CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Mr. Teja Gudena, Senior Vice President at Netradyne
- What are some of the common concerns that fleet operators face? How is Netradyne’s product solving the problems?
Two of the major concerns fleet operators face today across markets are driver & road safety and increased operational cost.
According to a report released by the National Crime Records Bureau, deaths by road accidents rose by 17% in 2021 amounting to 1.55 lakh in India, and 87000 out of them were because of over-speeding.
A logistics organization’s operational and reputational management depends heavily on its driver behavior. Efficient and accountable driving practices enhance the bottom line of companies and ensure everyone’s safety.
At Netradyne, our advanced embedded technology, Driver.I™, provides assistance to drivers. In order to create a new standard of safe driving for commercial vehicles, the solution captures videos that combine the latest innovations in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Edge Computing. The video data is also analyzed in real-time and populates the fleet’s dashboard. This information can then be further used to identify and reward safe driving behaviors. By creating timely alerts and coaching opportunities, Driver.I™ reduces unsafe acts, including over-speeding, and reduces fleet risk. This further equips fleet managers with the complete safety picture through alerts, straightforward reports, and video on demand. We focus on pairing the most advanced hardware, software, and ML to create the best driver and user experience through positive reinforcement.
Safe & responsible driving directly impacts the operational cost positively, including fuel consumption, wear-and-tear of vehicle, vehicle’s uptime, insurance claim cost, etc.
In addition to reducing driving incidents, the technology has been enabling fleet organizations to deal with exonerations cases and provide footage to protect against false claims.
2. Can you describe the technology behind Driver.I™ and how the implementation of AI provides meaningful and critical data for fleet operators?
Driver.I™ is our flagship product which is developed by the most efficient engineers and functions on AI, ML, edge computing, and cloud technology. The technology allows you to analyze video data, gather insights, and receive alerts in real-time. Fleet Managers can easily view these analytics on the dashboard in real-time and can take necessary actions.
It captures driver’s behavior such as seat belt compliance, and drowsy and distracted driving, and offers real-time in-cab notifications to keep drivers alert. These instances are stored as footage on the fleet manager portal to be accessed later for corrective action.
With the help of cloud connectivity, we provide a complete dashboard interface to customers, where they can track their fleets. For instance, if a fleet manager is getting too many alerts from a specific vehicle, they can opt for live streaming of the vehicle and monitor the driver’s behavior. This is the key differentiator that Netradyne technology provides.
Our HD cameras offer clear visibility even at night and in low-light weather, thereby being able to see details like license plates, speed limit signs, stoplights, pedestrians, and objects – and this is a unique differentiator as well. The device captures and analyzes 100% of drive time, providing a complete picture to fleet managers about driving events. Managers can quickly see exactly how each driver is performing and take action accordingly.
AI provides meaningful and analytic data to commercial fleet operators by detecting, reasoning, and predicting incidents (if applicable) through driver behavior. This helps the operators recognize superior performance and also address dangerous driving before it turns into a mishap. This analysis happens in real-time with powerful integrated processors, using deep learning algorithms.
3. How do real-time computer vision and in-depth data analysis help protect and empower fleets and drivers?
The combination of these technologies enables fleet managers to change driver behaviors over time, by utilizing real-time feedback and insights gathered from data generated by sensors. This is a game-changer for fleet managers.
Real-time computer vision also plays a major role in enabling the overall driver experience. In-cab alerts help send instant notifications to drivers on their driving behavior, prompting immediate self-correction.
In fact, driver training and incentive programs are one of the best ways that help raise overall fleet safety and performance. Incentive programs motivate drivers to push themselves to deliver better, improve their ranking, and in the process, be more aware of their driving behavior on a daily basis.
At Netradyne, we have developed the industry’s first driver score, Greenzone which is built on the principle of encouraging positive driving. Driver.I™ proactively captures and highlights safe driving events such as maintaining distance between other vehicles around, following road signs, making sure to stop when the driver is feeling drowsy, adhering to alerts, etc., based on which drivers are awarded scores. These scores help drivers reach key milestones and can be awarded. Drivers can also self-assess themselves by reviewing key events with accompanying suggestions on how to improve performance and increase their scores.
4. Can you provide some of the customer outcomes after they installed Netradyne’s device?
One of India’s leading oil & gas companies sought a holistic solution to improve fleet safety, alongside monitoring driver performance, fleet tracking, etc. Given the industry, some of the violations could be life-threatening. Therefore, it is critical to track the complete trip which sometimes may go on for as long as 5 days. Footage may also be required in case of any incidents which may be investigated.
Netradyne’s AI-enabled smart IoT solution offered them visibility of the event types along with the footage. The company was able to see a dip in the number of violations with Driver.I™’s reminder feature and in-cab auto alerts. The biggest impact is the reduced number of accidents by up to 40%, thereby improving driver safety and also impacting profitability through increased vehicle uptime, reduced cost of accidents, and reduced insurance cost. Violation alerts were reduced by almost 80%, resulting in an improved culture of safe driving. We have been noticing similar results across other verticals as well.
We are highly encouraged by the results that our clients are posting and are committed to continuing our focus on R&D, thereby providing the best solution to reduce accidents and save lives.
