Overview
Active Tracking in ON!Track automates asset tracking using Bluetooth tags and gateways, providing real-time visibility of your tools. This feature ensures you always know where your assets are, reducing the risk of loss or theft and simplifying inventory management.
It's important to consider the accuracy of the 'last seen' location. A geolocation on a map is less useful if the asset was last detected months ago. Knowing when and what detected the asset is essential for maintaining up-to-date and reliable tracking information.
How It Works
Active Tracking is ON!Track leverages various hardware components, including Bluetooth tracked tags, mobile phones, stationary gateways, vehicle gateways and telematics gateways, to keep an accurate log of your assets’ locations.
- Bluetooth Tags: These tags attach to your assets and regularly broadcast signals that can be picked up by tracking Gateways.
- Mobile Phones: Your phone, with the ON!Track app, acts as a gateway, picking up signals from Bluetooth tags through foreground scanning.
- Stationary Gateways: These are fixed devices placed at strategic locations (like warehouses) that continuously scan for nearby tags and send updates to the cloud.
- Vehicle Gateways: Installed on vehicles such as vans, these devices have their power supply and geolocation capability, updating asset locations directly to the cloud.
- Telematics gateways: Installed on heavy equipment, these devices have their power supply and geolocation capability, updating asset locations directly to the cloud.
Updating 'Last Seen' Location
There are multiple pathways to update the 'last seen' location of your assets, each with varying degrees of accuracy:
- Confirmed Location:
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- Most accurate.
- Provided by stationary gateways, which scan and confirm the presence of tagged assets every 5 minutes.
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- Last Charged Location:
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- Specific to Nuron tools and batteries, this updates when a battery is charged and sends data to the cloud.
- This process, though less frequent, logs tool usage, and locations, and tracks the batteries and tools associated with a CDM whenever it is charged.
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- Last Seen Location:
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- Updated via the ON!Track the mobile app when it detects Bluetooth tags.
- This can happen in the background, even if the app is not actively being used.
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Note :
BLE tags scanned by third-party van gateways from a different user are labelled with the source Global BLE Network.
Stationary gateway | Vehicle Gateway | Telematics gateway | ON!Track mobile app | Nuron charger | Global BLE network | |
Last seen by | Name of the warehouse or jobsite or container to which the Gateway is assigned to | Name of the vehicle on which the Vehicle Gateway is installed | Name of the heavy equipment on which the telematics gateway is installed | ON!Track app | Name of the charger that the tool's battery was last charged with | No name is shown. This location update is based on tracking of the tool by a vehicle or telematics gateway that belongs to the Hilti Cloud Services |
Last seen | e.g. 5 mins ago | e.g. 5 mins ago | e.g. 5 mins ago | e.g. 5 mins ago | e.g. 5 mins ago | e.g. 5 mins ago |
Last seen source | Gateway | Vehicle Gateway | Telematics gateway | ON!Track app | Nuron charger | Global BLE network |
Accuracy | Logical location very accurate as the address is entered by the user |
GPS location Accuracy supported up to 200m |
GPS location Accuracy supported up to 200m |
GPS location Accuracy supported up to 200m |
GPS location Accuracy supported up to 6000m |
GPS location Accuracy supported up to 200m |
User Needs and Benefits
For field workers:
- Instantly locating tools on a map saves time and effort for field workers.
- A dot on the map indicates the tool's last known location, reducing the need for manual tracking.
- Simplifies operations, especially useful when others forget to update tool statuses.
For Warehouse managers:
- Simplifies maintaining accurate records of tool locations.
- Lessens the burden of manually updating asset locations.
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Improves overall efficiency by streamlining asset management tasks.
Limitations and Considerations
While Active Tracking offers numerous advantages, it’s important to understand its limitations. For instance, the geolocation provided by telematics gateways or mobile phones relies on signal strength from nearby cell towers.
To ensure the most accurate tracking, it’s beneficial to use a combination of all available gateways. Regularly charging batteries, keeping mobile phones with the ON!Track app active, and strategically placing stationary gateways will collectively maintain the most up-to-date location information.
Practical Usage
- Mobile Phone as a Gateway: Use the ON!Track the app on your mobile phone to scan for nearby assets. This can be done manually.
- Stationary Gateways: Install gateways in key locations like warehouses to automatically scan and update asset locations every three minutes.
- Telematics Gateways: Equip heavy equipment with telematics gateways to ensure continuous tracking and location updates, even in transit.
- Van Gateways Equip Vans with Van gateways to ensure continuous tracking and location updates, even in transit.
- Nuron tools: Charge batteries regularly at places where the tools are used so that the location update of the tool is reflective of where the tool is instead of where the battery was charged
By leveraging Active Tracking, you can effortlessly keep tabs on your assets, reduce manual tracking errors, and maintain a more efficient and transparent operation. This automated system ensures you always have the latest information on where your tools are, helping you manage your assets more effectively.
Nuron Tools and Batteries
Overview
Nuron tools and batteries have a unique form of active tracking that is integrated into the tools themselves. This method, known as 'Last Charged Location,' updates the location data whenever the battery is charged, although it’s less frequent and less accurate compared to Bluetooth tags and gateways.
How It Works
- Unique IDs: Each Nuron tool and battery has a unique identifier.
- Usage Information: Tools transmit usage data and their IDs to batteries during use.
- Charging Process: Batteries send data, including their ID and tool usage info, to chargers during charging.
- Cloud Communication: Chargers equipped with communication modules send data to the cloud.
- Location Updates: The cloud updates the 'last seen' location of tools and batteries based on charger locations.
- Continuous Tracking: This process ensures periodic location updates even without active Bluetooth tag tracking.
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