Guest authored by Shamree Howard, Sr. Manager of Marketing and Communications, Danlaw Inc.
The only thing I dread more than the blue screen of death on my computer is the warning light in my car. The bold red “Service” or “Check Engine” light seems to stare back at me knowing full well I have no idea what is wrong with my car. Faithfully, like a well-trained homing pigeon, I go to my mechanic who plugs into my on-board diagnostics (OBD) port and tells me what is wrong. Every car manufactured for the U.S., since 1996, has an OBD port that is accessible from inside your car. Now aside from my mechanic checking what is wrong with my car, I’ve never used my OBD port, until now.
Incentives for reduced insurance premiums based on safe driver status are popping up like flowers in the spring. With an estimated 5 million User Based Insurance (UBI) policies worldwide and over 53 trials happening at any one time, the market for OBD devices is growing exponentially. OBD telematics, or vehicle telematics is a way of monitoring the driving movements of your car. It captures information such as location, speed, mileage driven and braking.
In a recent UBI Global Study by PTOLEMUS that surveyed 78 technology suppliers, Danlaw Inc. was ranked #1 in North America for OBD Telematic Devices. The ranking was based on 14 criteria including the company footprint, product range and track record.
Danlaw recently announced their GEN2.5 DL 8-series DataLogger OBD telematics device with TI’s SimpleLink™ Bluetooth CC2564 solution embedded inside. This means that Danlaw can now offer custom interface handling to support Bluetooth based applications such as: driver feedback, hybrid data transmission, and text or phone disablement.
TI’s CC2564 Bluetooth solution allowed Danlaw to continue providing the highest quality device on the market, while adding new capabilities. Thomas Rzeznik, president and COO of Danlaw stated, “It’s great to work with another company who is as committed to quality as we are.”
Now I’m very interested in these OBDII Telematic devices, and I hope you are too. I can save insurance money with safe driving and keep kids from texting while they drive? Sign me up!
