Notable changes include fixing the "still got" phrase to "still have" (per AP Style and proper grammar, unless directly quoting a song lyric, which is clarified below), hyphenating modifiers like AI-enhanced, using figures for numbers 10 and above, and tightening up some passive or repetitive phrasing.
If solving headaches in the shop were as simple as plugging in a device and having it report data, then most of our problems would disappear overnight.
The reality is a bit less rosy. Despite leaps in technology, a vast amount of data at our fingertips, and the promise of each new widget and portal, many maintenance teams still struggle to fully reap the benefits of telematics devices. At the same time, the explosive arrival of artificial intelligence has ushered in a new wave of “must-haves” when many operations are still incorporating the last "next great thing."
So, are maintenance teams doomed to drown in successive waves of increasingly sophisticated yet frustratingly inaccessible tech? It might seem that way, but the industry is about to head in the other direction. By providing that indispensable yet overlooked element of interpretation, AI-enhanced telematics devices could finally deliver the value this technology has been touting for more than a decade.
In the coming decade, the most successful fleets will be the ones that use AI to better understand and diagnose mechanical issues, track and monitor truck health for planning preventive maintenance, and integrate all devices and portals into one cohesive platform. Of course, that also depends on the technology catching up and becoming not just useful, but usable.
Limitations of telematics
Since the first trackers started appearing on the market 15 or so years ago, they have excelled at doing what they were built to do: tracking the location of moving assets. As tracking technology has advanced, devices have become more sophisticated and capable of transmitting even more data, ranging from engine hours and RPMs to fuel and voltage levels. Far more than location tracking, telematics technology now offers a comprehensive picture of truck status and condition.
But despite offering more data and reporting capabilities, only a fraction of the market is using this tech to its full potential—even as the technology becomes more intuitive and user-friendly.
Ultimately, though, telematics focuses on reporting, and what maintenance teams really need is interpretation. It is not that service managers lack the information they need; it is that raw data does not tell them what is wrong with a truck.
That is, until recently. Enter AI.
AI: Bridging the gap
Helping technicians become more efficient is vital when operating without a full crew. With no recovery in sight for the diesel technician hiring pool, every fleet should look for ways to streamline its shops. By interpreting and contextualizing telematics data, AI has the potential to revolutionize how shops run.
Thanks to functions like voice commands, technicians can ask questions without having to put down a tool or wipe grease off their hands. Moreover, they can receive answers to specific, conditional questions that less than a decade ago would have seemed like science fiction, making it easier and quicker to diagnose and fix an issue.
Another benefit of AI is that it can be trained to gradually learn and remember past queries, ensuring different people get the same answer to the same question. This also means the AI will know about all the products and brands a fleet currently uses, preventing technicians from having to provide unnecessary context or risking inaccurate information for a specific engine or chassis.
There is no question that the next generation of diesel technicians will enter the industry knowing how to strategically use AI in the shop. Maintenance teams need to start incorporating these tools now to work out the kinks, educate their current teams, and prepare for the future of truck diagnostics and repair.
Still have some work to do
The technology is getting there, but to quote the band America, we "still have some work to do."
Today, the greatest limitation of telematics technology is how disparate the various devices and platforms can be. Though many of the biggest players provide both the physical devices and the portal software, plenty of others focus on only one or the other. Depending on the use case, a fleet could use three or four different device brands, all with their own proprietary portals. In other words, fleets have access to lots of data, but none of the systems talk to each other.
At the moment, telematics OEMs offer useful but not necessarily usable products. In a vacuum, a device works as intended. But once you account for the entire ecosystem of sensors, portals, and dashboards it will inhabit, the term “usable” becomes highly subject to interpretation. However, given the pace of technological advancements and recent product announcements from major telematics companies, this integration will likely arrive before long.
Ultimately, no matter how advanced the tech becomes, human oversight will always be needed to ensure accuracy, train new hires, and provide judgment. As much as AI, telematics, and other forms of new technology can aid the shop, they cannot replace the physical work that technicians perform. This is why the best approach for incorporating tech is less “what can I replace?” and more “what can I enhance?”
Servicing trucks better and faster means providing technicians with actionable insights so they spend less time finding the answer and more time executing the solution. Like it or not, telematics is trucking’s past, present, and future.
