Category: Industry News

Industry News

Upgrade Your RV Visibility

October 25, 2023

Upgrade Your RV Visibility OCTOBER 25, 2023 // Elizabeth Breneiser As the leaves change and the fall weather rolls in, it’s time to winterize your recreational vehicle (RV) in preparation for the colder months ahead. While you’re inspecting your tanks, batteries, and water lines, take advantage of this opportunity to upgrade your RV’s visibility for the adventures to come. RVs, among the largest consumer vehicles on the road, often lack the safety features found in typical passenger vehicles, making visibility a significant concern. Brandmotion’s AHDS-7810v2 Wireless HD Observation System brings clarity to your long-haul road trips, whether you’re backing up in tight campsites, fueling up in crowded places, or anywhere you may travel. The AHDS-7810v2 consists of a monitor and a camera, and is ideal for regaining the views you’d typically have with a rearview mirror. This live streaming camera provides a crucial perspective at all times while operating your vehicle, not just when in reverse. Unlike some competitor products with 480p camera resolution, Brandmotion’s camera offers a stunning 1080p resolution, providing much clearer views. For expanded visibility, consider adding the full 78’ Series to your trailer. The AHDS-7811v2 Wireless HD Observation Camera offers a secondary perspective for your trailer. This is great for monitoring precious cargo while on the road or obtaining an additional perspective from your trailer. The AHDS-7812 Wireless HD Side Marker Light Cameras provide visibility of the sides of your trailer. With turn signal activation, your blind spots will be significantly reduced, providing drivers peace of mind while on the road. With many screen options, you may view anywhere from one to four cameras at once for optimal visibility during your travels or while on-site. With a quick installation time, along with installation guides and user manuals, the installation process is a breeze. Have a question during the install process? Assistance is available via the Brandmotion Technical Support line during workdays and regular Eastern Time business hours, or you may fill out a Technical Support request form. Check out our product pages for more information on product specifications and installation materials. Take the stress out of your next adventure, and enjoy the road ahead! Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

The Aftermarket Is the Key to Preventing Fatal Accidents

March 23, 2021 Industry News

The Aftermarket Is the Key to Preventing Fatal Accidents MARCH 23, 2021 // JEFF VARICK Brandmotion is a company on a mission. We want to see every vehicle on the road equipped with lifesaving collision-avoidance technology. Not just new vehicles, but every vehicle. Cars, commercial trucks, fleet vans, new vehicles, old ones — even classics. There are 280 million vehicles on the road right now, and only 15 million new vehicles are built each year. That means 95 percent of the cars and trucks on the road are missing the latest safety technology. Nobody really focuses on that 95 percent, but only the 15 million new vehicles. If we’re going to make every car on the road safer, we need to focus on retrofitting those other 95% of vehicles — today. https://youtu.be/9A7zS7hluXE Why Retrofit Safety Products? Brandmotion focuses on the aftermarket. Most people think of the aftermarket as spoilers and lift kits and wheels and floor mats. But we can use the aftermarket to save lives. No one has really talked about that before. It isn’t something that leaders in Washington or policy makers are considering. But not only is it a valid strategy, it also means you don’t have to wait until all of today’s vehicles are retired to see lives saved. Several years ago, one study showed that if all the vehicles on the road had the same safety technology the newest vehicles are equipped with, we could save 10,000 lives a year. We’re losing 40,000 lives every year in the United States due to car crashes. That means we could cut road deaths by 25 percent overnight, simply by equipping every car on the road with the latest safety technologies. The key to doing that is through the aftermarket, because the vehicles are already on the road. If you’re a consumer or a fleet manager, you don’t have to buy a new vehicle. The average age of a car is getting longer all the time — it’s up to 12 years now. That’s a long time to wait for the latest safety technology. What if you could have that technology in your current vehicle, today? And in many cases, you can get the technology sooner than auto manufacturers can provide it. Because it can take years to develop and integrate at the OEM level, while we can bring it to market faster. https://youtu.be/ScIH_Uj7snI Retrofit Doesn’t Mean Inferior Saving lives doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice appearance or integration quality. At Brandmotion, we care deeply about how our products integrate into your vehicle. We don’t want our customers to be able to tell that it’s any different from the factory model. Our goal is nothing less than integrating products as if they came off the dealer’s lot. You won’t find suction cups or Velcro® on any of our technology. It’s integrated so seamlessly that if you didn’t know it’s an aftermarket product, you’d never know it’s an aftermarket product. https://youtu.be/IMwc-4t4Dws Saving Lives Together Anything that can help keep a driver safe shouldn’t be reserved only for new vehicles. It should be for everyone. We believe so strongly in that mission that we’re helping other suppliers to introduce their automotive safety technologies to OEMs. And, we’re on a mission to educate the broad public about the availability of life saving technology through the Vision Zero Automotive Network, which we founded. When you have a new vehicle technology or ADAS solution to take to market, it isn’t enough to prove that it works. Your automotive idea has to be developed to OEM standards and it has to prove effective to its target market. As developers of integrated automotive solutions we know how to help. Whether you’re a two-person team or an automotive supplier, we can help you demonstrate your new technology, prove and expand revenue possibilities and find markets. What’s Next in Automotive Safety Technology Since 2009, we’ve focused on cameras and sensors, which give drivers additional information to be more aware of their environment and avoid collisions. More recently, we’ve adapted radar blindspot technology, which was once thought to be unpromising as an aftermarket product. Now we’re seeing smart technology being applied to cameras and sensors, so they can process what they’re seeing. Dash cams aren’t just recording the road ahead, but are also measuring the rate at which you’re approaching the car in front of you. They can tell if you’re drifting out of your lane. They can also monitor drivers and alert them if they become distracted or start falling asleep. We’re even seeing opportunities to connect those smart cameras and sensors into a network where vehicles are talking to each other. It’s an incredibly exciting opportunity for the aftermarket. There’s so much new technology making its way to cars and trucks, it boggles the mind. It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive safety aftermarket. We’re excited to be able to adapt that technology and make it available to every car and truck that’s on the road, and to make the road safer for everyone. Discover how we can help make your fleet vehicles safer and less costly. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

6 Myths That Are Hurting Your Automotive Technology Demonstrations

March 9, 2021 Industry News

6 Myths That Are Hurting Your Automotive Technology Demonstrations MARCH 9, 2021 // JEFF VARICK I see automotive suppliers making the same mistake over and over when they demonstrate their automotive technology to OEM buyers. It’s a mistake that leaves money on the table (at best) and sometimes even loses the sale (at worst). These automotive suppliers demonstrate a technology that isn’t seamlessly integrated into a demonstration vehicle. At worst, they show the product on top of a table. At best, they do a demo vehicle but leave cables exposed, bulky components mounted on top of the dash, and boxes shoved under the seats. It’s a mess, and makes your innovative technology look like a makeshift, second-rate product. I see it time and time again, because OEM suppliers have bought into the myths of automotive technology demonstration. These myths make it feel acceptable to skip the seamless vehicle integration, but they come at a cost. Have you bought into one of these myths? If so, you’re missing revenue with every automotive technology demonstration. Myth 1: Our Technology Doesn’t Call for an Entire Vehicle Not every technology needs a full vehicle integration. Smaller tech displays can be demonstrated on the bench, but vehicle developments such as autonomous vehicle systems or active safety systems are best highlighted by a full driving experience. For these technologies, you want your customer to be able to envision how your product could look, and operate, within the vehicle. Your OEM customers don’t want to see exposed cables and components that should be integrated into the vehicle — they want to experience what the driver will experience. If you can impress them with a seamless product that looks, functions, and feels like it came out of the factory, you’ll close more deals, and at a higher price point. Myth 2: Function Alone Will Knock Their Socks Off Engineers love elegantly functioning technologies. For them, it doesn’t matter how things look, as long as they work smoothly and efficiently. But your OEM customers aren’t thinking like engineers, they’re thinking like their own customers. They want your tech to look impressive. Your product could be the most innovative equipment in the vehicle. But if your demonstration is designed purely for functionality, you need to be aware that it’s going to look rough. When you show up with wires exposed, laptops mounted on the dash, and lidar bolted to the roof, your demonstration vehicle will actually play against your efforts. If you’re like Edison in the lab trying to show that a concept works, go with function over form. But if you’re trying to sell a product, you’ll need to capture the customer’s imagination. Myth 3: Our Temporary-install Demo Vehicle Is Reliable If you’re going to be demonstrating your technology multiple times, or over a long period of time, you need to know that it’s built to last. The last thing you want is to think it’s all set to go, only to have it flake out on you at the moment of truth. We’ve seen it happen before. You show it a couple times, then someone accidentally kicks the cables out of place or they snag the plug. Because it’s as easy to pull apart as it was to put together, your staff development engineers use it as a development vehicle and start pulling wires and parts in and out. If it’s only temporarily installed, it won’t last long. One OEM supplier came to us after a demo went awry. They delivered the demonstration vehicle to an auto manufacturer. Everything was set up and the customer’s decision makers were there. But when they began the demo, the system didn’t work. With all the wires exposed, it was easy for engineers to get in and make changes on the fly. Apparently, someone had made changes before the demonstration, but they didn’t reconnect it properly. Instead of impressing the customer, they had to hustle and call in the one person who had the proper connection configuration in his head. When you commit to truly building your system into the vehicle, you’re also committing to higher quality, longer lasting reliability, and greater robustness. You know it’ll work when you need it to work. Myth 4: We Can Integrate the Technology Ourselves Some teams choose to handle the vehicle integration in-house, before doing a thorough cost/benefit analysis. Before you go this route, ask a few questions: What are the pros and cons of building a demo vehicle internally? Do we understand our actual costs, labor, and opportunity costs of integrating in-house? Do we have all the resources we’ll need for a high-end integration? An in-house vehicle integration means you’ll be pulling people off of other projects, and that you’ll need to absorb all of the ongoing maintenance and system changes. If you’re willing to take on those costs, make sure you have specialists on hand who can deliver each of these activities: Part prototyping CAD modeling 3D printing Fiberglass and metal fabrication Painting Display radio integration Electrical wiring and integration At Brandmotion Solutions, we have specialists in each of these categories who are masters in the craft. They work in these areas every day, and they can turn around a project with optimal efficiency. Myth 5: Outsourcing an Integration Is Too Much Trouble Customers sometimes come to us thinking that an integration project will require a lot of work on their end — lots of sketches, demo properties, and specifications. It’s a lot of trouble, and it just won’t be worth it to outsource a vehicle integration. Not only is it less trouble than they expect, it’s also less trouble than doing the project in-house. The truth is, a good builder with the right creative staff only needs to have the vehicle and a conversation with you. Our clients drive their vehicle to us and do some hand waving. They tell us what they want during a single meeting that takes less than an hour, and we come back to them with

These UTV Cameras Let You See the Trail in a Whole New Way

February 2, 2021 Industry News

These UTV Cameras Let You See the Trail in a Whole New Way FEBRUARY 2, 2021 // JEFF VARICK If there’s anything four-wheeler riders hate to do, it’s stop. But sometimes, the trail demands it. You need a spotter, or you can’t see what’s up ahead. You have to know where your tires are going if you don’t want to take the wrong line on the trail. Brandmotion’s SummitView™ Camera System gives you the visibility you need to keep going — whether forward or backing up. See the Trail, Hit the Trail Brandmotion has released the latest in its popular SummitView™ series of off-road camera systems. The SUTV-2010 and SUTV-2020 products come with a bright, high-definition 7-inch monitor and camera system so you can see more from behind the wheel. Say good-bye to the days of constantly getting out to check the ground! It’s very difficult to see to the side or behind a UTV. And because many side-by-sides don’t even come with mirrors, that means you have a 180-degree blindspot when you’re hitting the trails or tearing it up on the dunes. You’re constantly riding on faith. You should always feel confident when you’re driving with your friends and family, whether going forward or in reverse. The SUTV-2010 is a single-camera high-definition rear vision system that makes backing up a breeze. Infrared technology gives you sharp nighttime vision so you can keep playing well after the sun goes down. Want front and rear visibility? Go with the SUTV-2020 dual-camera option, so you can see the ride ahead without a trail spotter. It’s an ideal solution for heavy-duty rock crawlers and boggers that need to see multiple approach angles. The SUTV-2020 system also features a dual-channel DVR. Relive your adventures with your friends long after you’ve pressure-washed your rig. “There’s a lot of times I can’t see anything in front of me, and if I’m climbing, it’s just the sky. And these cameras make a whole new world wake up,” said Brandmotion customer David Ipharr. “I feel so much safer with these cameras, knowing I can see the ground now! That is so important to me. It means everything.” Best-in-class and Easy to Use The SummitView System easily mounts to any off-road vehicle. The 7″ LCD display monitor offers a rugged roll cage bracket that can fit any standard roll cage tubing. It also comes with a standard bracket that can be mounted to the window or dash. Brandmotion’s SummitView UTV Camera System was named runner-up for Best New Powersports Product at the SEMA360 online trade event in 2020. It was selected from more than 2,200 products in the New Products Showcase — a lineup that represented the most innovative and cutting-edge automotive aftermarket products that will become available in 2021. When you aren’t worried about what’s on the other side of a hill, four-wheeling is a lot more fun. Check out the SummitView cameras now. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

Cut Fleet Collisions without More Driver Training

January 12, 2021 Industry News

Cut Fleet Collisions without More Driver Training JANUARY 12, 2021 // JEFF VARICK There’s no such thing as a tiny accident. But you might be surprised how much each accident is costing you. Because the cost of a collision is about more than just repairing the truck. You have downtime to deal with. That’s as much as $760 per day, at an average of 2.7 to 4.5 days out of service. There’s the rising cost of insurance with every collision. The average fleet was expected to see their premiums go up by six to 12 percent in 2019. And you might have a lawsuit on your hands. If an accident enters litigation, it could mean millions of dollars to your company. The average fleet vehicle accident costs employers about $16,500. It jumps to more than $74,000 if there are injuries, and $500,000 or more if there’s a fatality. If you can prevent just one accident, it could be worth hundreds of thousands — perhaps even millions — of dollars to your business. More Driver Training Doesn’t Do It Driver training and education can help. But most fleet and commercial drivers don’t need much additional training. We all know that an accident can happen even to the best of drivers. The problem isn’t your drivers, and throwing resources at training and education won’t get you any closer to reducing your annual costs of accidents. But what if you could avoid fleet accidents, prevent those costs and even reduce your insurance premiums by making one simple change? See More, Crash Less The better you can see, the safer you’ll drive. Seeing forward is taken for granted, but most fleet and commercial drivers can’t see what’s going on around them — especially behind them. That makes it dangerous to back up or change lanes. Backing up occupies less than 1% of a driver’s time behind the wheel, but causes about 25% of all accidents. Your trucks have blinders that increase the chances of an accident every time a driver backs up or changes lanes. Without a clear, unobstructed rear view, your fleet or commercial vehicle safety is at risk. The answer is simple: improve your drivers’ visibility and you’ll reduce accidents and cut your costs. Introducing the FullVUE® Mirror Brandmotion introduces a way to improve driver safety, reduce fleet vehicle accidents, and keep costs down. The FullVUE Mirror gives your drivers a clear, unobstructed view behind your vans and trucks. This versatile safety device replaces the traditional rearview mirror by displaying an HD streaming video feed from a rear-mounted camera. It uses a full HD 1080p video screen to display exactly what drivers need to see, without the obstructions of passengers, cargo, or small rear windows. The FullVUE Mirror has become one of the most popular products that Brandmotion offers to consumer and fleet drivers. Now, Brandmotion is making this revolutionary product available to commercial customers as well. Drivers see a 3X wider, crisp, unobstructed rear and blind spot view with no obstructions. Your drivers can know exactly what’s going on behind them, even if your vans have no rear windows. That translates into fewer incidents on the road, from backing up or from blind spots and changing lanes. The FullVUE Mirror is quickly becoming very popular among fleets, because it lets your drivers see more than ever before. It also means fewer lawsuits if an incident does occur. Use Video to Eliminate Litigation Costs Every accident is a potential lawsuit, whether your driver is at fault or not. Most of the time, it comes down to one driver’s word against the other’s. Unfortunately, settling out of court is often the most expedient and least costly option for employers. But not anymore. The FullVUE Mirror’s always-on recording feature gives you indisputable video evidence that can eliminate the threat of litigation. The system comes with an HD rear camera and an HD front-facing camera that are continually recording. If there’s ever any question about a driver’s actions on the road, you’ll know exactly what happened. If an accident does occur, or a driver is reported for unsafe driving, you can go back to the video recording to see exactly what happened and who’s at fault. You don’t have to rely on a police report where both parties are pointing fingers. The camera is a witness that never lies. Stop Paying More Than You Need To You don’t need to invest in endless training to see your costs go down. Just give your drivers the visibility they need. FullVUE doesn’t just protect your costs — it protects your peace of mind. Stop worrying about unexpected repairs, unplanned downtime, and unwelcome surprises. In fact, you might even see reduced insurance premiums. One of our customers had lost their insurance, until they installed Brandmotion collision-avoidance systems like the FullVUE Mirror. Depending on the insurer and your situation, Brandmotion’s FullVUE Mirror can help cut your insurance costs to a more manageable rate. Installation time won’t be costly, either. It’s as simple as hanging the mirror, connecting the camera, and mounting the camera. With only three connections, installation has a short downtime and a quick turnaround. See what you’ve been missing — check out the FullVUE Mirror. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

You Could Sell Your Automotive Technology for More

December 15, 2020 Industry News

You Could Sell Your Automotive Technology for More DECEMBER 15, 2020 // JEFF VARICK It’s the big day. You’re showcasing your latest automotive safety technology to a major auto manufacturer and your team is buzzing with anticipation. You’ve spent months developing this new technology, and you got it out ahead of the competition. Your component is more durable, more reliable, and more customizable than the other guys’. But it’s the other guys’ product that gets bought. What happened? The day of the demonstration, you set your new technology prototype on a table. Everything was on display — not just the dashboard component, but the wires and cables and signal box, like electrical spaghetti.  Your competitors, on the other hand, showcased their technology as a seamlessly integrated and functional component in a demonstration vehicle. The manufacturer sat in the driver’s seat and saw what the device would look like for their customers. They drove the car and saw the component in action. They admired the finished quality of the technology and loved how well it fit in a factory model. Related reading: How OEM Integration Can Boost Your Concept Vehicle Demonstrations In short, the competition took all the guesswork out of the equation and delivered a fully functional, gorgeous prototype that looked and felt like a production part. You’re Losing Money Every Time You Make a Sale I get the conundrum — it’s one thing to design and produce a working prototype, but it’s a whole other ballgame to figure out how to integrate it into a production vehicle and make it look seamless, as if it came out of the factory. That kind of effort takes time and resources you just don’t have. Besides, a demo vehicle is kind of overkill for the type of part you’re demonstrating. Right? But every time you demonstrate a component that isn’t seamlessly integrated into a vehicle, you’re stacking the deck against yourself and making several gambles.  You’re betting that the manufacturer won’t be influenced by the mess of exposed wiring.  You’re betting that they can imagine accurately and clearly how the component will look and feel when it’s integrated into their production line. You’re betting that if 1 and 2 don’t pan out, it still won’t affect the sale price. You’re betting that someone else won’t demonstrate their own version of the technology in a fully integrated demonstration vehicle. After all the months of research, development, and dedication of resources, do you really want to make those gambles? Even if you sell your automotive technology, you’re leaving money on the table, simply because you’ve shown them a messy looking prototype. Every time you make a sale, you’re losing money. It doesn’t matter what the technology is — a side mirror, an electronic safety component, or a small box that will never be seen — you need a fully integrated demonstration vehicle to show it off in. But what if you don’t have the skill set or expertise to incorporate all of the equipment you’ve engineered into a vehicle and make it presentable to an OEM customer? That’s where Brandmotion Solutions comes in. Why Brandmotion Solutions? When you’re introducing cutting-edge automotive technology, it has to perform flawlessly and look like an OEM component. You can’t afford design errors or sloppy integration. It’s not just the sale that’s on the line — it’s your reputation. Brandmotion Solutions is the concept development specialist that offers end-to-end services to demonstrate your new ADAS or connected vehicle technology. We’ll lead every step of the process — from creative design to deployment. When our customers take their demonstration vehicles to Warren or Ann Arbor and show them to the engineering teams at OEM manufacturers, the customers get to sit in a vehicle with the equipment already fully installed and integrated. They’re experiencing the demonstration technology the same way that car buyers will experience it. The integration is so seamless that it takes a knowledgeable eye to spot the differences.  As a result, our customers’ demonstrations have the same refined look and feel that car buyers will experience when they take a test drive at the dealership. That’s the kind of encounter you can provide to OEMs. Tier one suppliers trust us to make their innovative technology look native to the vehicle. We’ve gained a reputation for delivering the highest quality vehicle integration customizations.  No matter what the project, we’ll get the job done. Our engineers and technicians came out of the auto manufacturing industry, and they know how to make any integration work. We’re also fast — we can integrate a typical demonstration technology in a couple weeks instead of a couple months. OEM suppliers rely on Brandmotion Solutions, because they’ve given demonstrations without us before. They’ve seen the results that a Brandmotion Solutions demonstration vehicle integration delivers. And that’s why they keep coming back to us, time and time again.  Stop Leaving Money on the Table In today’s world of realistic computer-generated images and video, there’s still a critical need for a physical proof-of-concept product in action. You can present wonderfully rendered representations of your product as it might appear in a vehicle, but until it’s actually integrated in the car, OEMs will still have questions. A Brandmotion Solutions vehicle integration answers those questions. Don’t leave money on the table, and don’t risk losing a sale to your competitors. Get your next automotive technology demonstration seamlessly integrated into a demonstration vehicle. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

How to Slash Fleet Insurance Claims TODAY (Hint: It Isn’t Telematics)

November 24, 2020 Industry News

How to Slash Fleet Insurance Claims TODAY (Hint: It Isn’t Telematics) NOVEMBER 24, 2020 // JEFF VARICK If you’re relying on telematics information to help reduce insurance claims, you still have a giant opportunity that you haven’t even begun to tap into yet. Telematics data can help you track and understand exactly what your vehicles are doing. It provides valuable information for training and educating your drivers to improve their driving. That’s important, but at the end of the day, this approach is like fixing a problem that already exists. What if you could prevent the problem altogether? If you’ve been investing in telematics systems, you’ve addressed one critical part of reducing insurance claims. Now it’s time to address the critical part: preventing incidents in the first place.  For example, take front-to-rear collisions, which account for 20 percent of collision-related injuries each year. Even your safest drivers can get distracted, no matter how much training you provide. But advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) actively alert drivers before an accident occurs — reducing front-to-rear collisions by as much as 27 percent.  If you can prevent more accidents, you’ll slash your workman’s compensation and other insurance claims. Once a collision happens, you can’t undo it. A single accident can cause a lot of heartburn and headache, and in the worst-case scenario somebody loses a life. We speak with fleet managers who have lost drivers to accidents that could have been prevented with the right ADAS solution. Brandmotion has a portfolio of ADAS products that are ideal for reducing insurance claims and preventing costly collisions. Let’s look at four solutions that are specifically designed to address fleets’ most common safety issues.  Safety Products Designed for Your Fleet’s Top Needs ADAS+ Give your driver critical time to react when quick thinking is needed. Brandmotion’s Advanced Driver Assistance System ADAS+ provides forward crash, lane departure and pedestrian detection warnings for any vehicle, along with the benefit of a built-in 2-channel digital video recorder (DVR) for crash recording. The system offers a seatbelt harness that vibrates, plus a visual and audible dashboard alert.  Radar Blind Spot Monitor Lower your collision risk and give your fleet drivers complete confidence when changing lanes or backing out of a parking spot. Our Blind Spot Monitoring System is an OEM-grade device that gives an audible blind spot alert and highly integrated visual signal. OEM-quality Radar Blind Spot Monitoring systems can reduce accidents by 23percent. As a bonus, our Blind Spot Monitoring system provides a cross-traffic alert when backing up. The device watches for cross traffic behind the vehicle to help prevent collisions while in Reverse. This solution can reduce cross-traffic accidents by 22 percent. Backup Camera and Backup Sensors Our fleet rear vision cameras are designed for high duty environments. And we offer the right selection of solutions to cover all of the vehicles in your fleet. Brandmotion’s Backup Camera can help reduce rear collisions by seven percent. Our backup sensors, which give an audible proximity warning, reduce collisions by 17 percent. Combined, the two systems can reduce accidents by up to 42 percent!  FullVUE™ Mirror The FullVUE Mirror is quickly becoming very popular among fleets, because it lets your drivers see more than ever before. In many trucks and vans, drivers can’t see out of the back. Cargo is blocking the view, or there is no window. The FullVUE Mirror replaces the traditional rearview mirror by displaying an HD streaming video feed from a rear-mounted camera.  Drivers see a 3X wider, crisp, unobstructed rear and blind spot view with no obstructions.  Your drivers can know exactly what’s going on behind them, even if your fleet trucks have no rear windows. That translates into fewer incidents on the road, from backing up or from blind spots and changing lanes.  The mirror also comes with a front-facing camera, a highly integrated dash cam, and it continuously records front and rear video. G shock technology locks down the video if there’s ever an accident, so you can review the incident afterwards. What’s the Right ADAS Product to Start With? You can start decreasing collisions and insurance claims right now, by strategically choosing the ADAS device that makes the most sense for your fleet. Look at your accident history and assess the most common (or most costly) issues your fleet is facing.  For front-end collisions: ADAS+ For rear collisions: Backup camera and sensors or FullVUE Mirror For blind lane change or cross traffic issues: Blind spot monitoring For rear collisions and blind spot monitoring: FullVUE Mirror After outfitting your fleet with your first ADAS device, you may identify additional safety issues that can be eliminated. When you’re ready, add to your ADAS investment and keep reducing those incidents and claims. Reduce Insurance Claims TODAY Brandmotion outfits you with aftermarket safety products for the fleet you have NOW. Our goal is to help reduce accidents in the U.S. — today, not as you purchase new vehicles. We believe that fleet managers shouldn’t have to wait years (or decades) to fully equip their vehicles with the most sophisticated safety equipment available.  The fleet that you have on the road today can have OEM-quality products, at affordable prices. We can also train your drivers and install the equipment for you. Installation time won’t be costly, either. We’re quick and efficient because we know that downtime is money. Find out more about the ADAS products designed for your fleet’s top needs. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

Why Dash Cams Don’t Reduce Fleet Accidents

October 6, 2020 Industry News

Why Dash Cams Don’t Reduce Fleet Accidents OCTOBER 6, 2020 // JEFF VARICK Every week, we talk with fleet managers who are using dash cams to help prevent collisions on the road. Many have even integrated the dash cams with their driver monitoring program to help track their drivers’ safety in real time. These fleet managers are often surprised when we tell them that a dash cam won’t help prevent collisions — even when combined with telematics. The problem isn’t the technology. Dash cams and telematics provide valuable information that can help you improve driver safety, overall. But they weren’t designed to prevent accidents. Let’s take a look at what dash cams and driver monitoring programs can and can’t do. After that, I’ll help you figure out what kind of solutions you need to proactively prevent collisions in real time. What Does a Dash Cam Actually Do? A dash cam records events and saves them for review later. This can be extremely helpful if an accident occurs and the other driver seeks damages and compensation. Fleet vehicles tend to be a magnet for desperate drivers looking to cash in on a lawsuit, and a dash cam can prove your driver’s innocence. That device alone can save you thousands of dollars in a single incident. But dash cams can’t alert the driver of an oncoming collision, and they can’t alert fleet managers if there’s an accident. Telematics can tell you if there was a hard braking incident or a failure of power, but there’s no active feedback to the driver to help avoid collisions. Dash cams are purely after-the-fact devices. They tell you why a collision occurred. From there, you can give a driver more training to help prevent future incidents — but the fact remains that your vehicle is in the repair shop. Likewise, driver monitoring programs let you see where your drivers are at all times, see their speed, if they’ve had any hard braking incidents, if the vehicle needs any maintenance or repair. They provide accountability after the fact. But telematics won’t help avoid a collision. It sends vehicle data to you, but nothing alerts the driver. When it comes to actually preventing accidents, what you need is ADAS. What Is ADAS? Aftermarket advanced driver-assistance systems — or ADAS — are safety technologies that are designed to proactively prevent a collision before it occurs. ADAS devices use sensors that are installed on the vehicle to monitor the road and alert the driver when it detects a possible oncoming collision. An alert could be anything from a visual indicator to an audio signal or a vibration. The first ADAS equipment was first introduced about 50 years ago, but the field has more recently started taking off, and new ADAS technologies are continually being developed to help prevent different types of collisions. For example: Blindspot monitoring and detection. Radar sensors alert drivers if another vehicle is in the blindspot when changing lanes. Blind Spot monitoring systems are proven to reduce injury-producing crashes by 23%. Rear vision systems. Backup cameras help guide fleet drivers when the rear view is obstructed. According to the IIHS, rear view cameras reduce rear crashes by 17%. They’re a must for every fleet. Parking assistance systems. Cameras help guide drivers into parking spaces. Parking sensors reduce rear crashes by 18%, but in conjunction with a rear view camera, they reduce crashes by 38%. That means by adding rear sensors to a vehicle with a backup camera, or vice versa, as a fleet manager you can “stack” the benefits. Collision avoidance systems. Radar or lidar sensors watch for quickly approaching oncoming objects and send an alert to the driver. A forward collision warning system installed on your fleet vehicle can reduce front-to-rear crashes by 27%. Lane departure warnings. Sensors detect lane drift and alert the driver. Installing a system on your fleet can reduce lane departure accidents by 21%. Finding the Right ADAS for Your Fleet Telematics data can help you understand why collisions are occurring in your fleet. If you’ve been collecting vehicle data for years, you know what your greatest problems are — whether it’s speeding, blind spots, backup collisions, lane drift, or something else. You can use that data to train drivers, but wouldn’t it be better if you could prevent those problems in the first place? A telematics-plus-ADAS approach combines the best of both worlds — trend analysis and proactive prevention. Use the data you’ve collected over time to determine the ADAS equipment you need most. If you’ve had ten collisions in the last year because drivers couldn’t see in their blindspot, blindspot monitoring may be more important to you than front collision avoidance. Upgrading to ADAS once meant replacing your entire fleet with new vehicles that came with the equipment — sometimes at the highest trim levels. But Brandmotion provides OEM-quality safety products for the aftermarket. You can equip your entire fleet with the best safety equipment today — not over a period of years. Brandmotion retrofit products are known throughout the industry for their seamless integration, OEM-level quality, and innovative approaches to the biggest problems in vehicle safety. Our customers demand reliable, high-end safety solutions that integrate seamlessly with the vehicle. Find out more about the ADAS products designed for your fleet’s top needs. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

Could Your OBU Installation Hurt Your CV Deployment?

September 29, 2020 Industry News

Could Your OBU Installation Hurt Your CV Deployment? SEPTEMBER 29, 2020 // JEFF VARICK If you’re running a connected vehicle deployment, your onboard unit (OBU) system installation could be negatively impacting the success of your project. Some CV project managers think of the OBU installation as simply hiding the OBU, mounting monitors and connecting cables. The integration might not be pretty, but it’s a temporary setup. What’s most important is collecting data and getting the project done on time. Right? Absolutely. But ironically, an inelegant integration jeopardizes those priorities. The success of your CV deployment is riding on an OBU integration that’s seamless with the vehicle. Clunky equipment and ungraceful installations can distract drivers, affecting your CV project in ways that you don’t even realize. In a connected vehicle deployment, seamless integrations aren’t luxuries — they help guarantee that the equipment installation doesn’t compromise your data collection, driver safety, or the project timeline. Here’s how. Related: Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Better Data Collection If you don’t prioritize a seamless OBU integration to the vehicle, you could be compromising the integrity of your connected vehicle data collection. Let’s say your integrator runs a bundle of cables along the floor, behind the brake pedal. As drivers get in and out of their cars, the floor mats in some vehicle models shift, causing the cables to bunch up and create resistance against the brake. Or imagine that you’ve routed the antenna cables through the trunk, where the onboard unit is placed. One day, in a rush, the driver throws a golf bag in the trunk and it disconnects the antenna. The monitor is plugged in, but the driver never notices that the antenna is disconnected. The goal of any integrator should be to install OBUs in a way that will protect the integrity of your data. Avoid New Driving Risks The whole idea of a connected vehicle deployment is to reduce risks on the road, but the wrong integration approach can actually introduce new safety hazards. We’ve seen instances when OBU monitors were mounted to the dash or to the front windshield with a suction cup. While the screens displayed valuable information to drivers, they also created distractions and blocked the view. Some installations use suction cups to mount equipment to the windshield. Suction cups are notoriously unreliable, and yet we see them used all the time. It doesn’t take much — a sudden stop or a minor fender bender — to knock a device loose and hit the driver in the head. Or it could fall to the floor and cause a dangerous distraction while the driver tries to keep it from sliding under the accelerator. Look for an integrator who will be able to do more than simply follow the scope of services. Find a company that can push back, spot pitfalls you don’t see, and design innovative, integrated solutions to meet those issues. Prevent Deployment Setbacks When OBU equipment gets in the way of the driving experience, participants often complain. They may want to exit the study early, or request a change to the installation in their vehicle. Rework and extra maintenance take time. If you discover the installations have created a data collection problem, you’ll need to reinstall every vehicle. Recalls can set your project back by weeks — possibly even months, depending on the size of your deployment. There’s No Substitute for Experience In one project, we brought in local installers to help add OBUs to vehicles. They had to route the antenna cable through vehicles’ trunks, which meant going through the rain seal on the trunk. Any time you go through a seal on a trunk or door or window, you need to add drip loops to prevent leaking in the vehicle. This was especially important, because we were working in a state that gets a lot of rainfall. Perhaps you can guess where this is going. Even good installers don’t always know the hundreds of little details you need to account for in a CV deployment integration. That kind of thing comes only from experience. And on a connected vehicle deployment, there’s no substitute for experience. What Should You Expect from a Connected Vehicle Integrator? It’s a lot like autonomous vehicles. In the beginning, the vehicle does a terrible job of driving by itself. It needs to learn as it goes. As it experiences different types of scenarios and driving conditions, the vehicle becomes adept. Vehicle integration is like that. If you hire an integrator with broad and deep experience in connected vehicle integration, you can avoid the problems and setbacks other deployments often face. You have a lot riding on your connected vehicle deployment. Don’t settle for standard, run-of-the-mill installation services. Insist on a thoughtful approach that seamlessly integrates the OBU and Driver Info Display with the vehicle. You’ll get better data, keep drivers safe, and protect your project timeline. Need help with your CV deployment? No one has more experience with OBU integration than Brandmotion Solutions. Latest Post Brandmotion and DENSO Announce Partnership for One Stop Vehicle Integration of Advanced Connectivity Technology Get Better Results in Less Time on Your Connected Vehicle Deployment Brandmotion Expands Its Digital FullVUE® Mirror Lineup to Add Ford Bronco What To Know Before Installing A Jeep Backup Camera

How OEM Integration Can Boost Your Concept Vehicle Demonstrations

September 17, 2020 Industry News

How OEM Integration Can Boost Your Concept Vehicle Demonstrations SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 // JEFF VARICK You’re introducing a cutting-edge technology into a concept demonstration vehicle. While you want to be modest about it, you have to admit — it’s pretty darn impressive. But let’s be honest: the way you’ve integrated your tech into the vehicle isn’t going to impress anyone. You have all the engineers you need, and you have complete capability to develop the technology. But you don’t have the resources to go the extra mile and seamlessly integrate it into the production vehicle. And that’s not a small thing. You’ve got to make the most of every demonstration, because it isn’t just the project on the line — it’s your reputation. Those kinds of stakes demand a seamless vehicle integration. Outsourced OEM-grade vehicle integration services can give your concept vehicle technology demonstration the edge it needs. Let’s look at the benefits that can make the difference for your next concept demo. Your Book Is Being Judged by Its Cover We’ve seen more than one concept technology that comes to the demonstration with cables running everywhere. OEMs are underwhelmed, because they can’t get past the looks of the equipment. As innovative as the technology is, the presentation of it has dampened the buyers’ opinion. It’s a little embarrassing to present an innovative vehicle technology that looks like it was slapped together by Doc Brown. It feels crude and unfinished. Even if the system works perfectly, it looks and feels like it’s easy to break. That doesn’t inspire confidence or excitement. Your technology demonstration is a sales tool, and it needs to start selling from the first glance — even before you turn the key. The most successful concept demonstrations look like they just rolled off the production line with the vehicle. They fit and function seamlessly, and they already live up to the OEM’s reputation and image. An OEM integrator can give your tech that kind of treatment. Performance You Can Count On Exposed cables and a bulky installation are an open invitation for disaster. Someone can accidentally trip over the cables, disconnect them, or knock components loose. It’s also all too easy for engineers to make last-minute modifications, against better judgment. The worst thing that can happen during a demonstration is presenting brand-new, innovative tech that doesn’t work because something got tampered with. You can’t tell the customer, “Well it worked yesterday.” It’s embarrassing, and it impacts your company’s reputation for future demonstrations. There’s also the wear and tear factor. Repeated use isn’t kind to concept products that are merely attached to the vehicle. If you don’t have stable connection points and tuck the wires out of the way, your demonstration technology won’t last very long. An OEM integrator can make your demonstration technology durable enough for showing after showing. Safer Demos with Fewer Distractions Seamless OEM integration makes your demonstration technology safer, too. When you drive it on a demo, you won’t be distracted by hanging cables or components that aren’t securely mounted. Nothing is fastened awkwardly to the dash, blocking the forward view. We did a project for a developer who wanted a huge display on the dashboard. We noticed that it would block the driver’s view, so we installed the monitor over the existing display. We hinged it so that they could lift the monitor and still access the controls underneath it. They loved the innovative approach, and the demonstration was a greater success. Complete OEM Integration with Brandmotion Solutions Brandmotion Solutions offers end-to-end integration services for concept vehicle technologies. We’ll start with a kickoff meeting to look at the vehicle and the parts, and to gain a full understanding of what you want. Then our craftsmen get to work. Our services cover the broadest range of capabilities needed to complete your entire project: Creative Integration Design. When showcasing your automotive technology, it’s critical that it looks OEM. We start every project by studying the concept and the vehicle to determine the best design for seamless integration, and then hand-build the first integration parts. Part Scanning and 3-D Modeling. Our dedicated in-house CAD team scans hand-built parts and creates 3-D models for the component parts that will be fabricated. Each design will go through several iterations, until they perfectly integrate with the vehicle. 3-D Printing. We create 3-D printed prototype parts to ensure they connect to the vehicle like an OEM component would. If the prototype is off even in the slightest, we’ll modify and reprint it until it looks like an original part of the production vehicle. Sheet Metal & Fiberglass Fabrication. Once the prototyping is perfected, we begin in-house component builds. Our fabrication team can produce any sheet metal or fiberglass part to seamlessly integrate your technology. OEM Quality Painting. Your concept technology needs to look and feel like it was always a part of the production vehicle. Our meticulous texture and color matching process ensures that the painting will produce a component that looks factory-made. Electrical System Integration. We don’t merely install your system — we integrate it so that it functions seamlessly with the vehicle. It will look and function as if it were an original component. This is the same process and set of resources we use to make our own products. Our in-house design and manufacturing team is yours! A Quick Success Story We had a company come to us that needed to demo 10 autonomous vehicles. They were taking the cars to some of the biggest shows in the country and the world, including the Consumer Electronics Show. A lot was at stake — their corporate reputation, their professionalism, and their capability to prove themselves as a world-class operation. In the past, this customer had used other sources that specialized in one or two aspects of concept development. They had to take each vehicle to several providers to get different parts of the work done. This time, they needed a one-stop shop that could tackle the whole

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