T&L Publications

I am fixing up a pick up truck to give to a cousin of mine for his 16th birthday. However, our family has concerns about him and the truck going "missing". It seems there should be a reasonably easy way to put on a GPS device - but being able to track the truck on the web, or by some other means is escaping me. I found one solution for $2500 - and that is more than the truck cost. Any ideas or web references appreciated. Thanks...

Sounds like you have a problem that electronics can't solve. Try Dr. Phill.

Hi EVA.<p>I am after the same on the same cheap budget for my classic car...
My intention is to securely hide a low powered ~1W? 2m amateur radio transmitter behind the dashboard or somewhere, that would transmit simplex 2 second bursts every minute (sort of a beacon) at 144.000 MHz whenever there is wind noise, audio, people talking inside the car, any sound present.
And every five minutes if there is no sounds.
A gel lead acid battery trickle charged by the vehicle could assure transmission for a long time if the battery is stolen or the car is started to be dismantled.<p>I am an amateur radio operator, and with a large net of willing operators everywhere, the signal could be located in a huge range for no monthly Lo-jack fees.<p>Polish this idea with some other thoughts and let's try.<p>Miguel

Vol 23 No. 3 had an article in Stamp Applications which described interfacing a Basic Stamp to a GPS unit and logging data for tracking. Go to http://www.parallaxinc.com/downloads/Re ... erogps.zip<p>Smitty

GPS sounds like overkill.
Would a radio transmitter and matching
rerceiver work? They're both available, in
kit form, at www.jameco.com. $13 each, plus
postage and handling.

That suggestion of Lo-Jack sounds the best.

I recently finished a project for the Walt Disney World Resort in florida, for a tracking system for thier monorials, and we Used a 95 dollar GPS Device with a wireless Modem, that easily could have been a cell phone with a modem as well for extended range, the wireless system we had worked for only about 2 miles. all that was needed for the fixed track of the monorail.

It depends what you mean when you use the term "missing".<p>Do you want to know where he is in case he really IS missing? Or do you need to know where he's BEEN? Like at who's house or what bar etc.<p>If he travels fairly long distances a data logger might be the most practical way of finding out where he's been going. If money is a concern.<p>A low tech way of finding out where he's been sometimes, is to see what radio stations the radio is tuned to. If it is preset or tuned to a station you can't get locally, that can be a clue.

This sounds like a job for APRS Automatic Packet Reporting System. This uses a GPS, modem, and transmitter to send data to a web page where you can track movements of a vehicle. Early versions of the system used amateur radios but some receiving stations now monitor CB radio channel 29. See this link:http://www.cave.org/aprs/aprswhat.html<p>This uses a cheap GPS unit (I've seen WORKING units as low as $25 at ham fests), a cheap bare mininum mobile computer (free or nearly free in some cases), and a CB radio (anywhere from free to a few bucks in a garage sale).<p>If you worry about him going "missing" are you worried that he may "choose" to go missing? If so, giving him a vehicle is like dumping gas on a camp fire. <p>If you worry about him getting into trouble, you might consider getting him a cell phone without a subscription. It is required by federal law that ANY electrically working cell phone can make 911 calls. You DO NOT have to subscribe to a carrier to have this work! You can get these "useless" phones for free in many cases from cell phone stores (Radio Shack) or from friends who have upgraded. You can't receive or make calls to your friends but 911 and operator calls work just fine.