FMS Standard for Commercial Vehicles: Fleet Management System

Author : Tawfeeq Ahmad

Update time : 2022-05-11 17:48:38

Image of FMS standard for commercial vehicles: fleet management system

(Image source: iWave Systems)

The challenges for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers are immense with the increased fluctuations in the supply chain and in e-commerce. Commercial Vehicles are often leased out by manufacturers and used for long hours in extreme working conditions, it is important for the owners to monitor their location and other pertinent parameters to effectively control the usage. Parameters such as location, working duration, engine performance, and engine parameters need to be continuously monitored to prevent failures of such vehicles and extend the life of the vehicle.

What is the FMS Standard?

The Fleet Management Systems Interface (FMS) is a standard interface to the vehicle data of commercial vehicles. The FMS is an optional interface to vehicle data of different commercial vehicle manufacturers and is seen as a worldwide standard. Supporting information is dependent upon the vehicle electronic control unit (ECU).

The FMS interface is designed to be the sole interface for a safe data connection to the internal network since a direct connection to the vehicles’ internal bus system might affect vehicle reliability. The six European manufacturers - Daimler AG, MAN AG, Scania, Volvo, DAF Trucks and IVECO - developed the FMS-Standard in 2002 to make manufacturer-independent applications and evaluations of the data for telematics possible. Fleet Management helps businesses to maintain optimal use of their work vehicles from a central platform.

Image of semi trucks

(Image source: iWave Systems)

Evolution of the FMS Standard over the years

FMS Standard 1.0 was issued in 2002 with the support of vehicle data such as speed, electronic engine controller, fuel consumption, vehicle weight, total engine hours, vehicle identification number, tachograph information, service/vehicle distance and engine coolant temperature.
Bus FMS standard (Ver. 00.01) was issued in 2007 for buses and coaches by Daimler Buses, EvoBus GmbH, MAN Truck & Bus AG, Scania CV, Volvo Bus Corporation, IrisBus Iveco and VDL Bus International B.V. The initial “FMS Standard 1.0” was also referred as “Truck FMS Standard”
FMS Standard 2.0 was issued in 2010 with the support of additional information compared to FMS Standard 1.0 such as ambient conditions, driver’s identification, fuel economy, PTO drive engagement and accurate fuel consumption data.
FMS Standard 3.0 harmonized Bus and Truck standard was issued in 2012.
FMS Standard 4.0 was issued in 2017, the FMS-CAN interface is Scania's CAN interface for FMS standard messages

Telematics with the FMS Standard

Telematics with the FMS ensures vehicles are operating smoothly, are constantly seeking ways to improve performance, are able to keep operating costs at a minimum, and maintain compliance with government regulations. It brings significant advantages in terms of the time and cost borne in providing field service for emergency breakdowns.

Following are a few benefits of telematics with the FMS Standard in commercial vehicles:

Easy access to diagnostics data for quick detection and troubleshooting of failures
Remotely access efficiency and critical statuses of machines
Ensure vehicle uptime with preventive/predictive maintenance
Immediately notify negligent use, damage, and attempt of theft
Increased customer satisfaction through fewer breakdowns and better diagnostics
Reduced fuel, maintenance, and operating costs
Predict emergency breakdowns and service time with simpler dispute handling
Smart allocation of resources
Track and recover lost vehicles

iWave telematics hardware for FMS

To connect to commercial vehicles, you can utilize the Telematics Control Unit or the Telematics gateway from iWave. The telematics solutions are integrated with multiple CAN Ports, RS232, RS485, Analog, Digital Inputs with the backhaul over cellular 4G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The powerful microprocessor powered telematics solution provides the software flexibility and transparency to be compatible with different makes and models of commercial vehicles.

Image of telematics control unit and telematics gateway

(Image source: iWave Systems)

Architecture of FMS with the J1939 protocol stack

The SAE J1939 stack developed by iWave is based on the ANSI C standard and supports all the specifications of the SAE J1939 protocol needed for collecting data from buses and trucks. The stack works with an extended 29-bit CAN identifier with all the standard baud rates (100 kbps, 125 kbps, 250 kbps, 500 kbps, and 1000 kbps) supported. The iWave stack implements an auto baud rate detection mechanism that allows the external diagnostic tool/data logger device to find the baud rate supported by the vehicle and initiates the communication between the device and vehicle ECU. The stack facilitates the device to interpret all types of SAE J1939 standard messages from the Vehicle ECU.

Image of J1939 protocol stack

(Image source: iWave Systems)

The SAE J1939 software stack provides an efficient way to read FMS standard parameters. The FMS data can be combined with the J1939 data, such as GPS position, Tachograph data, and sensor readings, which provides a universal communication and information source.

The following data is broadcast at the FMS interface of the truck brand and standardized to SAE J1939:

Accelerator pedal position (0–100%)
Axle weight (kg)
Brake switch (on/off)
Clutch switch (on/off)
Cruise control (on/off)
Engine coolant temperature
Engine speed
FMS-Standard software version (supported modes)
Fuel level (0–100%)
High-resolution vehicle distance
Power take-off (PTO) (Status/Mode)
Service distance
Tachograph information
Total engine hours (h)
Total fuel used (liters since lifetime)
Vehicle identification number (ASCII)
Vehicle improvement (all round)
Vehicle speed (wheel based)
Vehicle speed (from tachograph)

iWave designed the stack to be fully customizable, allowing users to specify feature sets and fine-tune the stack to meet end application requirements. The J1939 protocol stack has been deployed globally for commercial vehicle applications.

The value proposition of iWave Telematics Solutions with J1939 protocol stack are:

Easy to use APIs
End to End solution offerings for Telematics Solutions
Supported in all available kernel versions.

To get in touch with iWave for enquiries and any further information, you can reach us at [email protected]

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