on2810: Vehicle Router with ITxPT Certification

Secure, Powerful Communication

The potential of increasing digitalisation and emerging IoT applications promises to simplify operating processes, to provide passengers with better information, competitive internet access and entertainment programmes. onway is the smart solution for secure, high-performance communication for all mobile applications.

onway also makes it possible to network larger bus fleets easily and reliably. This is possible thanks to the operating system specially developed by onway for network devices. The vehicles are simply configured, managed and monitored via an intelligent cloud application. Traditional functions such as monitoring devices are combined in a modern back-end system. This means bus drivers can concentrate on more important matters.

onway bus

onway offers bus fleets a comprehensive communication solution for every requirement:

Passenger WLAN – The Digital Customer Interface

Passengers prefer to access the internet via wireless LAN. However, WLAN also offers transport companies a previously underestimated benefit, since WLAN provides the (only) direct digital access to customers. It is only possible to communicate directly with passengers using WLAN technology, since WLAN makes it possible to play content locally, which has been made available via the on-board computer, including music, films, tourism information and advertising. It is only thanks to WLAN technology that we can locate passengers exactly to provide them with location- and context-related travel information and services. Moreover, it is only thanks to WLAN technology that we can measure the number of travellers per vehicle in real time, track customers’ journeys in real time and thus provide better, personalised information in the event of a disruption.

Entertainment

In the age of digitalisation, passengers expect more than to be transported from A to B. The time spent on board will be used actively, be it working, on social media, listening to music or watching films. On tourist trips, passengers expect information about points of interest that can be called up via the on-board entertainment system. A comprehensive digital offering is therefore a necessity for all bus operators these days. onway offers passengers the opportunity to download content such as music or films onto their personal devices using the on-board WLAN. Bus operators can share content automatically via mobile networks or USB sticks (simply insert them, no configuration required).

Personalised and Context-based Travel Information

Modern passenger information includes real-time information about punctuality, disruptions, expected arrival times, as well as connections as standard. However, common broadcast messages tend to hinder rather than help – particularly for non-resident passengers. However, digitalisation and smartphones would make it completely possible to provide every passenger with location-dependent, personalised and context-related travel information. There are two conditions for this: 1) Knowing the passenger’s route and 2) knowing exactly where the passenger currently is. Thanks to electronic ticketing and exact WLAN localisation of passengers, this vision can already become reality today.

Passenger Tracking / Passenger Counting

Smartphones are continually emitting signals that can be received and evaluated by the local WLAN network. This allows passenger streams to be monitored in real time, passengers can be counted without any additional measuring equipment, passengers’ journeys can be followed and customer segmentation can thus be undertaken. All this may be done anonymously without customers’ consent to obtain statistical information on the use of their own services. Otherwise the information gathered can be linked with personal data, if it is available and customers explicitly give their consent.

IoT Data Collection

Buses already generate significant volumes of data. But digitalisation and the IoT have now made it possible to access this valuable information online. This allows driving style and the associated diesel consumption to be analysed, deviations and faults can be recognised before they occur (predictive maintenance), and maintenance orders can be completed before the fault occurs (prescriptive maintenance). Our IoT gateways allow you to gather, aggregate, correlate and (if necessary and required) forward a range of data in central data centres (private or public clouds).

Operations and Management

One of the central challenges of digitalisation lies in managing the fast-growing number of IT solutions. Zero-touch deployment, real-time monitoring, zero-touch software updates, incorporating security patches during on-going operation, etc., are key functions for efficient operation. The onway solution already manages over 2000 vehicles fully remotely, this means without any on-site interventions, which has allowed our customers to quickly advance their digitalisation projects without affecting their fleet’s on-going operation.

Pervasive Vehicle-to-ground Communication

One of the most demanding functions on moving vehicles is providing a stable and as highly performing bus-to-ground connection as possible. This not only means that modules in the vehicle have to be controlled using traffic control functions, but also the tunnel end points on the ground side (since download traffic is always greater than upload traffic). onway continually measures the capacity of all mobile networks and aggregates them to give the best possible performance. onway also offers the necessary security to not only transfer passengers’ internet traffic but also all the company’s internal applications (e. g. ticket reader, driver iPads etc.) using the same communication network. Thanks to network virtualisation, integrated firewall and quality of service functions, onway gives you full control over the entire vehicle-to-ground communication, which increases the efficiency of your vehicle fleet and lowers costs.

ITxPT Certified

The ITxPT project finally creates an open standard to enable interoperability between IT systems in public transport. Data exchange opens up a multitude of new possibilities for digitalising public transport and by extension, offers added value for operators and passengers.

onway is actively involved in ITxPT and is in the final stages of certifying its products. The first certified product is the new on2810 router model. It is based on the proven on2800 running our in-house CarlOS operating system, but features M12 connections for the automotive sector and a newly developed ITxPT software stack.