v1.1.9 – New GPS Store & Forward, and Voice Recording functionality

By Andrew Thompson | General Information, Product Updates, SmartBridge Dispatcher, SmartBridge Enterprise, SmartBridge Mobile, | 19th May 2017

The team here at FreshRF have been pretty busy, and we are pleased to announce the release of SmartBridge Dispatcher and SmartBridge Mobile v1.1.9, and SmartBridge Control v1.1.

There are a number of general improvements, however the two major inclusions are noted below;

1.  GPS Store and Forward

We have further improved the GPS store and forward functionality for SmartBridge Mobile. Using the high quality GPS in the tablet SmartBridge Mobile enables a large number of user configurable parameters for reporting position of each vehicle. This includes reporting based on; time, distance, voice/message activity, and network acquisition among others. These settings are simple to change in SmartBridge Mobile, with no radio programming required.

Store and forward ensures that even if the vehicle is out of (radio) coverage then no GPS data is lost.

Storing GPS data does pose some issues though. If the SmartBridge unit is outside radio coverage for an extended period then there can be a significant backlog of GPS data collected. When the radio comes back into radio coverage a potentially serious issue can occur if trying to dump all that data back over the radio network. All that data can clog network channels, and potentially constrain the ability of the users to use the radio for voice activity.

You can now set this historic data to be stored and then forwarded when back in WiFi coverage, eg back at the depot, or if the tablet has 3G/4G capability then it can forward the GPS data when in cellular range.

You can now also set SmartBridge to send GPS positions over cellular as the preferred network for GPS data. This will unload the radio network from large amounts of data, and preserve it for voice. If there is no cellular coverage then it will still report back over radio.

2.  Call Recording

Dispatchers can now automatically record the audio from calls that they receive or make!

We have integrated a simple and highly effective call recording functionality straight into SmartBridge Dispatcher. No need for expensive call recorders or time consuming “finding” the call on a HDD. Call audio is simply fed into the tablet, and recording is activated on call answer (Rx or Tx), and ended on call teardown. The audio is then attached to the call record showing date/time and A&B parties.

SmartBridge Control users can then search for the call in the call log, click the “play” button and play the audio straight back on their PC, ipad/tablet, or even phone using standard media controls.

They can also save the audio as an MP3 file if they wish to embed it in a report, or training powerpoint file.

What’s next…?

We have made a number of general improvements in this release as part of supporting Android v7.0 (Nougat) and enhancing usability based on user input. There is some really exciting new functionality coming out over the next couple of months, and a new product!

Keep watching our website, www.freshrf.com and our blog for further news.