WSDOT Intermodal Data Linkages

Freight ITS Operational Test Evaluation

Final Report

 

Part 1: Electronic Container Seals Evaluation

 

FREIGHT & ITS WEB RESOURCES

USDOT ITS Joint Program Office:

            http://www.its.dot.gov 

USDOT Office of Intermodalism

            http://www.dot.gov/intermodal/freight.html

FHWA Office of Freight Management

            http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/

ITS Cooperative Deployment Network (ICDN):

            http://www.nawgits.com/jpo/icdn.html

ITS Electronic Document Library (EDL):

            http://www.its.fhwa.dot.gov/cyberdocs/welcome.htm

USDOT ITS Joint Program Office

USDOT Office of Intermodalism (OST)

FHWA Office of Freight Management and Operations

U.S. Department of Transportation

Federal Highway Administration Operations Unit

400 7th Street, S.W., HOP

Washington, DC 20590

Toll-Free "Help Line" (866) 367-7487

1. Report No. FHWA-OP-02-XXX	2. Government Accession No.		3. Recipient’s Catalog No.
4. Title and Subtitle        WSDOT Intermodal Data Linkages                                          Freight ITS Operational Test Evaluation Final Report                                          Part 1: Electronic Container Seals Evaluation			5. Report Date December 2002
			6. Performing Organization Code
7. Authors M. Jensen (SAIC), M. Williamson (Cambridge Systems), R. Sanchez (SAIC), A. Newton (SAIC), C. Mitchell (SAIC)			8. Performing Organization Report No.
9. Performing Organization Name and Address Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) 2715 Southview Avenue Arroyo Grande, CA  93420			10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS)                   11.     Contract or Grant No. DTFH61-96-C-00098; Task 9811
12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address United States Department of Transportation ITS Joint Program Office, HVH-1 400 7th Street SW Washington, DC 20590			13. Type of Report and Period Covered   14. Sponsoring Agency Code HOIT-1
15. Supplementary Notes Mr. Chip Wood (Task Manager) Dr. Joseph I. Peters (COTR)
16. Abstract In mid-1999, in response to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) request for participation in the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Intermodal Freight Field Operational Test (FOT) Program, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) entered into a partnership with public and private organizations to test and evaluate ITS solutions for an “Intermodal Data Linkages ITS Operational Test”. As the main element of this test, electronic intermodal container seals (E-seals) were tested and evaluated in two scenarios: (1) to support U.S. Department of Agriculture  (USDA) operations concerning in-bond shipments of containerized produce shipments being moved by truck from the Port of Tacoma across the international border into British Colombia, and (2) to support U.S. Customs (USCS) operations in tracking in-bond auto parts shipments via container ships from Japan to the Port of Tacoma, and then being moved by truck from the Port of Tacoma across the international border into British Colombia. SAIC served as the “Independent Evaluator” for this deployment. This report presents a discussion of the SAIC Evaluation Team findings from the deployment experience. The results of this evaluation, along with corresponding conclusions and recommendations, are detailed in this report. Several key conclusions are summarized as follows: • The concept of a disposable, low-cost E-Seal technology was confirmed. Considering the system was the first prototype E-seal system tested in an operational environment within the United States, the system performed well. The test validated the E-seal operational concept across two different intermodal freight supply chains. • Technology challenges early in the test were successfully overcome. As the FOT began, the original E-seal design faced challenges with broadcast speed being too slow to read moving trucks. Through cooperative efforts between the system integrator and the E-seal vendor, the system was successfully re-engineered to broadcast at a sufficiently increased rate to support roadway speed conditions. • The flexibility exhibited by the stakeholders was key to the test’s success. USDA and Maersk Sealand modified the initial procedures early in the test to accommodate initial operational problems. Additionally, Westwood Shipping undertook several activities to shield its customers from any disruptions and worked with a new motor carrier (as did USDA and Maersk Sealand) to ensure the test would occur within the time constraints. This report is Part 1 of two reports. A second volume of this report entitled, “Part 2: Freight ITS Traffic Data Evaluations,” is being published separately.  Part 2 covers two additional projects evaluated as part of the WSDOT Intermodal Data Linkages FOT; however these two projects are not technically related to or integrated with the E-Seal deployment.
Key Words Intermodal Freight, Intelligent Transportation Systems, ITS, Intermodal Data Linkages, Operational Test, Evaluation		18. Distribution Statement No restrictions. This document is available to the public from: The National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA  22161.
19. Security Classif. (of this report) Unclassified	20. Security Classif. (of this page) Unclassified		21.No of Pages 85	22. Price N/A

Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72)    Reproduction of completed page authorized.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................ ii

LIST OF FIGURES......................................................................................................... iii

ABBREVIATIONS........................................................................................................... iv

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY......................................................................................... ES- 1

1.    Introduction.................................................................................................... 1

2.    Deployment overview.................................................................................. 4

2.1   FOT Overview................................................................................................... 4

2.2   FOT Participants and Stakeholders..................................................... 7

2.3   System Technical Overview...................................................................... 9

2.4   Overview of the System operationAl Environment.................... 13

3.    Technical Approach................................................................................... 17

3.1   Overview.......................................................................................................... 17

3.2   USDA/Maersk Sealand Test Processes................................................. 18

3.3   USCS/ Westwood Test Processes............................................................. 24

4.    Data Analysis and RESULTS....................................................................... 29

4.1   Analysis of E-seal system operational performance................ 29

4.1.1    USDA/ Maersk Sealand Test........................................................................................................... 29

4.1.2    USCS/Westwood Test........................................................................................................................ 32

4.2   Summary of Participant Satisfaction and Identified Institutional Challenges     34

4.2.1    USDA/Maersk Sealand Test............................................................................................................ 34

4.2.2    USCS/Westwood Test........................................................................................................................ 37

4.3   Analysis of the Technical Effectiveness of the System............ 38

4.3.1    Identification of Vehicle and Container....................................................................................... 39

4.3.2    Reading E-Seal Containers and Association with Vehicle Information................................. 41

4.3.3    Verification of the Functional Specification................................................................................ 43

4.3.4    Technical Effectiveness of the Technology................................................................................... 47

5.    Conclusions, and Recommendations................................................. 51

5.1   Conclusions................................................................................................... 51

5.1.1    Conclusions – System Operations.................................................................................................. 51

5.1.2    Conclusions – Technology.............................................................................................................. 52

5.1.3    Conclusions – Institutional Challenges....................................................................................... 53

5.1.4    Conclusions – Stakeholder Participation.................................................................................... 54

5.1.5    Conclusions – Security..................................................................................................................... 55

5.2   Recommendations........................................................................................ 56

REFERENCES............................................................................................................... 60

LIST OF TABLES

Table ES-1.  E-Seal System Test Participants.......................................................... ES- 3

Table ES-2.  Deployment Activities Timeline for the E-Seal Test.............................. ES-5

Table ES-3.  Summary of Conclusions...................................................................... ES-8

Table 2-1.  E-Seal Deployment Activities Timeline........................................................... 6

Table 4-1.  Maersk/USDA E-Seal Read Results from the TransCorridor System (Dec 2001 to July 2002) 30

Table 4-2.  Westwood/USCS E-Seal Read Results from the TransCorridor System (May to July 2002)    33

Table 4-3.  Technical Effectiveness Evaluation Overview.............................................. 39

Table 4-4.  Activity Information for Blaine USCS Northbound Exit.................................. 39

Table 4-5.  Recent Event Information for Vehicle 1533.................................................. 40

Table 4-6.  Results of System Requirements Verification.............................................. 44

Table 4-7.  Transmission Intervals of Original and Newly Re-Designed E-Seals.......... 49

Table 4-8.  E-Seal Transmission Test – Distance from Lane Edge = 20 feet............... 49

Table 4-9.  E-Seal Transmission Test – Distance from Lane Edge = 48 feet............... 50

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure ES-1.  e-Logicity/E. J. Brooks Prototype E-Seal............................................. ES- 2

Figure ES-2.  E-Seal Read Results............................................................................ ES-6

Figure 2-1.  E-Seal Overview (updated from FHWA “Wolfe E-Seal Study”).................... 5

Figure 2-2.  Regional E-Seal, AVI, and CVISN Deployed/Planned Infrastructure........... 10

Figure 2-3.  Electronic Bolt Seal/Tag Hardware............................................................. 11

Figure 2-4. TransCore Current AVI Transponder System Architecture......................... 12

Figure 2-6.  Overview of the E-Seal Operational and Stakeholder Environment........... 16

Figure 3-1.  Existing Flow of Freight and Information for USDA/Maersk Sealand.......... 20

Figure 3-2.  E-Seal Flow of Freight and Information for USDA/Maersk Sealand............ 21

Figure 3-3.  E-Seal Being Coded Prior to Installation..................................................... 22

Figure 3-4.  E-Seal Installed on a Container................................................................... 22

Figure 3-5.  Approach Lanes at Blaine Border Crossing (Northbound).......................... 23

Figure 3-6.  E-Seal Readers (TV-like Antennas) and Transponder Readers (Flat Antenna) Installed over a Truck Lane at the Blaine Border Crossing......................................................................... 23

Figure 3-7.  Existing Flow of Freight and Information for USCS/Westwood.................. 25

Figure 3-8.  E-Seal Flow of Freight and Information for USCS/Westwood.................... 26

Figure 3-9.  Westwood Shipping Lines Container Vessel at Port of Seattle.................. 27

Figure 3-10.  Offloading of Containers at Port of Seattle................................................ 27

Figure 3-11.  E-Seal Being Read.................................................................................... 28

Figure 3-12.  Hand-held E-Seal Reader Display Screen Indicating a “Normal” Reading. 28

Figure 4-1.  Maersk/USDA E-Seal Read Results for Blaine........................................... 30

Figure 4-2.  Westwood/USCS E-Seal Read Results for Blaine..................................... 32

Figure 4-3.  E-Seal Reads During the Initial 6-Week Period of the USCS/Westwood Test. 42

Figure 4-4.  TransCore/Shadow Lines Test Information Displayed on the TransCorridor Website. 43

ABBREVIATIONS

ACE                       Automated Commercial Environment

ACS                       Automated Container System

APL                       American Presidents Line and Applied Physics Lab

AVI                         Automated Vehicle Identification

CCRA                    Customs Container Release Authorization

CHCP                    Cargo Handling Cooperative Program

COTR                   Contracting Officers Technical Representative

CVISN                   Commercial Vehicle Information Systems and Networks

DoD                       Department of Defense

DOT                      U.S. Department of Transportation

DSRC                   Dedicated Short Range Communications

EB                         Eastbound

E-seal                    Electronic Seal

FCC                      Federal Communications Commission

FHWA                   Federal Highway Administration  

FOT                       Field Operational Test

GAO                      Government Accounting Office

ID                           Identification

INS                        Immigration & Naturalization Service

ISP                        Internet service provider

ITI                          Intelligent Transportation Infrastructure   

ITS                         Intelligent Transportation Systems

JIT                         Just-in-Time

JPO                       Joint Program Office

MARAD                 Maritime Administration

MOE                      Measure of Effectiveness

MOP                      Measure of Performance

MPOs                    Metropolitan Planning Organizations

NB                         Northbound          

NORPASS            North American Preclearance and Safety System

SAIC                      Science Applications International Corporation

SB                         Southbound

TCOS                    Trade Corridor Operations System

USCS                    U.S. Customs

USDA                    U.S. Department of Agriculture

USDOT                 U.S. Department of Transportation

WA                        Washington

WB                        Westbound

WIM                       Weigh-in-Motion

WMD                     Weapons of Mass Destruction

WSDOT                Washington State Department of Transportation           

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

FOREWORD

This report presents the independent evaluation findings of the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT)-sponsored Operational Test of an electronic container seal (E-seal) prototype system conducted in Washington State and British Columbia, with a supply chain link to Asia. This test represents a 2.5-year effort to deploy a new intermodal freight technology in a complex operational and institutional environment. The successes in this test are largely due to the significant and persistent institutional cooperation in this deployment – the project managers (Washington State Department of Transportation [WSDOT]); the U.S. Customs Service (USCS); the system integrator; the E-seal vendor; the Port of Tacoma and the Port of Seattle; two trucking companies; and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). These entities, and others, have worked together to overcome several major hurdles to make this project a success.

However, a new context has overshadowed this effort. The tragic events of September 11, 2001 have set in motion a new focus on intermodal freight security within our government and our industries. There are significant renewed concerns about the security of intermodal containers, particularly with regard to their potential use as a means to smuggle in weapons of mass destruction.

The USDOT and the USCS are working together with industry to respond to these concerns by looking at the role that technology can play in promoting container security. This Operational Test has provided a significant starting point for this dialogue. Currently, by building upon the groundwork that USDOT laid with this field operational test (FOT), the USCS is deploying the same E-seal developed here in a new operational test in partnership with Canadian Customs. It is anticipated that this new test could pave the way for an automated E-seal clearance system for “trusted shippers” to be investigated by USCS soon.

This test has also helped to lay the foundation for potential new tests of E-seal technologies. These new tests will include a follow-on test of new E-seal technologies in Washington State, as well as a series of potential E-seal demonstration efforts under the Operation Safe Commerce Program, the Safe and Secure Trade Lanes Program, with oversight from the USDOT Office of Intermodalism and the Maritime Administration (MARAD) Cargo Handling Cooperative Program (CHCP). Additionally, this test is providing a major “lessons-learned” input to the current E-seal architecture development effort being led by the Applied Physics Lab (APL) at John Hopkins University, under the guidance of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Office of Freight Management and Operations.

Background

In mid-1999, USDOT issued a request for participation in the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Intermodal Freight Field Operational Test Program. In response, WSDOT entered into a partnership with public and private organizations to test an operational prototype system to track intermodal cargo containers with disposable electronic seals (E-seals). Disposable E-seals were chosen for this test due to their potentially low cost in mass production versus permanent electronic seals. TransCore was chosen by WSDOT as the system integrator for this FOT to oversee and integrate the various technologies associated with the E-seal system.

The e-Logicity/E. J. Brooks prototype E-seal system was selected by WSDOT and TransCore as the candidate disposable E-seal system to be tested in this FOT. The primary goal of this system is to validate the audit trail for seal status through the supply chain of a container shipment. This validation process includes determining the integrity of the E-seal and recording the time and place of each seal each transaction (i.e., each location where the E-seal was “read” by a device). This is accomplished remotely by reader antennas or by humans with hand-held readers in a fashion similar to the manual seal validation process. Figure ES-1shows components of the
e-Logicity/E. J. Brooks prototype E-seal used in this FOT.

Figure ES-1.  e-Logicity/E. J. Brooks Prototype E-Seal.

Prior to initiating this E-seal FOT, USCS and USDA had identified their in-bond load tacking capabilities as inadequate. Current USDA and USCS systems require up to 30 days to confirm that in-bond loads have exited the U.S. It was anticipated that the use of E-seal technology would facilitate border clearance activities and commercial vehicle enforcement, and streamline operations for both regulatory agencies and private sector transportation companies.

Additionally, the intermodal freight industry in the Seattle region has a major interest in experimenting new technologies, such as E-seals, which have the potential to provide their operations with improved efficiencies. Maersk Sealand, a steamship line with a major terminal at the Port of Tacoma, has been a committed private sector participant since this project began, and participated in one of the two major supply chain tests of
E-seals for this FOT. Westwood Shipping, a steamship line with a major terminal at the Port of Seattle, participated in the other major supply chain test for this FOT. As presented in Table ES-1, WSDOT, TransCore, USCS, USDA, Maersk Sealand, and Westwood Shipping were supported in conducting this test by a number of other significant public and private partners.

Table ES-1.  E-Seal System Test Participants

An Evaluation Team led by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) was selected in January 2000 to develop and implement an evaluation of this WSDOT Intermodal Data Linkages FOT under the direction of the USDOT ITS Joint Program Office (JPO). The objective of this evaluation was to identify goals and “lessons learned” with respect to implementing intermodal ITS technologies to the intermodal freight industry, other states, regions, and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) contemplating the implementation of similar technologies. The evaluation focused on the following four areas:

Intermodal Freight System Operations

Technology Applications

Institutional Challenges

Participant Satisfaction

System Test Overview

Some system elements that supported this E-seal test were deployed as far back as 1998, when containers moving from the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma were tracked using vehicle transponders and Automated Vehicle Identification (AVI) readers along
I-5. The “TransCorridor” system developed by TransCore was the backbone of this test. TransCorridor is a freight-tracking Internet-based information system that is augmented by a regional deployment on both sides of the border that includes Commercial Vehicle Intelligent Systems Network (CVISN) AVI readers and weigh-in-motion (WIM) sensors. For this test, however, only AVI reads from the Bow Hill CVISN-equipped weigh station were made available.

The complete deployment history of the E-seal FOT is summarized in Table ES-2. Substantial development efforts were required, including development of electronic seal technology and applicable hardware and software components, and the integration of these components into the TransCorridor system. E-seal deployment began during the second year of the project, and included the following three major test elements:

USDA/Maersk Sealand successfully deployed the first test group of 47 E-seals on in-bond agricultural shipments moving in a supply chain from the Port of Tacoma across the U.S./ Canadian border via truck. Seals in this test group were in place for a 12-month period between December 2001 and December 2002.

USCS/Westwood Shipping successfully installed the second test group of 30
E-seals on a supply chain involving in-bond auto part shipments moving from Japan to the Port of Seattle via steamship, and then onto to the U.S./Canadian border via truck. Seals in this test group were in place from May to December 2002.

TransCore and Shadow Lines successfully deployed an E-seal on a transponder- equipped truck for one load as a proof-of-concept to show that transponder-equipped trucks could be “associated” with E-Seal equipped containers.

Table ES-2.  Deployment Activities Timeline for the E-Seal Test

Evaluation Analysis and Results

The analysis of the ability of the TransCorridor/e-Logicity system to be able to effectively read E-seals in an operational environment was key to validating the E-seal operational concept. A summary of the results of this analysis is presented on the succeeding page in Figure ES-2.

As shown in Figure ES-2, the first phase of the USDA/Maersk Sealand test occurred from December 2001 to July 2002, and consisted of installing 47 E-seals (two or less per week). The TransCorridor data showed a read rate for these E-seals at 55 percent, with 26 out of 47 E-seals being successfully read. A number of operational issues, including inadequate system training and truck drivers using the wrong border crossing at Blaine, were responsible for this initially low read rate. However, these operational issues were corrected in the second portion of this test, which took place between August and December 2002. During the second test, 12 of 12 E-sealed containers (100 percent) were successfully read by USDA inspectors. This test effectively validated the success of the Transcore/e-Logicity system as applied to the Maersk Sealand /USDA E-seal supply chain.

As shown in Figure ES-2, between May and July 2002, Westwood installed 30 E-seals in Japan as part of the initial portion of this test. All 30 E-seals were inspected and read using hand-held readers by USCS officers at the Port of Seattle. Three E-seals registered as “tampered” during the read process. Of the 30 E-seals installed, 20 percent (or six) were not read at the Blaine border crossing. Participants believe read failures were due to a malfunctioning fixed reader at the border and not the actual seal. This problem was corrected in the second portion of the USCS/Westwood test, which took place between August and December 2002. During the second test, 28 of 28 E-sealed containers (100 percent) were successfully read at the Blaine USCS station. This test effectively validated the success of the Transcore/e-Logicity system as applied to the USCS/Westwood E-seal supply chain.

Figure ES-2.  E-Seal Read Results.

The potential value of this technology was also demonstrated when a truck disappeared. When the truck was not detected at the border crossing, the USDA was alerted and was able to react in less than half the time normally taken under the traditional system. Both the driver and load were still missing as of October 2002, and an ongoing investigation is being conducted. It is expected that the E-seal system will assist with prosecution when the driver is apprehended.

During this FOT, Transcore also conducted a proof-of-concept demonstration to show that e-Logicity E-seal reads could be “associated” with TransCorridor AVI system reads in an operational environment. Here, a Shadow Lines truck equipped with an AVI transponder was married with a container that was affixed with an E-Seal, and sent through the Blaine border crossing northbound approach. On June 26, 2002 at 6:42:00 p.m., a single Shadow Lines vehicle (Unit # 1566 – Tag #20876BC1) passed through the Blaine Northbound Exit and successfully demonstrated that the system correlated the vehicle to a container (GATU403887) with an attached E-seal (AA000601). Depicted in Figure ES-3, the E-seal was detected at the Blaine Exit, and all vehicle, container, and E-seal information were correctly displayed on the TransCorridor Website.

Figure ES-3.  TransCore/Shadow Lines Test Information Displayed
on the TransCorridor Website.

The technical effectiveness evaluation investigated the ability of the system tested to perform the functions described in the Northwest International Trade Corridor Program Functional Specification. As described in this document, the system must: positively identify the vehicle and container; reliably associate an E-Seal container read with a truck AVI read; and have a low failure rate. The system should have the capability to detect tags; correlate container number and vehicle number; record the vehicle number, container number, and departure time in the database; and perform other required data processing. The findings of this evaluation concluded that the functional requirements of the original system design were either met or exceeded during the FOT system operations.

Conclusions

Table ES-3 on the succeeding two pages presents a summary of a number of the major conclusions developed as part of this evaluation. These conclusions are based on the deployments and the evaluation data collection analysis and results, as well as looking at the national impacts this FOT could have on the ongoing freight security initiatives.

Table ES-3.  Summary of Conclusions

Recommendations

Following is a selection of some of the key recommendations that the Evaluation Team is offering to USDOT, WSDOT, the project stakeholders, and others in government and industry based on the conclusions obtained in conducting this evaluation.

The number of participants should be expanded in future applications of this and other E-seal technologies to test the system with a larger volume of entries – just over 100 E-seals were coded and put through this system. A larger number of
E-seals should be tested with more industry participants and with a more comprehensive set of supply chains to validate the statistical significance of these initial findings.

In moving forward with this next phase of this E-Seal system, the infrastructure should be expanded to have additional E-seal fixed readers and/or antennas along I-5 in advance of the border, and at the border, covering all traffic lanes. Additionally E-seal readers should be installed at the exits at the APL and Maersk Sealand shipping terminals to aid in automating the monitoring of E-seal containers traveling domestically between intermodal facilities in the United States..

The e-Logicity/Brooks E-seal should be re-engineered to work on an accepted frequency. The possibility of developing an E-seal which could operate using the existing CVISN/AVI truck transponder frequency and infrastructure should be examined.

The e-Logicity/Brooks hand-held E-seal readers should be re-engineered to improve their functionality; automatically populate the E-seal number field;
 significantly improve battery life; and allow for wireless uploading to the TransCorridor System.

A national border enforcement procedure should be defined and developed to address any E-sealed loads that appear to be “tampered with” upon reaching a USCS border entry station into Canada or Mexico. This is an important component, because in this test, within a mile of passing the fixed reader, the truck enters Canada, thereby leaving United States’ jurisdiction.

There should be concern on the over the potential reliance of a single system such as an E-seal system that has no duplication for secondary security checks, and is not part of an integrated security system. With this in mind, any technology that is implemented to increase security will have to be fully supported and work with other systems to ensure that the integrity of shipments must be verified through multiple checks.

It will be critical in coming years for the USDOT, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, USCS, CHCP, IFTWG, private industry, state DOTs, and others to work together to integrate currently disparate government systems such as ACE, FAST, ITDS, CVISN, etc., to support common needs for improved national security and improved industry efficiency though intermodal freight technologies.