PeopleNet, a provider of Internet-based and integrated onboard computing and mobile communications management, and Iteris Inc., a provider of advanced technologies designed to improve the safety of surface transportation systems, announced a new partnership to integrate Iteris’ Safety Direct with PeopleNet’s onboard and mobile communications systems.

PeopleNet also announced that it has partnered with Summary Systems, enabling the integration of Summary Systems’ Point of Delivery Mobile Suite software with PeopleNet’s onboard computing system.

The partnerships were announced at the National Private Truck Council’s 2009 Annual Education Management Conference & Exhibition, being held in Nashville, Tenn.

Iteris

Iteris’ Safety Direct is designed to analyze driver performance data captured by Iteris’ AutoVue Lane Departure Warning (LDW) system. This driver performance information now can be delivered directly to fleet operators through integration with PeopleNet’s onboard and mobile communications systems and Iteris’ Safety Direct data server, according to the companies.

“This integrated solution enables driver performance information, such as excessive curve speed or lane changes without using a turn signal, to be collected by Safety Direct, transmitted through PeopleNet’s onboard computer to Safety Direct’s Web portal, and accessed by fleet operators,” says Abbas Mohaddes, president and chief executive officer of Iteris, based in Santa Ana, Calif. “In addition, these events can be combined with PeopleNet’s driver log information to provide fleet and safety managers with tools to identify driver-specific behavior and patterns.”

Research conducted by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) revealed that 58 percent of total automotive-based fatalities were related to lane departures in 2006. The organization estimates that a lane departure occurs every 21 minutes in the United States. Iteris says its Safety Direct and AutoVue Lane Departure Warning systems are part of a comprehensive suite of active safety driver assistance features that help to reduce the number of motor vehicle crashes and the severity of crash-related injuries.