The Godwin Group drew an overflow crowd to its large floor display at The Work Truck Show for the introduction of a first-of-its-kind dump truck monitoring and control platform from Allied Mobile Systems.
The Evolution System actively monitors hydraulic and dump body operations as well as chassis operational data—a “whole truck” monitoring approach that offers active intervention of unsafe equipment operation.
Before showing a video to explain the system, Godwin Group President Pat Godwin Jr. credited customers who had signed up for initial testing, leading to some “very interesting” conversations that helped guide the product’s development.
Godwin recalled he’d invited a half-dozen or so dump operators to come in for an hour-long presentation on the concept.
“In the first 10 minutes, every single one of them said, ‘I’ve got to have it,’” he recalled. “So we knew we were going down the right path because they had no idea what they were coming to our office for. It's very satisfying to be able to address some of these safety concerns.”
Specifically, the touchscreen managed Evolution System:
- Automatically lowers the dump bed if the driver forgets to lower it while leaving a job site to prevent property damage
- Prevents the dump bed from raising while the truck is in transit due to accidental hydraulic control engagement
- Automatically locks the tailgate if the driver forgets to lock it to prevent load loss and property damage
- Automatically disables the tailgate latch while truck is in transit to prevent accidental load spills
- Prevents the dump bed from raising when the tailgate is latched
- Automatically disengages the PTO if the truck driver forgets to turn it off while the truck is in transit
- Automatically logs all of the above, and other operator errors, for owner monitoring and driver evaluations
- Displays rear view cameras on the screen eliminating the need for additional monitoring equipment
- Displays real-time color changing Roll and Tilt gauges with audible alarms to aid in rollover prevention
- Displays real-time dump angle of the dump body as it is raised and lowered
- Displays real-time maximum body height in inches, feet, or meters from the ground as the body is in operation; and
- Actively estimates the percentage of maximum load based on truck capability and local laws.
See the April print edition of Trailer/Body Builders for complete coverage of Work Truck Week.