Cars have become more sophisticated over the years and manufacturers keep adding features to ensure consumer’s needs are met. As a big lover of exotic cars my very first post here on steemit was on keeping cars safe from car thieves using car immobilizers and I promised to continue on cars.
Today I’d like to fulfil my promise, So I would be focusing on car tracking devices.
Real time tracking device source: pixabay
The most obvious reason car trackers were developed was to show users the exact location of their cars at any point in time. Cases where a car is stolen it is a really useful tool because it shows the exact current location of the car so recovery is made Easy for the individual or police.
From the expensive real time car trackers that provide instantaneous speed and location as well as other parameters to the cheap trackers that simply record the information for later use. Basically a GPS car tracker is mainly for Safety, accountability and Efficiency.
Car trackers are one of the most useful tools for organizations, companies and owners of large fleet of cars. Trackers help the companies properly coordinate and manage their fleet of cars and as a result improve the efficiency and accuracy of the operations companies as well as the customer service. Companies use this car tracker to determine the exact location of their fleet of vehicles and gather all other information that make it easier to reimburse and save money for the company.
For instance, Haulage and logistics companies that operate lorries and detachable load carrying units require trackers to monitor the route and progress of a delivery truck and with the aid of suitable real time trackers the can accurately provide their Customers with delivery time and pickup time. And due to this the drivers have no excuse for delivering late because they are constantly being monitored.
It’s also fantastic tool for surveillance of asset or cargoes in transit during delivery from one location to another to ensure strict adherence to the terms and for fuel monitoring. Trackers ensure that the drivers don’t change route and disappear with the assets.
If a suitable car tracker is installed in a car it is easy to keep tabs on our loved ones in real time to ensure they are safe. We can easily keep track of where our loved ones are supposed to be during a journey, where they are per time and know the speed they are driving to be sure they are not breaking any speed limits etc
Technology has advanced to points where You can set real time alerts to go off in the car for scenarios where the driver exceeds a particular speed or deviates from a particular route or area. Although the only challenge is that most of this trackers especially the advanced ones would require cell service to provide the user the real time location data.
what is a Global positioning system (GPS) Car tracker?
They are portable devices used for locating the exact position of a vehicle. There are various types and designs that perform slightly different functions based on the sophistication and model.
For example, Real time GPS car trackers literally give you All the location data and instantaneous speed of the vehicle and in some cases when the driver exceeds a certain speed or deviates from a specific area you can set up real time alert to go off
Isn’t that just fascinating?
In fact when some highly sophisticated models of trackers are connected to the car’s circuit system they can automatically sends SMS notification to the car owners when the alarm of the car goes off.
Using one of its fantastic feature which is “GEO-FENCING”: the owner can simply create a virtual perimeter around the vehicle and receive alerts either emails or SMS when the car moves out of the perimeter, this thereby prompts the owner to go check his car and probably call the police and provide them with the exact location so it’s easier to recover the car.
Furthermore, owners of car can remotely deactivate the ignition of car the moment it detects the car’s unauthorized movement to prevent thieves from moving away with the car, this tracker gives the owner full control over the car and at an instant the owner can lock the vehicle from afar and trap the thieves inside while they call the police.
Another feature latest trackers come with is the SOS button which is used for quick emergency and assistance when the user is in distress the user can press the SOS button and get the required assistance.
I know you might just be wondering how such a portable device like a car tracker could work so effectively?
Here it is
Firstly there are two types of tracking devices:
- Passive tracking devices
- Active Tracking devices
But practically a combination of both is used for effective transmission.
In Passive tracking devices as the name implies once the car starts working or in some cases when the door is opened, the locations, speed and general GPS data are recorded. When the vehicle returns, the information is downloaded and used for whatever purpose.
To explain further the tracker may log data like the locations of the vehicle for the past 18hours, the data stored in this type of GPS car tracker is mostly stored on a memory card or in the internal memory of the unit. The data is downloaded to a computer for analysis on a later date or might be sent for wireless downloads at specified points and time or at specific point during the journey.
Active tracking devices the GPS data, speed and heading are transmitted in REAL TIME, there is no need for docking. The tracker automatically sends the information as it occurs straight to a central tracking system via a modem within the tracking unit. This device requires Good data connection for transmission because without proper data connection the tracking devices would switch to passive systems to finish up connection and they switch back when data connection is better.
Real time Gps tracking source: pixabayThese 3 major segment of a GPS are necessary for car tracking to take place,
Space segment
Control segment
User segment
SPACE SEGMENT
This segment consists of two dozen satellites and the satellite are programmed in such a way that they align in position that would ensure that their antennas are facing the earth while their solar panels are facing the sun. With this arrangement at least four satellites can be seen from the earth.
At the speed of light and at regular intervals each of this satellite transmit location information through signals. Then the car GPS device receives the data and hence the exact location of the car can be measured by calculating the time it takes for the signals sent from at least three satellites to reach the car’s GPS receiver.
THIS simple mathematical principle is a PROCESS called TRILATERATION.
For Trilateration to occur the GPS receiver must
Must know the location of the place is to be traced by at least three satellites above the place
It must know the distance between the place and each space vehicle
CONTROL UNIT
These unmanned base stations can basically monitor transmission, analyze data, and issue command to individual satellites. They primarily Oversee the operations of the satellite and ensure that the satellites in space are functioning properlyUSER UNIT
Just as the name implies this is the users segment and it primarily detects, interprets and process signals that is sent by the satellite
Finally, I would like to let you know that using a GPS device is really easy, although the process and variation of this device might be slightly different from one GPS device to another because there are different manufacturers as well as different level of sophistication of the device and it’s Always a good idea to check the manuals of the trackers.
Fundamentally the major difference of car trackers is the power source. Some are self-powered with batteries while or wired into the vehicle’s power system.
For instance, some trackers are designed to be plugged directly into the onboard diagnostics connector of the car (in case you don’t know where that is located its directly under the dash near close to the driver’s legs) it gets its power directly from the diagnostic connector and is very easy to use.
Some are designed to be plugged directly into the cigarette lighter or the accessory socket of the vehicle. Although this type of tracker is easy to use, however based on the design they can only be installed in limited spots on the car and some of them would continue to draw power from the battery of the car even when the car isn’t working. So my advice in this case is to unplug the tracker to prevent your battery from draining.
My personal favorite are trackers that are powered by battery, because the user can install them anywhere in the vehicle, however since there is no external power source, the tracker has to be removed periodically to either charge or change the battery depending on the battery used that ensures that the satellites in space are functioning properly or the tracker might stop working once the battery is drained.
Once your tracker is properly installed You can login to your smartphone, tablets, computer and access the necessary information.
CONCLUSION
The importance of installing car trackers cannot over emphasized, however before you purchase a car tracker for your vehicle, do a proper research, check the features and ensure it is suits your needs so you can really enjoy the fantastic benefits of having the device instead of just blindly buying a low quality tracking device.
just like every device there is the dark side to vehicle GPS trackers, too. Some might use them without the vehicle owner's knowledge to keep track of where the vehicle goes and when. If you suspect that's the case, you can easily meet a professional mechanic to locate the GPS tracker that's been hidden in your vehicle.
REFERENCE
How does a GPS tracking system work