Mastering Geotab
★ Geotab Products · IOX Add-On
The IOX-WRKS is the Geotab add-on built for public works and winter operations. It links the GO9 to spreader controllers, plow sensors and road temperature gear so material use and route coverage show up in MyGeotab.
The IOX-WRKS is an expansion cable for the Geotab GO9 and GO9+ that turns a plow truck or salt truck into a reporting vehicle. A standard GO device knows where the truck went and how it was driven. It has no idea whether the plow blade was down, how much salt left the hopper, or what the pavement temperature was. The IOX-WRKS fills that gap by reading the spreader controller and the plow position sensors and passing that data to the Public Works tools inside MyGeotab.
Geotab lists support for more than twenty material spreader controllers. The exact cable used depends on the make and model of the controller head in the cab, so the controller has to be identified before parts are ordered. Some systems, such as Parker, Muncie, Genesis and Marwis units, connect over the CAN bus instead of the serial port.
Municipal street departments use it to show which streets were plowed and salted, and when. Route Completion compares where trucks actually ran against the city's own GIS route data, which helps answer resident complaints with records instead of memory.
County and township road crews use spread rate and total material data to see how much salt or brine each route consumed. Pairing that with road temperature lets supervisors judge whether a road needed treatment at all, or whether a lighter rate would have done the job.
Airports, campuses and private winter contractors running plow and spreader trucks can use the same plow up and down inputs to separate time spent treating from time spent deadheading between lots.
Not every Public Works feature needs the IOX-WRKS. A fleet that only wants plow position, with no spreader integration, can often get there with IOX-AUXM inputs alone.
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Compatible GO devices | GO9 and GO9+ (Public Works guide also lists GO9 RUGGED) |
| Nominal input voltage | 12 V / 24 V |
| Max operating current | 570 mA |
| Operating temperature | -40 °C to +61 °C |
| Weight | 220 g |
| Overall length | 2350 mm |
| Inputs | 4 standard (AUX5 to AUX8), 8 with IOX-AUXM |
| Serial ports | Primary male DTE (4-wire), secondary female DCE (2-wire) |
| CAN | CAN0 500 kbps for daisy chain; CAN1 for external sensors, not terminated |
| Outputs | OUT0 open-drain with latching; IGN_BATT, 650 mA limit |
| Housing | Two-piece polycarbonate |
Geotab requires a certified installer for this one, and its Public Works guide asks for Public Works certification and familiarity with putting the controller into simulation mode. Before install day, the database needs a Public Works group set up and a support ticket filed so Geotab can add its service account. The GO device is unplugged first, the 90 degree USB connector goes into the expansion port and gets a cable tie that is snug, not crushed. The spreader cable goes to the primary port; the secondary DB9 is only for a temperature device when the primary is already on a controller. Plow and beacon signals land on AUX5 to AUX8 and must be live while the equipment is working, such as 12 volts with the blade down. Every connection is soldered and sealed, because salt and moisture eat crimps. IGN_BATT and GND are outputs for sensors and are never tied to vehicle power or ground. The unit does nothing until a spreader configuration is loaded, through the Spreader Controller Configuration add-in or with Geotab Public Works support on the phone, and each input is then triggered one at a time to confirm it reports.
The IOX-WRKS fits fleets that run spreader controllers and need material and route records, mainly government road and street departments. Vehicles with a spreader controller also need the ProPlus Public Works rate plan for that data to reach MyGeotab, so the plan cost belongs in the budget. A fleet that only wants to know when a plow is down, or when a PTO is engaged, is usually better served by an IOX-AUXM without the controller integration.
Geotab supports more than twenty controllers and keeps a compatibility list. We confirm the controller make and model on each truck first, because the cable and configuration file are specific to it.
Only for Route Completion and Live Route Tracking. Those features compare truck paths against GIS shapefiles or route imports the fleet supplies. Material and plow reporting works without them.
After the hardware is powered, Geotab notes the device can take three to five minutes to wake and update, and provisioning and data validation can take up to an hour. Bench provisioning before the truck arrives is an option.
API Signal supplies the IOX-WRKS and fits it at your own yard, one truck at a time, so the winter fleet is reporting before the first storm. Call 803-513-1009 to set a date, or send your controller details through Get a Quote and we will match the right cable to each truck.
Sources: Geotab Support, IOX-WRKS installation document; Geotab Support, Public Works Getting Started Guide; Geotab blog, IOX expansion. GEOTAB is a registered trademark of Geotab Inc. API Signal is an independent installer and is not Geotab.
Tell us how many vehicles and what they are. We'll quote the hardware and the install together.