailer visibility, 7-way power loss can compromise the efficacy of a trailer’s ABS system. This can lead to power loss for other electrical peripherals on a trailer, including TPMS systems, ATIS lamps, and liftgates. ABS systems are a critical part of operating a trailer safely, but without power to the trailer, ABS systems can be compromised, increasing trailer stopping distance and creating safety risks. Samsara’s Moving Without Power Alert notifies fleets in real time when a trailer loses power, allowing fleets to quickly diagnose the root cause of power loss, resolve it faster, and reduce trailer and tractor downtime.
- Trailer Health Inspector: Fleets can monitor power connections to identify and resolve issues more effectively. Customers can investigate when and where power loss occurred, how long power was out, who was driving and which truck was pulling the trailer.
- Trailer Power Loss Root Cause Analysis: What caused a power loss? Was it a blown fuse on the truck? A trailer wiring problem? Managing this at scale across thousands of trailers is challenging. Samsara’s Smart Trailer solution automatically detects power issues in the field and predicts where the issue is, streamlining maintenance operations. One customer was able to root cause and fix more than 300 blown truck ABS fuses using this tool, according to Samsara.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
