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rohicks

Possible Cutaway GPS Tracker Solution - Iota

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I know this has been discussed before. However, I ran across this kickstarter project the other day and thought this might fit into the topic again.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1226890823/iota-never-lose-sight-of-whats-important

Looks to be about twice the size of a quarter, with some good battery life, decent range, and also waterproof. I wonder if it could be sewn in somewhere to made functional on a canopy for locating equipment? Just some more food for thought. Whether or not it's a bad/good/or getting closer idea I'm not experienced enough to judge.

Quote

Waterproof
Speaker
Temp Sensor
Rechargable
Bluetooth
AES128 bit encription
Long Range Radio
GPS
Accelerometer
Speaker
Emergency Alert Button

The Iota Home Base is what makes it all possible. Iota and the companion Home Base both include the same advanced long range radio technology allowing them to communicate with each other over a distance of up to 4 miles.

A really cool thing happens when you set up a Home Base. You contribute to the nationwide network in a BIG way because YOU add up to 50 square miles of coverage around your home.

Since every Iota can securely communicate with any Home Base in its 4 mile range, this ground breaking radio technology makes it possible for just a few people to bring coverage to an entire city!

Home Base to Iota Communication Range
In our field tests with the Home Base at ground level, we typically see 1-2 miles of communication range in San Francisco, 2-3 miles on the SF Peninsula, and often more in rural areas.

It’s always hard to assign an absolute value to range since it’s affected by many factors including height of the Home Base, interference, terrain, and impeding structures. From the rooftop of our 3 story office building in Redwood City Iota can be heard 4 miles away. During tests on a straight open highway the prototypes achieved 8 miles of range.

In summary, range can vary a lot based on where you live but we believe in almost all cases people will see at least 1 mile, and on average about 2 miles. When you receive your Home Base, you’ll want to mount it as high as possible to maximize range from your home.



Quote

How will the Iota battery life vary for different use cases?
For on-demand location applications where you are searching for the lost item infrequently (less than once per day) you should see a battery life of 3-4 months. The number of location updates before needing to recharge is approximately 800. So if you were to check the location every 10 minutes continuously during the day, you would have to recharge the battery after about 11 days.

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It looks kind of thick but you might be able to attach it to a riser or something, assuming it doesn't get snapped off by the opening. The best bet would be to talk to a rigger and see where you could fit one.

Looks like you'd have to be able to remove it to recharge it. Also looks like you'd need a base station within 4 miles of the canopy to locate it -- if I understand correctly, the tracker communicates with the base station, which in turn connects to the internet via your wifi. The places I jump have been pretty rural, so the range could be a potential issue. It looks like the device can communicate with any base station though, so if they crowdsource enough base stations, coverage might not be a problem.
I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

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Technology idea is pretty sound and figures for range sort of stack up. You would probably get about 2 miles reliably in the country.

Business case of $250k is right ballpark for cheap development.

you could sew it on the d bag.
Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

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Well I don't plan on buying one just putting it out there for discussion.

I figured putting the home base at the DZ would cover it as long as the DZ you're at has WIFI and willing to let you connect to it of course. Or maybe a DZ buys one and offers it to anyone with the receiver sewn in their equipment.

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FlyingRhenquest

It looks kind of thick but you might be able to attach it to a riser or something, assuming it doesn't get snapped off by the opening....

....Looks like you'd have to be able to remove it to recharge it...



Easy. Sew a pocket onto the D-bag where it's accessible with the container closed - upper right or left above the container side flaps. Wouldn't work with all rigs but would with some, and if these gizmos or something like them become the norm, rig manufacturers would likely design around them or even incorporate pockets into bags from the factory.
Chuck Akers
D-10855
Houston, TX

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This looks great. I may actually jump on the kick starter campaign.

If you have a 4g phone with a wifi hot spot you can take the home base on the road with you.

If a cutaway gets outside of the range of the home base move the home base in the general area of the cutaway based on the uppers and where you cut-away.
"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

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I jumped in for two Iota's and one home base. What the hell. I have been hoping something like this would come along.

Now I hope it hits its goal and actually gets funded, and I actually get my stuff! :ph34r:

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

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DougH

I jumped in for two Iota's and one home base. What the hell. I have been hoping something like this would come along.

Now I hope it hits its goal and actually gets funded, and I actually get my stuff! :ph34r:


If it funds; update us on how this product works out for you.

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DougH

This looks great. I may actually jump on the kick starter campaign.

If you have a 4g phone with a wifi hot spot you can take the home base on the road with you.

If a cutaway gets outside of the range of the home base move the home base in the general area of the cutaway based on the uppers and where you cut-away.



But you will need a powersource for the home base too?

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Bluetooth, so only 100ft range (probably less in real applications). Might help if you lose it in a densely packed area, like trees or a corn field, but not so much if it floats away.

But they are relatively cheap, kinda want to get some for my personal use.

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AdD

Anyone using Chipolo? $25 per unit, 200' range and 12 mo battery apparently. We have a lot of trees, could be a good compromise vs the Iota cost.

https://chipolo.net/


It is still standard bluetooth, so no different than other similar tracker products. Their FAQ says 30 ft range normal, and "up to 200 ft" when "there is a clear line of sight". So I wouldn't expect this to be any different than any of the others.

The FCC limits bluetooth power in consumer devices, so I don't expect anyone will be able to overcome this limitation in a blue tooth device.

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