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Telematics. Not the
sort of term to stir up a whole lot of enthusiasm in a guy like me.
Conservative when it comes to English usage, I pretty much hate buzzwords,
catchy phrases du jour, and most other forms of blather that sound important
but aren’t. So when I was asked to put together a story on what,
at the time, seemed like one of the most bombastic buzzwords to hit
the marine scene in ten years, I felt just a tad restrained at first.
Then I started to doze off. “What is telematics, anyway?”
I wondered, just before lapsing into la-la land. Some kind of new cellphone
technology? As if we don’t have enough on the planet already!
I woke up eventually,
of course, a phenomenon that often engenders an attitudinal change on
my part, as it did in this case. I tried a little research, then a little
more, and ultimately discovered that telematics is compelling stuff—way
more interesting than I’d figured. Moreover, telematics technology
is on the verge of making major-league contributions to three highly
significant areas of the marine realm: vessel safety, onboard security,
and owner-assistance underway. And these contributions, in my opinion,
rate right up there importance-wise with the invention of the first
workable marine VHF radio.
To get a feeling for
the how and why of such a stunning development, let’s start with
a short definition. Telematics is a technology that makes it possible
to control or monitor equipment via fixed or wireless communication
networks over great distances. Because the implications of this phraseology
are a little tough to grasp immediately, let’s take a fast, expository
side trip into the automotive venue.
Ever heard of OnStar?
A hardware/service option available on numerous models of GM cars these
days, it uses onboard GPS and wireless technology to provide support to
drivers on a 24/7/365 basis. This support includes remote door unlock
(in case you’re like me and lock your keys in your car now and again
just for the heck of it), roadside and accident
assistance, stolen-vehicle tracking, and concierge services that run the
gamut from driving directions to getting tickets for sold-out events in
destination towns and cities. To begin understanding what marine telematic
technology is and what it may mean to boaters of the not-so-distant future,
it is easiest to think of it as the maritime equivalent of OnStar.
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Call Center, Part 2 > Page 1, 2,
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