Devices installed at the site

Driver kiosk at the gate

The driver kiosk stands by the gate or outside the gatehouse. Drivers check in at it on their own: they choose one of 18 languages, enter the booking number, fill in the vehicle details, confirm their phone number with a one-time SMS code and scan the transport documents. If they don’t have a valid induction, they complete the health and safety induction on the spot, with a test and a signature on the screen, in their own language. Finally, the printer issues a pass with the dock number and a QR code that opens navigation to the right dock for the driver.

The start screen shows the vehicles waiting for permission and those that have it, with a countdown of the minutes remaining, so drivers can see their place in the queue without asking security. Permission to enter arrives by SMS in the language chosen at registration, and so do dock changes and cancellations.

The form fields are configurable, so the kiosk asks only for what is needed at a given site. It comes in two versions: as a Linux device, including on a single-board computer, and as an app on an Android tablet. The Linux version is cheaper and copes better with outdoor conditions; the tablet works well where the kiosk is to stand inside a building. The device looks after itself: when the server stops responding, the driver sees an unavailability message instead of a browser error, and when the connection comes back the kiosk resumes work without a service call.

The kiosk does not open the barrier. It finishes its job with permission to enter and a pass, and the physical entry is handled by access control or number plate recognition.

Terminal for health and safety inductions, declarations and driver details

The induction terminal is an Android touch device that stands by the gatehouse window or at reception and waits for a request from the operator’s computer. The operator clicks the button that starts the induction on the tablet, and within a couple of seconds the tablet shows the language selection screen: there are 18 languages to choose from, including Arabic with a full right-to-left layout. Then come the materials (video, PDF, image), the site rules with a confirmation, and a test that has to be passed in full; questions answered wrongly come back until all the answers are correct. The signature drawn with a finger on the screen goes into the records together with the expiry date, the language of the induction and the content of the steps as they were at the time of the induction.

The same terminal is used to sign declarations with custom fields: consents, handover records, confirmations that the site rules have been read. Before signing, the driver can switch the language of the content, and signs exactly what they see; the system keeps a faithful copy of that content as a PDF.

The third use is the driver details form. Instead of dictating their name, document numbers and phone number through the window, drivers enter them themselves, step by step, with no more than two fields per screen. The set of fields follows from the site configuration, and the PESEL number (the Polish national identification number) is checked on the tablet and stored only in masked form. The operator inserts the complete set of details into the entry registration with one click.

An interrupted session isn’t lost: after a tablet restart or a dropped connection, the induction resumes from the saved step, in the language chosen earlier, and a session abandoned for longer cancels itself and doesn’t block the station. In a training room, the same terminal runs group inductions: participants sign one after another on one screen, which shows only the first name and the first letter of the surname.

Mobile security terminal

The mobile security terminal is an app on an Android device for a security officer who doesn’t sit at a computer. One device handles several processes, and which of them are switched on is set separately for each terminal.

At the gate, the terminal shows the camera image, the plate read and the entry details. On it, the officer can enter the number by hand when the plate is illegible, take photos of the vehicle and the documents, and open the barrier. Out on the site, the terminal handles:

• patrols with checkpoints confirmed by GPS position, checklists and photos,
• incident reporting with the location of the event,
• random inspections carried out according to a scenario defined in the system,
• handovers and returns of company vehicles with photo documentation,
• warehouse withdrawals outside the warehouse’s working hours,
• declarations signed at the scene, with the content in 18 languages.

All functions except gate handling work without signal. Data and photos are saved on the device and are sent automatically once it is back on the network, without duplicates. The officer doesn’t log in on the terminal: the device is assigned to a post, and the name of the officer on duty is taken from the duty log, so every event has an author without anyone typing passwords in gloves.

Edge device for number plate recognition

The TraxSystem edge device reads the number plate at the gate and sends only the result of the read to the server.

The server then does not process the camera image from that gate, and the image does not leave the site. The device updates itself via the server, so a new version doesn’t mean a service visit to every gate.

Barrier and passage controllers, relay module and SMS gateway

The decision to let a vehicle in is taken in the system, but the barrier is raised by a coil and the door is opened by a lock. Between the two sit our controllers: small industrial devices, designed and programmed in-house and fitted on site alongside the equipment.

Each of these devices polls the server itself, and the server never initiates a connection to it. So no incoming connections to the gates and switch rooms are needed: the controllers work behind NAT and in separate subnets, without opening ports. The device software is updated remotely from the server, without a trip to the switch room.

Barrier controller

The barrier controller turns the system’s decision into an opening pulse. The pulse is triggered by a recognised plate, a card, operator approval or the weighbridge; the system suppresses repeated openings for the same plate and records every command with the person and the source. The controller deliberately does not repeat a lost pulse, because a pulse repeated after a delay would hit a descending boom. It has no access logic of its own: without a connection to the server, the barrier is operated by security.

Passage controller

The passage controller handles doors and turnstiles: two readers per device, cards and PIN codes, schedules and date ranges, two-person confirmation at special entrances and turnstile blocking during random inspection. If the network goes down, the passage keeps working from the list of cards stored in the controller, which buffers events and sends them on when the connection comes back. In offline mode only the cards’ date ranges apply, without hourly schedules; there is more about this on the access control page.

Relay output module

The relay output module connects the system’s decision to a device that has no electronics of its own: a siren, a beacon, a lock, lighting or an additional barrier. It has eight independent outputs, each with its own name, controlled by state or by a pulse of a set length: from alert rules, from camera detection zones, from random inspection or manually from the configuration screen. In case of a server failure, the module has an emergency mode that switches on all the outputs, for example to open the barriers rather than leave them closed.

SMS gateway

The SMS gateway sends and receives messages through its own modem with a SIM card, without going through an external service. This is the route for verification codes from the kiosk, entry permissions and dock changes for drivers, calls to the dock, fleet inspection reminders and passwords for the portals. The same route brings back lone working check-ins from guard posts and replies from fleet drivers. The system records that a message was sent, but it does not confirm that it was received.

Workstation agents: document scanner and printing

The document scanner works through an agent on the operator’s computer, which supports two generations of scanning hardware. A scanned document goes straight to the entry, without anyone saving files by hand.

Printing works the same way: the agent receives data from the server and prints the pass, the weighbridge ticket or the confirmation locally. This means the printer can be in a different location from the server.

The workstation agent handles the kiosk printer and the peripherals at the self-service station.

Do you need to replace the hardware already on site?

Usually not, but the condition of the existing hardware needs to be discussed separately, before pricing. TraxSystem does not require the infrastructure to be replaced: it describes the gates, barriers, cameras, readers and weighbridges that are installed, including hardware from other manufacturers. Communication with the devices goes through a REST interface and through controller protocols.

The list of supported hardware tells you what will work without changes and what needs checking.

What we don’t do in hardware and installation

We don’t make barriers, cameras or readers. We connect the devices already installed at the site, or help you choose new ones from a supplier. Nor do we do electrical installation or building work: the weighbridge foundation, the power supply for the kiosk and the gate cabling are the installation contractor’s job.

We don’t select hardware without a site survey, because the camera angle, the lighting at the gate and the space for the kiosk are decided on site. We price hardware separately, outside the licence, and you can see this in the pricing configurator.

Questions about TraxSystem devices

Related

Delivery booking and the driver kioskNumber plate recognitionAccess controlHealth and safety and inductionsSupported hardware

Further reading: A kiosk at the gate: drivers check themselves in · Do you need to replace barriers and cameras? · Edge vs cloud ANPR

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