ELD & Telematics Integration

Connect your carriers' ELDs (Electronic Logging Devices) and telematics systems to get real-time tracking. Supported providers: Samsara, Motive, Geotab, and Verizon.

What Data We Collect

From ELDs, we pull:

• GPS location — truck position, updated every 1-2 minutes
• Status — engine on/off, door open/closed
• Hours of service — driving time, on-duty, off-duty
• Vehicle diagnostics — fuel level, coolant temp, battery health
• Driver events — harsh braking, speeding, seatbelt off

From telematics (some overlap):

• Route efficiency — are they taking the optimal route?
• Fuel consumption — mpg, fuel stops, efficiency trends
• Safety events — harsh acceleration, collision detection
• Maintenance alerts — oil change due, tire pressure low, etc.

Supported Providers

Samsara

Status: Available now

Samsara devices in trucks automatically sync with FreightConnect:

1. Carrier installs Samsara hardware and subscribes to their service
2. Carrier creates a Samsara API key in their admin dashboard
3. Carrier gives you the API key (or you add it in your FreightConnect account)
4. FreightConnect queries Samsara every 1-2 minutes for location + status

Setup: Settings → Integrations → ELD → select Samsara → enter API key → test connection

Data available:

• Real-time GPS (1-minute intervals)
• Hours of service
• Harsh events (speeding, braking)
• Fuel consumption
• Vehicle diagnostics

Motive

Status: Available now

Motive's platform (formerly Samsara competitor) integrates the same way.

1. Carrier subscribes to Motive and gets API credentials
2. Carrier shares credentials with you or you add them to FreightConnect
3. FreightConnect syncs real-time location and status

Setup: Settings → Integrations → ELD → select Motive → enter credentials

Data available:

• Real-time GPS
• Hours of service
• Vehicle health + diagnostics
• Driver behavior (harsh events, speeding)
• Fuel metrics

Geotab

Status: Available now

Geotab is popular in North America for fleet management. Integration works the same way.

Setup: Settings → Integrations → ELD → select Geotab → authenticate

Data available:

• Real-time tracking
• HOS (hours of service) compliance
• Maintenance records
• Vehicle diagnostics

Verizon Connect

Status: Q2 2026 (planned)

We're adding Verizon Connect support soon. Enterprise customers can request early access.

Carrier Enrollment

For tracking to work, your carrier must:

1. Have the ELD device installed in their truck
2. Provide you with their ELD provider name (Samsara, Motive, etc.) and API credentials OR grant you access
3. Add you as an authorized user in their ELD account (so you can see the data)

When you accept a carrier quote, FreightConnect detects their ELD provider (from their profile) and starts syncing location automatically (if they've granted access).

Real-Time Tracking Display

Once linked:

1. Go to Shipments → select a shipment with an ELD-enabled carrier
2. See Live Map showing truck location updated every 1-2 minutes
3. See ETA updated based on current speed and traffic
4. See Driver Status (driving, on break, off-duty)

All updates appear in real-time on your dashboard.

Exception Alerts

The system watches for:

• Extended idle — truck stationary for 2+ hours (breakdown? traffic jam?)
• Speeding — truck exceeding speed limit by 5+ mph
• Off-route — truck left planned route (accident? construction?)
• Harsh events — sudden braking or acceleration (safety concern)
• Hours of service violation — driver approaching HOS limits (fatigue risk)

You get instant notifications for critical exceptions. You can message the driver or contact their dispatcher.

Safety & Privacy

Your data is secure:

• We never store driver personal data
• We only store location data for active shipments (purged after delivery)
• We use encrypted API connections to ELD providers
• Carriers control which data you can access (via their ELD account)

Drivers can opt out of location sharing if they have privacy concerns.

Fuel Surcharge Automation

If a carrier integrates Samsara/Motive, FreightConnect can auto-calculate fuel surcharges:

1. Go to Settings → Pricing Automation
2. Enable Fuel Surcharge from Telematics
3. Set rule: "Add $0.05/mile for every $0.50 above $3.00/gal diesel"

When the carrier logs their fuel purchases in their ELD, we automatically adjust the carrier invoice.

Driver Behavior Insights

Go to Analytics → Carrier Safety to see:

• Harsh events per 100 miles — which carriers have the safest drivers
• Speeding incidents — who goes over the limit
• Fuel efficiency — which carriers waste fuel
• HOS compliance — who drives safely within hours limits

Use this to negotiate rates (safer carriers deserve lower rates) and identify problem carriers.

Maintenance Alerts

If a carrier's vehicle needs maintenance, FreightConnect can flag it:

• Oil change due
• Tire pressure low
• Engine light on
• Inspection overdue

You get notified and can hold loads until the carrier gets the vehicle serviced (to avoid breakdowns).

Historical Data

After a shipment completes, all tracking data is retained in Load History:

• Full GPS trace (every point the truck visited)
• Fuel consumption report
• Hours of service log
• Any harsh events or exceptions

Great for auditing and dispute resolution (if a carrier claims they delivered on time, you have the proof).

Troubleshooting

No location data appearing: Check that the carrier has granted you access in their ELD account. Some carriers require manual approval per broker.

Location updates stopped: The driver may have lost cell service (rural area), disabled location sharing, or the ELD battery died. Check with the carrier.

HOS compliance warning: The driver may be approaching hours-of-service limits. Contact them immediately; they can't drive over their limit by law.

Next Steps

• Shipment Tracking — how tracking data is displayed and used
• Carrier Management — managing your carrier network
• Analytics — safety and performance dashboards