This project is one of several performed under the provisions of Section 5117 of the Transportation Equity Act of the 21st Century (TEA-21). The primary objective of this project was to explore the potential for the development of cost-effective vehicle data recorder (VDR) solutions tailored to varied applications or market segments. Through a combination of technical research and analysis, including business-related cost-benefit assessment, potential VDR configurations ranging from fundamental to comprehensive were explored.

The work performed under the project included:

• Capturing the available results of this research and synthesizing information from the commercial vehicle user, original equipment manufacturer (OEM), equipment supplier, and recorder manufacturer communities.
• Profiling high-level functional requirements of VDRs, which were extracted from industry and government findings (NHTSA, FHWA, TRB, ATA/TMC), as well as surveying and interviewing key industry stakeholders, and assessing end-user needs and expectations regarding VDR capabilities and required data parameters.
• Developing several VDR concepts with different levels of VDR sophistication. VDR concepts were formulated and targeted for the following end-use applications:
  • Accident reconstruction and crash causation
  • Operational efficiency
  • Driver monitoring
• Profiling and analyzing advanced VDR technologies that could be added to any of the concepts developed.
• Identifying and estimating the costs and benefits for each of the VDR concepts developed.

The results from this project can be used by motor carriers in helping evaluate vehicle data recorder applications, costs, and potential benefit scenarios.