Now You Can Add GPS To The Motorola MC9090 and MC9190

Now You Can Add GPS To The Motorola MC9090 and MC9190

Now You Can Add GPS To The Motorola MC9090 and MC9190The Motorola MC9000 series has been amongst the most popular devices in the enterprise mobility market and many are still in use in a variety of industries. As units like this are being used longer before being replaced it is worth knowing that you can add GPS to the Motorola MC9090 and MC9190

Unlike most contemporary units neither of these had GPS built in which makes the OrbitGPS G3090 a cost effective GPS enhancement to legacy deployments returning a great return on investment ROI.

These units are ideal where the user is predominantly on foot and not looking to return the unit to a vehicle or desk cradle.

 

The receiver is designed to snap on to the bottom of the mobile computer to provide GPS position information to applications running on the device. The GPS receiver features a rugged plastic housing that attaches using the device’s serial connector for communication and power.

The G3090 GPS receiver has been tested for compatibility with all the Microsoft Windows Mobile operating systems used on the MC9090 and MC9190 products. The computer can be charged through the attachment with a standard dock charger.

Outputs of GPS information are in industry standard NMEA sentences which are compatible with most GPS software applications. It can also be configured to output GPS information in the SiRF Binary format. The G3090  offers typical accuracies of 3-5 meters uncorrected and 3 meters or better with Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) correction.

The G3090 is tested to comply with FCC and CE standards.

Now You Can Add GPS To The Motorola MC9090 and MC9190Now you can add GPS to the Motorola MC9090 and MC9190. Get in touch for more details.

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MobileWorxs Joins the SOTI Reseller Community

MobileWorxs Joins the SOTI Reseller Community

Worcester, UK – MobileWorxs announced today that it has joined forces with SOTI to resell the award winning Enterprise Mobility Management software, SOTI® MobiControl®

MobileWorxs Joins the SOTI Reseller CommunityMobiControl allows companies to manage, support and secure their mobile field force using a web-based management console.  With MobiControl, enterprises can control, access and secure mobile devices remotely, saving time, labour and money. Mobile administrators can locate, gather and track information and lockdown GPS enabled devices, enable security protocols and provide mobile application and document management capabilities. The system tracks hardware and software assets effortlessly.

Read the Press Release

MobileWorxs Joins the SOTI Reseller Community

Get in touch to learn more about how mobile device management can have a positive impact on your enterprise mobility deployment.

 

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The Secret of How Pirelli Recover Data From F1 Tires

The Secret of How Pirelli Recover Data From F1 Tires

Mario Isola of Pirelli explains how Pirelli recover data from F1 tires for this weekend’s Fifth round of the Formula 1 season. The Spanish Grand Prix at Catalunya.

Read the Original Article on Automoto

Mario explains;

The track at Catalunya has alternating areas of high and lower speed sectors. It has a rather abrasive asphalt with high levels of energy downloaded on the shell in particular on the left side. To cope with this Pirelli has chosen to use tires P Zero Orange hard and the P Zero White medium for this race. What do the Pirelli colours mean.

To detect the level of wear of tires Pirelli use the RTS (Pirelli Racing Tyre System), which uses a tablet pc and software to identity and recover data from each tire.

The first step in performing measurements at the end of each session finds the Pirelli engineers using a spatula and dryer to clean the tread surface to remove any dirt collected from the asphalt.

Then a tread depth gauge is used to measure the thickness of the rubber that remains in each of the six indicator areas on the tire cover. The gauge is directly connected to the RTS and when the engineer takes a measurement the T7000 screen graphically shows the profile of wear the tire has experienced.

Once all the data has been recovered the RTS system is able to provide every team with an estimate of the useful life of the rubber. It can then make a comparison with the average from other cars and a representative profile of the conditions of all the tires in use.

Key Point: This data is very important as it creates a base line from which the teams are able to develop a better strategy for the race. Vroom Vroom…..!

The Spanish Grand Prix at Catalunya is on 15th March 2013 Timetable . The race starts 13:00 BST 14:00 CET

To Find out more about how a Rugged Tablet PC can help your field based workers be more effective get in touch.

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Now You Can Access Your Mobile Apps Through A Desktop

Now You Can Access Your Mobile Apps Through A Desktop

Now You Can Access Your Mobile Apps Through A DesktopHaving decided on your mobile application to replace paper forms and pep up the performance of your field based workers the other equally important consideration is the back office software non mobile staff use.

The mobile app is often thought to be the first and only consideration in an enterprise mobility project.

 

But having the ability to access your mobile apps through a desktop can add value to the remote workforce and can help the business move away from the rudimentary Excel or paper based systems in the back office that are so common.

The back office system is usually the hub of a business. Without it office staff cannot enter customer orders, find customer information, check the status of jobs in or assigned out to the field, manage users, view reports send invoices and edit stock. Even with the rise of mobile products and apps it is likely that people are still going to be sitting at a desk doing business oriented tasks for some time to come.

Traditionally Back Office Systems Are:

1. Paper based forms.
2. A database built locally made up of Excel sheets or in MS Access.
3. Billing/Account system like Sage.
4. CRM/ERP i.e. SAP and MS Dynamics

Many companies still run their businesses on reams of paper or may have progressed to using Excel or Access. So building a mobile app to increase the effectiveness of remote staff is a real opportunity to think about the back office in a new way.

An accounting application such as Sage is very good at accounting but has no real functionality to create jobs assign them to a mobile worker or create a PDF report on job completion.

Similarly if a customer has spent ten’s of thousands on a large ERP system it will contain all the backend features/data required so only integration between the mobile app and ERP system is required. In some scenarios further data processing is required before it is transmitted into the ERP system. A desktop app/batch process can be developed to create this functionality. The issue with custom development within a CRM or ERP system is simply cost. It can be very expensive to have a custom function developed and any further changes are very expensive.

Desktop Portal Benefits

Even when accounting or CRM/ERP systems exist a specific desktop app as in our Pest Control product will allow a user in the office to enter new customer details straight into the desktop and using a built in scheduler deploy it to the most suitable worker at the appropriate time slot and manage changes dynamically. The management of ongoing activities and production of reports can also be managed through this desktop portal.

In just about every case the ability to access your mobile apps and critical business data  through a desktop portal on the mobile side can prove just as useful as having mobile devices in the first place. It also ties in well with managing permissions for mobile device management MDM.

How to Build it ?

As ever there are a few options. A software house can custom make an office solution you could buy off the shelf or if you have the skills and patience go DIY. The other option is to use the platform being used for the mobility project.

After all it uses the same approach to data management and the reports will be derived from the data being generated in the field anyway. With these tools the provider can quickly develop applications for PDA and desktop pulling from the same resources. Applications can be viewed on a desktop via a native OS client or browser based.

Now You Can Access Your Mobile Apps Through a Desktop Portal

Whatever your application we can show you examples of how you can access your mobile apps through a desktop portal.

 

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Why Barcode is Still a Great Idea For Mobile Inventory

Why Barcode is Still a Great Idea For Mobile Inventory

Why Barcode is still a Great Idea For Mobile InventoryThere cannot be many inventions that are so simple yet so effective as the humble barcode. It’s beauty lies in its simplicity, its strength lies in its flexibility. They enable quick and precise identification in all types of businesses which is why barcode is still a great idea for mobile inventory.

Just about every company and especially SME’s have had to get used to smaller profit margins and more competitive markets. Whatever your field based application be it Pest Control, Route Accounting Field Service or Facilities Management the inventory control of stock in vehicles and with workers in the field is a key area.

Getting a handle of what is in the field can be the first step to being able to control the costs of what is issued to mobile workers what they use and keeping track of what they return.  Having the right items on hand when they are needed is an excellent way to avoid the additional costs that come from not being able to do a first time fix or having to re-visit days later. Using barcodes can help promote proper mobile inventory management.

5 Great Reasons To Barcode Mobile Inventory

  1. Leverage your existing systems – scan items straight into your legacy sytem via a mobile app.
  2. Increase Productivity – save time do more no more re-keying.
  3. Promote Accuracy – lots of evidence that barcoded data far more accurate than handwritten notes or forms.
  4. Easy to use and highly portable – point scan, information recorded what could be simpler. Make one here. Read more about mobile printing.
  5. Can be applied (!) to just about any surface, parts locations even bees!

Keeping track of things on paper is time consuming and manually entering inventory numbers on paper and then re-keying them into a database or spreadsheet is prone to error. Scanning a barcode reduces the administrative time it takes to track an item which will probably be keyed into a database system anyway. Scanning an item into stock and then moving it through the process from inventory to shipping to invoicing as well as ordering replacement stock can be automated saving time and reducing errors.

Barcodes are accurate and enhanced by positive product identification. Items cannot be misidentified by workers or customers reducing the opportunity for mix-ups or theft. Whenever there is a need to accurately identify or track something use a barcode!

Huge Upside

Using barcodes is not a new idea but one that still has huge upside for businesses with inventory deployed in remote locations or in vehicles. It is not uncommon for a service engineer to be carrying around thousands of pounds worth of spare parts on a van with little or no ability to immediately reconcile what is present or what parts are on hand to deal with a call out. Same can be true in merchandising and pest control appliactions

Key Point: The low cost of equipment and consumables generate great additional benefits and superb levels of return on investment for your enterprise mobility project.

Read more the history of the Barcode.

Why Barcode is still a Great Idea For Mobile InventoryThere are many cost effective ways of extending your mobile system to include barcode. Get in touch to discuss the options.

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Revisited Android in Enterprise Mobility ? Part 2

Revisited Android in Enterprise Mobility ? Part 2

We covered the basics of  Android for Enterprise Mobility in part one.  This was not meant as a rant against Android but to point out that in the enterprise market stability and longevity are important features of an OS that underpin the supportablity of a deployment. In this post – Revisited Android in Enterprise Mobility we will look into this a little further.

Whilst Android is getting there with many enterprise mobility issues it is coming from the mass adoption by indivuals and carries some interesting baggage. Bottom line is that a device with an Android OS can be an excellent unit when used for the in the right circumstances.

Android in Enterprise Mobility

Android Fragmentation from the OpenSignal Study

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fragmentation of the many various versions of the Android OS each with different capabilities has come about by the very open source nature of the platform and its incrediable popularity in the consumer market. Open Signal studied this in some detail and the results are quite revealing.

Android Versions

An explaination of the different versions in detail.

Most people with an Android phone are at least on OS 2.1 – Eclair or greater.  Versions of above 2.1:

  • 2.2 – Froyo
  • 2.3 – Gingerbread
  • 3.0 – Honeycomb
  • 4.0 – Ice-cream Sandwich
  • 4.1 – Jelly Bean
  • 4,2 – Jelly Bean

As with just about any OS the later the version the greater improved are the features but which one do you choose for your app?  Things are further complicated when consumer hardware providers add their own custom layer to differentiate between the competitors. Differing OS versions will require different APIs. If you can access the camera on a Samsung unit, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be able to do the same on your HTC. Even the most experienced device estate managers have found upgrading from one version to a later one can be a tough task. And that’s before you get to BYOD.

Do you make your application native or use a web browser? are all your devices using the same web browser with the same HTML standard?

Screen Size and Keyboard

In a recent tweet Derek Kessler listed all 27 of the screen sizes currently available in the Samsung range. Interestingly Apple iOS screen sizes numbered only 4.

Data input is usually an area most people overlook. Android devices generally use a capacitive screen meaning finger touch only. The obviously causes problems if the user is wearing gloves or has dirty hands. Where a stylus can be used to pinpoint a drop down list, highlight damage on a photo or enter a signature this all becomes difficult when using finger touch.

Android devices have differing screen resoultions and maximize screen estate using an on screen keyboard. But this means application space is reduced on screen when the keyboard is present. Text input can be slow with misspellings common. Windows Mobile Devices designed for the blue collar market can come with a physical keyboard for rapid data entry.

 Scanning

Barcode scanning in another issue. On Windows Mobile units scanners are built into the unit. On Android units you can buy additional handheld scanner connected via Bluetooth. or use the camera. A camera’s primary function is to take photos/video so asking it to scan barcodes in higher volume applications can be painfully slow…..

On a side note – How many games/apps are there for a Windows Mobile device that user can download? Maybe a handful is the answer and the user has to search the internet to find the cab file install. How many games/apps are there Android that a user can download? Thousands! Of course you can lock down an Android device using SOTI device management but this is one factor to consider.

If you have an application which is basic to use with lots of drop downs and limited text input it may work very well on Android. For more complex applications I’d strongly recommend considering your Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) options before buying am inexpensive consumer device for your roll-out.

Do not let the fragmentation of the Android OS put you off using it for your enterprise mobility project. Get in touch to discuss.

Contact Us

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Android Devices for Enterprise Mobility ? Part 1

Android Devices for Enterprise Mobility ? Part 1

Original Android Artwork by Dan Morrill

Original Android Artwork by Dan Morrill

A continual question we get asked at MobileWorxs is “Since I can buy several Android devices for enterprise mobility for the cost of a single Windows based rugged mobile surely to do so is a no brainer?”

Well maybe it is but perhaps it is not quite so clear cut as I’ll explain in this first of 2 posts about Android devices for Enterprise Mobility.

 

 

 

Not to dismiss Android units from the start they are extremely popular in the consumer world and becoming more so in the Enterprise market due to BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). Units are well priced which is attracting a wider business audience. As a consumer smart phone they are excellent with thousands of app’s available to do 101 useful and 1101 pointless things. The open nature of Android means users can take full control of the OS and user all the device features.

If you drop and damage an Android smartphone you can just buy another and it will still be cheaper then a rugged PDA. This is true but over how many times? and it is somewhat dependent on the environment and the availability of the same model you just smashed up.

Everyone has dropped there own mobile phone and it bounces and continues to work.  Generally your mobile phone spends most of its life in your pocket or on your desk. When used in real world blue collar applications the device is use for the task in hand, thrown into the van foot well, carried on a shoulder strap or shoved into a vehicle cradle. This means the device could get knocked or dropped easily 20 times a day.

When using your mobile device throughout the day you are far more likely to accidentally knock or drop the unit as opposed to your personal mobile phone safe in your pocket or held to your ear. Battery life of personal mobile phones isn’t what it used to be, battery technology although advancing hasn’t kept up with the demands of 3G Wi-Fi and Bluetooth all being switched on all the time. If you use a device continually throughout the day you’ll need to charge it more often.

Charging

This means you’ll need a robust charger or in vehicle dock when driving from job to job. Unfortunately these accessories are only consumer grade. Plugging and unplugging leads will reduce life span or the charger and device. This is why enterprise devices have numerous rugged accessories so devices can be jammed into a cradle and pulled out without damaging either part.

Theft

Damage is one issue, theft is another. You don’t see many people with an MC9500 down the pub texting a friend. This is because they are not desirable they are tools for work. Revert to an Ipad or the latest Samsung Galaxy 4 – everybody wants one because they look cool the latest gadget to have. This is a sad state of affairs but unfortunately it does happen.

This isn’t to say the current crop of Android devices are not good. They are more then capable if used in the correct way. A manager/merchandiser/salesman etc can all use an Android device or even Ipad/Iphone without too many issues. They are not in an environment where the device is very likely to get knocked or dropped.

Changing Times

Manufacturers that have traditionally built Windows Mobile equipment for the line of business market are starting to bring out Android based devices. In the past these companies have used Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) as a reason why users should buy rugged devices and they may well end up using the sales argument here. After all it’s just another OS and if you are deploying thousands of the same unit it does actually pay to be able to fix it rather than scrap it. However what they are not used to combating is the functionality and price point of a smartphone so watch this space.

Of course the key point is that there is no point buying any sort of mobile technology without having thought through how it will resolve an issue with a business problem. So do this first !

In the short term expect to see more Android devices for enterprise mobility like the Mini Tablet Motorola ET1 and more traditional smartphone shape Handheld x1. Both are fine units and run Android but each has different versions of the OS…more of that next time.
Using Android Devices for Enterprise Mobility

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Is Big Brother Watching ?

Is Big Brother Watching ?

Is Big Brother WatchingGuest Post by Timothy C B Cox with some great advice on an issue that trips up many first time enterprise mobile deployments. Is Big Brother Watching ?

 

 

 

 

If you have decided to get into enterprise mobility and deploy a system into your company you might be surprised to realise that during a project most companies complelty ignore their users! And users can make or break a solution that you are trying implement to fix a business process problem. Including them in the process can eliminate many issues in the future and is an often neglected area of consideration.

Role of Power Users

Users can be naturally resistant to a mobility system as it often sparks rumors about the motivations of the boss having the ability to track their activities and whereabouts.  Privacy as an issue is being fueled by the prospect of an expansion of systems based on BYOD – Bring Your Own Device.

A smart move is to make sure you include some of your power users in the decision process you are going through. They know all about the in field processes often in a more intimate way that the project team that has been put together to come up with a mobility system.

When you have a unionised workforce its even more important to correctly communicate  what an enterprise mobility project will mean to members.

A Great Reason for Employees Not to Fret About Tracking

‘tracking protects users from all false accusations from customers and their employer. It protects the company from those wanting to defraud the the company of either their time or goods’

and…

A Reality About Social Media

‘are you using a social mobile app on your smart phone? You are being tracked and data about your location (and more) is being uploaded into a cloud somewhere and used by 3rd parties for profit.’

In social media the information being collected from consumers is astounding. The user gives up this information when they download an app and agree to the EULA (End User License Agreement). How many times have we all just tapped the ‘Accept’ button without reading the details.

Tracking company employees can protect both the employee & employer. The only people who need to worry are those who have reasons not to be audited. A company wants to go mobile to win more business drive growth and reduce costs. Employees should see benefits also: better earnings potential elimination of paperwork and the delivery of better customer experience leading to improved feedback.

If any company wants to prosper in these globally hard times they must protect themselves and their honest & hardworking employees. Mobile or not!!

So What do You do With The Data ?

Does it just lie in a database somewhere consuming resources. Are you ignoring a wealth of information being collected? If you are then its a wasted opportunity of improving your organisation and provide additional ROI for a mobility system.

Does HR know they can use this information for your mobile workforce annual review? There are KPIs that can be measured to reward employees that over perform. Of course ensure you include this as a provision in your HR policy. It is import to delete user identifiable data when an employee leaves the company.

So is big brother watching ? Just as call centres are measured on a number variables such as time it takes to pickup a call, problem resolution on the first call to avoid repeat calls from the same customer etc It makes perfect sense to extend these sort of KPI’s to the performance of your mobile workforce.

Is Big Brother WatchingTimothy C B Cox Mobile Workforce Strategy Consultant based in Dubai. Get in touch with Tim through Linkedin

Is Big Brother Watching

Call us to discuss how we can help keep all your staff involved and ensure your enterprise mobility project addresses the key business issues.

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GNSS Highly accurate GPS for Tablet PC

GNSS Highly Accurate GPS for Tablet PC

GNSS Highly accurate GPS for Tablet PCGPS has become a common feature in many smart phones and Tablets in recent years. The range of uses are vast from apps in social media, confirming delivery locations and as a navigation aid to drivers and walkers.  Generally these devices use commercial off the shelf technology grade GPS receivers accurate to around 5 to 15m.

More professional grade receivers for the handheld and tablet PC market are a more recent innovation. By its nature the non consumer market focuses largely on geographic information system GIS mapping requirements such as land surveying and construction. In these areas the requirement can often be to achieve a fix accuracy from 1m down to 1cm.

The term GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) is often used in this area to describe recievers using the GPS, and/or GLONASS satellite arrays.

ABI Research estimate that the market GPS/GNSS IC Market on course to break the $2 Billion barrier with a growing proportion of that accounted for by larger format devices.

Vast Range of Applications

The free availability and accuracy of GNSS signals for location and timing, combined with reducing cost of the hardware has made GNSS the chosen solution for a very wide and growing range of applications many of which are ideal for use with a tablet PC. These include transport rail, road, aviation, marine, cycling, walking, agriculture, fisheries, law enforcement, highways management, services for vulnerable people, energy production and management, surveying, dredging, health services, financial services, information services, cartography, safety monitoring, scientific and environmental studies, search and rescue, telecommunications, tracking vehicles and valuable or hazardous cargoes.

Which System Best Fits Your Application?

Portable GNSS handheld or tablet pc markets can be split into 4 distinct groups based upon accuracy requirements:

  1. Consumer Grade Systems offering limited accuracy (2-15m), e.g. personal navigation and car satnav systems. Basic GPS offers typically 5 to 15m accuracy, and this is sufficiently accurate for basic navigation, and for low order mapping. Receivers of this class are now low cost and widespread in phones and handheld devices from all major manufacturers.
  2. Professional Grade Systems offering sub-metre level fix accuracy, 0.5m to 1m, are required for supporting the basic fix accuracy requirements of GIS systems and asset mapping, used increasingly by local authorities, utility companies, housing associations and many other user groups.
  3. Professional Grade Systems offering sub-halfmetre fix accuracy, 0.3 to 0.5m, are required for supporting the higher quality fix accuracy requirements of higher level GIS applications and asset mapping, used by local authorities, utility companies, housing associations and many other user groups. These systems again, just use just the L1 frequency output from GNSS satellites.
  4. Professional Grade Systems offering very high fix accuracy (typically 1cm to 2cm). GNSS is used extensively nowadays by construction companies and survey companies worldwide, where positional accuracies of 1cm are often required. This accuracy is also necessary for precision machine guidance systems for the control of major earthmoving equipment for the automated shaping of ground profiles, and agricultural equipment.

Selecting the correct GPS technology depends on the application of use. When required to pinpoint GPS to 1-2cm fixes a professional GNSS solution is likely to be the best option.

GNSS Highly accurate GPS for Tablet PC

Our Geopod USB Module plugs into a free USB port on your laptop or any of our rugged Tablet PC range such as the T7200 T1200 and 10X providing you with a complete rugged GNSS surveying platform.

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MobileWorxs Named MobileDemand International Partner of the Year

MobileWorxs Named MobileDemand International Partner of the Year

MobileDemand International Partner of the Year

T1200 Rugged Tablet PC with Windows 8

MobileDemand has selected MobileWorxs as International Partner of the Year for 2012. Headquartered in the UK MobileWorxs provides enterprise mobile solutions, applications implementation and support services for the in-field enterprise worker. MobileWorxs is MobileDemand’s go to partner across Europe Middle East and Africa (EMEA). With key wins in the UK and throughout Europe MobileWorxs is deserving of this year’s International Partner of the year award.

About MobileDemand

MobileDemand is a leading provider of rugged tablet PC products that have an excellent   Return on Investment ROI proposition when compared to conventional PDA devices. MobileDemand T7200 and T1200 xTablets are used by mobile workers in many industries including Van Sales, Facilities Management, transport and Logisitcs, Surveying, Manufacturing, Retail, Field Service, Military and Public Sector to cut operational costs and improve customer service.

MobileDemand xTablet Rugged Tablet PCs and accessories are built military rugged to withstand harsh environments. They deliver the power, reliable performance and long-term savings companies need to achieve greater efficiency and productivity in the field.

In 2012 MobileDemand earned the position of 1,034 on the 2012 Inc. 5000 list of the nation’s fastest growing private companies. The company has built its success on a commitment to innovation everywhere – in product design, customer relationships and in its channel. President Matt Miller also received recognition as a finalist for the prestigious 2012 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. MobileDemand. Innovation everywhere. Productivity anywhere. Additional information is available at www.RuggedTabletPC.com.

Learn More about Rugged Tablet PC's

We can help you navigate your way through an enterprise mobility project. Get in touch to evaluate a unit or arrange a meeting.

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