[Nikhilb2008]

My dad has this idea to install GPS trackers in the toolkits we give to our service engineers.

This way we can track them any time of the day.

Many of them disappear for hours on end saying they are going to some customer's place but we know it shouldnt take them so long.

We would like to track them using GPS. So, we know where they are at 11:00 am, how long they are at the customer's place and how long they take to travel, etc...

Of course, all this will be done with the engineer's knowledge. There is no spying or anything. This is just to make them more trackable.

We are giving all of them backpacks with toolkits. The idea is to install this GPS reciever in their backpack.

How feasible is this? This will be done on an all-India basis eventually. We would like all the info to be displayed on the computer screen in the Head office in Bangalore.

Any ideas? How much would something like this cost? Where do we start off?

[black12rr]

TrackMyJourney - Welcome to TrackMyJourney

[bottle]

Whats to stop them from leaving the backback at the customer place and then going somewhere else ?

No offence but stuff like this doesn't really work. Maybe you can think about calling up and asking where they are and to get a move on it

Anyways google turned this up , try making a few calls and see how much it would cost
GPS in India - Main - Service Providers

[Nikhilb2008]

Wow. That was quick! Thanks guys!

@black12rr -- This is nice, but we would like a GPS recieverwhich works independently from mobile phones.

Activating GPRS on all our engineers' phones would be quite expensive. Also, how much data will be transferred in a normal day of 10 hours? Because upto 1GB is acceptable. Beyond that, the costs for GPRS are prohibitive.

@Bootli --- Nice link! Will give it a shot.

[sanjayc]

Problem with satellite based gps receivers will be that inside walls, it cannot catch signals.

There are however, solutions like gps logger which when on, will track the route taken and save the data in in-built memory, which can be later retrieved and played on google maps etc. The data will also show the timings, stops taken with precise timings. If you want real time tracking, this type of gps logger also comes with sim using which at pre-defined intervals it can SMS the current co-ordinates.

[Nikhilb2008]

Originally Posted by sanjayc

Problem with satellite based gps receivers will be that inside walls, it cannot catch signals.

There are however, solutions like gps logger which when on, will track the route taken and save the data in in-built memory, which can be later retrieved and played on google maps etc. The data will also show the timings, stops taken with precise timings. If you want real time tracking, this type of gps logger also comes with sim using which at pre-defined intervals it can SMS the current co-ordinates.

This shouldnt be a problem. At least it will record the last known position outside the building naa?

[srishiva]

I had interviewed a guy who had done a project wherein you can send a sms and the device sends back the location, no GPRS needed. But how often one needs to be tracked is what you need to find.

[black12rr]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

@black12rr -- This is nice, but we would like a GPS recieverwhich works independently from mobile phones.
.

Sir nowdays who does not have cellphones . Why carry 2 devices , one cellphone and then a GPS receiver ? ,then 2 chargers .

Your worker cannot complain ,sar I forgot the GPS receiver at home/office/hotel , sar I lost it ...

Now every mobile had GPS receiver ,also you can immediately call them back on the same mobile and ask why is he im-mobile .

[sanjayc]

Originally Posted by black12rr

Sir nowdays who does not have cellphones . Why carry 2 devices , one cellphone and then a GPS receiver ? ,then 2 chargers .

Your worker cannot complain ,sar I forgot the GPS receiver at home/office/hotel , sar I lost it ...

Now every mobile had GPS receiver ,also you can immediately call them back on the same mobile and ask why is he im-mobile .

While its true, but what's the starting cost of a gps-equipped mobile?

On the other hand, dedicated gps logger will come under 50USD and are pretty small - like matchboxes.

[sanjayc]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

This shouldnt be a problem. At least it will record the last known position outside the building naa?

Yes it will. You can look at www.dealextreme.com for such devices. Holux brand is one of leading names. I have personally bought the model M1000C which is USB/Bluetooth enabled DealExtreme: $56.87 HOLUX M-1000C Rechargeable Bluetooth Car GPS Receiver with Data Logger Travel Recorder for around 56USD. Built in lithium ion battery lasts for days. It uses a regular Nokia-type BL5C battery, hence battery replacement also should not be an issue. In case you need to check how the logger works, PM me, I can send you some recently recorded tracks which you can play in Google Earth.

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by srishiva

I had interviewed a guy who had done a project wherein you can send a sms and the device sends back the location, no GPRS needed. But how often one needs to be tracked is what you need to find.

Can you elaborate more on this ? Or PM me the contact for this person?

We have a sales force of over 100 people across the country on the go everyday so this would be the only practical option. As buying devices for each person would not be feasible.

[arunsasi]

Better to have a push to talk like system and an central dispatcher who will co ordinate who goes where . This is how i have seen it being done in US. Every engineer gets a detailed map printed showing where he goes and who he meets. The Er. then updates the central dispatcher as soon as he is done with each task in his list

[bigman]

You can also get GPS receivers with a sim card thing built in. Never used one but from what I read you can send the GPS receiver an SMS and it will SMS you back its GPS position.

You might want to look at GPSed.com, I tested this whilst in India last year and my family could follow my travels on the internet (it allows live tracking but I used to turn it off at times). It requires a WM phone with built in GPS and uses GPRS to upload your position.

My cousin works for a company in London and they have devices fitted to all their vans. The owners nephew sits on the PC all day looking at where the vans are and calls up the drivers if he suspects they are messing about on company time.

[CrackedHead]

Do checkout Google's Latitude - It allows you to track your friends.

Google Latitude

The cheapest phones that would support this would be Symbian S60 devices (Nokia smartphones)

[pachchu]

Nikhil

Check this out.

:: GeoTrackers.com - Anytime, Anywhere Tracking....

I know them personally, they are my ex-colleagues. Talk to Ajay in particular and refer my name (hope you remember my name, else refer my ID).

One of their much publicized successes.

YouTube - Geotrackers catches truck full of stolen motorcycles