CalAmp Helping Exploration to Find New Planets

• From Italy to United States, CalAmp’s technology provided by its LoJack Italia subsidiary, has enabled monitoring of the shipment of the SHARK-VIS instrument for LBT – the .
• Thanks to CalAmp’s telematic devices and sensors, INAF - National Institute of Astrophysics was able to ensure the safe transportation of extremely delicate components throughout their entire journey to the observatory located in Arizona.

MILAN and IRVINE, California – September 13, 2023 – In the coming days the installation of an optical high-contrast and coronagraphic instrument developed by the National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF), "SHARK-VIS", will be completed. This high-contrast imager, made in Italy, together with its “twin” SHARK-NIR will transform the Large Binocular Telescope located on the top of Mount Graham in Arizona into a state-of-the-art machine to detect, observe, and study planets outside of the solar system.

Technology developed by CalAmp technology (NASDAQ: CAMP), a connected intelligence company helping people and organizations to improve operational performance with a data-driven solutions ecosystem, was used by LoJack® Italia to enable and ensure the delicate transportation of the innovative equipment from the Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, located in Monte Porzio Catone, Italy, where the instrumentation was designed and built, to Arizona, United States. The highly delicate optical components, manufactured in the Lazio Region and intended for installation on the binocular telescope, were placed in two crates measuring approximately 2x1.3x1.4 meters and 1.4x0.8x1.5 meters and weighing approximately 280 kg e 634 kg. These boxes were equipped with internal polyethylene foam padding and sealed with a barrier-coated bag.

Inside the boxes, the CalAmp devices were carefully positioned, allowing the step-by-step monitoring of all stages of the shipment, and enabling prompt intervention in case of any detected anomalies.

CalAmp’s edge computing and telematics platform provided by LoJack in Italy were selected by Estran, a company specializing in providing services for digital tracking of logistics activities and goods movement, together with the international movers 1877 Stein, which handled the shipment, because of its capability to ensure real-time monitoring of the two crates across the ocean, during intermodality shipment. Through CalAmp's web portal it was possible to track the exact location of the crates and to monitor specific parameters of the components transported inside them: tilts, shocks, temperature and humidity levels of the optical components. All of these parameters needed to be closely monitored to prevent any damage to the delicate optical assemblies. CalAmp’s web portal provided by LoJack allowed the project managers of INAF, after appropriate training, to independently verify the integrity of the crates on multiple occasions and track the shipment in real-time. They could remotely set parameters to receive alerts and notifications of any anomalies detected by the sensors and react accordingly.

Thanks to CalAmp’s sensors, INAF was able to effectively manage its agreement with the insurance company by accurately identifying any responsible parties for anomalies at each step of the shipment chain.

Following the delivery of the instruments in June 2023, SHARK-VIS (a unique instrument, valued at approximately 1.4 million Euros) will be installed on the telescope in the coming days. This will enable, from October onwards, the search for new "exoplanets" (planets orbiting around other stars) with a focus on very young planets in the formation phase, with less than 10 million years of age.

"We are proud to have contributed, through our technology, to Italian scientific research.  This was an exceptional opportunity to showcase our solutions and how they are capable of addressing modern challenges related to supply chain visibility and total protection of transported goods," explained Maurizio Iperti, President of LoJack EMEA. "Our solutions are designed to provide complete transparency across the entire distribution chain, notifying critical environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, light, impacts, or movement, as well as other parameters such as position and distance from the point of origin, at any given time."

About LoJack®

LoJack, a wholly-owned CalAmp subsidiary, is a market leader in stolen vehicle recovery and innovative automotive services helping people protect their assets and vehicles from theft. With more than 40 years of experience we are undergoing a strong growth phase relying on more than 700,000 software and service subscribers in Europe. Today, LoJack is leveraging CalAmp’s telematics technology to create a new level of value for the automotive, insurance, and car rental markets and their end-customers through easily accessible, innovative connected vehicle solutions. For more information, visit lojack.it or LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LoJack Blog.

About CalAmp®

CalAmp (Nasdaq: CAMP) provides flexible solutions to help organizations worldwide monitor, track and protect their vital assets. Our unique combination of software, devices, and platform enables over 14,000 commercial and government organizations worldwide to increase efficiency, safety and transparency while accommodating the unique ways they do business. With over 10 million active edge devices and 275+ issued or pending patents, CalAmp is the telematics leader organizations turn to for innovation and dependability. For more information, visit calamp.com, or LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube or CalAmp Blog. 

CalAmp, LoJack, TRACKER , Here Comes The Bus , Bus Guardian , iOn Vision , CrashBoxx and associated logos are among the trademarks of CalAmp and/or its affiliates in the United States, certain other countries and/or the EU. Spireon acquired the LoJack® U.S. Stolen Vehicle Recovery (SVR) business from CalAmp and holds an exclusive license to the LoJack mark in the United States and Canada. Any other trademarks or trade names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

CalAmp Media Contact:
Mark Gaydos
mgaydos@calamp.com
240.994.3027
LoJack Media Contact:
Marco Catino
marco@catinogiglio.it
+39 329.305.2068