About Our Technology

The technology was originally developed in 2005 as part of a faculty lead computer science team project at the University of Michigan and was launched on the UM bus system. Shepherd Intelligent Systems, was founded in 2009 by a group of entrepreneurs involved in developing the 1st generation Magic Bus. The 2nd generation Magic Bus technology was tested in the summer of 2009 on several buses and validated on a small scale. Since the successful spinout of the University of Michigan Magic Bus technology, Shepherd has developed the most comprehensive feature set in both the route-based and demand response fleets.

Location and time of arrival prediction information is delivered via a website or graphical display on a smart phone/computer and text messaging for all mobile phones. Next bus arrival information may also be channeled to fixed sites such as centrally located kiosks or point-of-departure electronic displays resulting in reductions in passenger wait time and wait time uncertainty. SIS's proprietary predictive algorithms incorporate a multitude of parameters to accurately forecast arrival times of fixed route vehicles. The software platform is hardware agnostic, able to utilize either existing in-vehicle hardware or a standard cell phone to be installed in the vehicle to transmit real time GPS information.

SIS offers products tailored to the particular needs of two market segments that also share a number of features. Predict is used by fixed-route operators. In addition to real time displays of vehicle locations, it includes features that utilize repetitive route data to analyze operating proficiency. It also includes transportation user-centric features such as accurate time of arrival prediction. The AccuraSEE product line operates as an AVL based visual dispatcher tool. It facilitates efficient assignment of vehicles to jobs, tracks them to completion and provides a conduit for routine communication between drivers and dispatchers. In addition to the management features, AccuraSEE also offers riders a mobile application to order taxis and limousines with a one-touch feature.