Hand-held device improves
MOT efficiency

For fifteen years Logitag has been at the forefront of harnessing modern technology to vehicle testing.  Logitag’s first handheld computer for vehicle testing was introduced in Malaysia in 1993 and by 1998 French vehicle testers were using a Logitag device, linked by radio to a central computer.  In contrast, seven years later, British testers were still using pen and paper.

The Logitag Hand-Held Device

The current implementation of MOT computerisation is still based around the dated concept of a desktop computer requiring all input to be keyboarded by the Tester. Its design principles come from an era before the iPod, x-Box, Blackberry and mobile internet access were conceived.

To be approved by VOSA, a handheld device must have a standard interface with the VTS device. Where handheld devices differ is in their hardware and their interface with the user.

The Logitag Genie offers an up to the minute interface with the Siemens VTS device. It enables input to be made while the vehicle Test is in progress, and is capable of evolving to link with other test equipment. It provides a twenty first century interface for today’s vehicle Tester.

Boost for the Tester

The Genie will do two things for a Tester. Firstly it can make data input slicker and quicker.  At the trial site, Testers found they could easily carry out more than ten MOT Tests every day.  Secondly it can help the Tester to improve accuracy. The colour coded options on the screen alert the Tester to potential errors, saving time and hassle when the data is downloaded to the VTS device.

Customised technology

The Logitag Genie is the only compact “hold-in-one-hand” device on the market. It uses the Psion Workabout Pro hardware, which is ruggedised to withstand a harsh garage environment and has been used extensively (with other software) for meter reading, courier delivery, warehousing, ticketing and a host of other applications.

How does it work?

When an MOT Test is initiated from the VTS terminal, all the data the VTS terminal receives is automatically downloaded to the Genie via its docking cradle.

Instead of conducting the MOT Test, noting the results on a sheet of paper and then returning to the VTS terminal to input the results, the Tester inputs the results to the Genie while the vehicle test is in progress. When the test is completed, the Genie is replaced in its docking cradle and the Test results are automatically downloaded to the VTS terminal.

With a Genie you don’t have to write things down. The Tester selects from drop down menus and only occasionally keys data on the Genie’s keyboard.  This means that the input will be more accurate.

If the VOSA manual or the VSI (Vehicle Specific Instructions) need to be consulted while the vehicle Test is in progress, they are all there on the Genie.  When the Test is complete, Genie downloads its data through the docking cradle at high speed. This means Testing can be speeded up without sacrificing quality.

Produce your own Reports

The Genie also stores statistics on each MOT Test, so there is ready access to the statistics that the VTS collects for VOSA. This means you have a powerful management tool and nothing VOSA tells you about your Testing performance will be a surprise any more.

Getting started

Genie’s comprehensive user manual and its intuitive user interface mean that a Tester can be up and running in no time at all. Taking a three year view, Genie could cost less than £3 per working day, so if a Tester can carry out just two extra MOT Tests per month, he’d be quids in.

Further information from: www.logitag.co.uk