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Special character guidelines for FleetWatcher

This article explains which special characters are safest to use in FleetWatcher, which are risky, and where problems are most likely to appear (for example, in projects or shifts)

Special character guidelines for FleetWatcher

This article explains which special characters are safest to use in FleetWatcher, which are risky, and where problems are most likely to appear (for example, in projects or shifts).

Using only “safe” characters in important names and IDs helps prevent errors, missing data, or issues with integrations.

Recommended “safe” characters

These characters are generally safe across FleetWatcher and are recommended for all key names.

Safe characters:

  • Letters:

    • A–Z (uppercase)

    • a–z (lowercase)

  • Numbers:

    • 0–9

  • Common punctuation:

    • Space:

    • Dash / hyphen: -

    • Underscore: _

    • Period / dot: .

    • Parentheses: ( )

Examples of safe names:

  • North Plant - Night Shift

  • ICON-2025.03.15

  • Plant_01500_Equipment

  • FRA-270-43.18 (Day)

We recommend using only these characters for:

  • Project names

  • Shift names

  • Equipment names / IDs

  • Driver or user identifiers (where possible)

Risky characters and common problem areas

The characters below are more likely to cause problems in FleetWatcher or connected systems. Not every character will fail in every screen, but they are considered risky and should be avoided in important identifiers.

1. Quotes and apostrophes

  • Single quote / apostrophe: '

  • Double quote: "

Common issues:

  • Can cause errors when data is processed in the backend or sent through integrations.

  • Have been linked to issues with project names in particular.

Where problems usually show up:

  • Project names

  • Fields used in integrations, event processing, or reporting

Recommendation:

Avoid using ' or " in project names, shift names, and other key labels.

2. Hash / pound sign

  • Character: #

Common issues:

  • Treated as an invalid character in some name fields.

  • Has been involved in investigations around issues loading certain views (for example, shift views).

Where problems usually show up:

  • Shift names

  • Other names shown in scheduling/dispatch views

Recommendation:

Do not use # in shift names or other operational labels.

3. Other risky special characters

These characters are more likely to cause issues in integrations, exports, or downstream systems, even if they sometimes appear to work in the UI:

  • Ampersand: &

  • Angle brackets: < >

  • Slashes: / \

  • Colon and semicolon: : ;

  • Comma: ,

  • Question mark: ?

  • Asterisk: *

  • Pipe: |

  • Percent sign: %

  • Plus sign: +

  • Equals sign: =

Common issues:

  • Can interfere with:

    • Integrations to other systems

    • Data exports

    • Parsing of text in backend services

Where problems usually show up:

  • Project names used in integrations

  • Names or IDs that appear in exports or automated reports

  • Any field passed into external systems or APIs

Recommendation:

Avoid these characters in:

  • Project names

  • Shift names

  • Equipment names / IDs

  • Any field used in integrations or reporting

Best practices for naming in FleetWatcher

To avoid special character problems:

  1. Stick to the safe set:
    ​    A–Z, a–z, 0–9, space, -, _, ., (, )

  2. Keep names simple and consistent:

    • Example: East Plant - Shift 1 instead of East Plant #1 (Shift "A").

  3. Be extra careful with fields that drive other processes:

    • Project names used in integrations

    • Shift names used for scheduling or dispatch

    • IDs that appear in reports or exports

Quick summary

  • Safe: letters, numbers, spaces, dashes, underscores, periods, and parentheses.

  • Risky: quotes (', "), hash (#), and other special characters like
    & < > / \ : ; , ? * | % + =

  • For the most reliable experience, avoid risky characters in important names and IDs across FleetWatcher.

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