Bobcat Launches New Machine IQ Telematics Enhancements with Remote Engine Disable/Enable
Bobcat Co. introduces its newest technological advancements to the Bobcat Machine IQ telematics platform. The new Remote Engine Disable/Enable feature allows customer users in North America and Europe to remotely enable or disable their machine’s engine through the Owner Portal or Machine IQ app.
Machine IQ, launched in 2019 in North America, allows connected-machine owners to monitor the health of their Bobcat machine and remotely track information that enhances maintenance, security and performance. Remote Engine Disable/Enable represents the first two-way update to the telematics system, allowing operators to both send commands to and receive data from the machine.
With Remote Engine Disable/Enable, operators can shut down their machine with a few clicks, deterring theft and aiding in quick machine recovery.
“Advanced theft deterrence is critical peace of mind for our Machine IQ users, and Remote Engine Disable/Enable allows our North American and European customers to protect their equipment and allow only authorized usage,” said Garret Maurer, director of digital product management at Bobcat. “This feature also demonstrates our ability to interact with machines via two-way communication using telematics. Today marks another major milestone for what Bobcat continues to do to empower our customers to accomplish more.”
If unauthorized use is suspected, operator owners can log into their Bobcat Owner Portal or Machine IQ app to pinpoint the location of their equipment and choose to disable the engine. Upon executing the disable command, any attempt to start an engine in an off state will fail. If the machine is in operation, the engine will slow to a near standstill, relegated to de-rate mode.
Remote Engine Disable/Enable is available for Machine IQ Health and Security subscribers with connected and compatible Bobcat machine(s).
To learn more about Machine IQ, as well as Bobcat’s other digital solutions, visit bobcat.com.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.