When Did ELD Become BYOD?

The Dec. 18 phased-in compliance deadline for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) rule mandating the use of Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) will be here before you know it. After that date, new Automated On-Board Recording Devices may not be installed and all Hours of Service (HOS) paper records for Records of Duty Status (RODS) will no longer be accepted.

Cooperating with FMCSA’s ELD mandate compliance deadline of Dec. 18, 2017 doesn’t necessarily mean you have to incur big expenses. So how can you ensure that your fleet vehicles are compliant while also saving money?

Device Portability

Using your existing smartphone or other wireless device can help save you money and time, so long as your device meets the technical requirements outlined by FMCSA. With Rastrac’s “bring your own device” solution, you can save money by using your own devices and simply using our ELD-compliant Rastrac software. You also can save time because you don’t have to learn how to operate an entirely new device!

In addition to meeting the technical requirements, using Rastrac’s ELD-Compliant GPS System allows you to:

• monitor driver HOS
• electronically and remotely log ELD records
• collect location information
• identify sensor failures and data edits

Otherwise, if you want to spend extra money by purchasing new devices, FMCSA has compiled a list of registered electronic logging devices that are available that have been self-certified by their manufacturers as meeting the technical requirements of ELD compliance implementation. However, it is important to note that FMCSA does not guarantee compliance of the devices on the list.

Types of Devices That Can Be Purchased

All ELDs must be compliant with FMCSA’s technical specifications for meeting roadside electronic data reporting standards. But what are some of the required functions that an ELD-compliant device would need to be able to perform?

All ELD devices must be capable of at least this abbreviated list of functions:

• Integral synchronization
• Recording location information
• Graph grid display (digital or print)
• HOS drive advisory messages
• Device “default” duty status
• clock time drift < 10 minutes
• communications via telematics or local transfer
• tamper resistance for data erasure/altercation

Check out our blog post for more information about what types of ELDs you can choose. Also be sure to read our blog on what types of data ELDs document.

So long as your device meets the requirements outlined in the new mandate, you still have freedom to choose how you want to abide by the new rules.