Boats and Aquatic Vehicle GPS Tracking

The earth is two-thirds water. And your boat or fleet is an infinitesimal fraction of that volume. Please do the math and consider the odds of locating your boat in that vast expanse of unpredictable aqua. A needle in a haystack is not a suitable analogy and even this age old axiom falls short of describing the odds accurately. Boats are lost at sea every day. And most of the time finding them is a virtually impossible task. Sea weather is unpredictable and unruly and the tide can change at the drop of a hat. It is extremely vital that boat crews stay informed of weather conditions and alternative course routes.

This is where Boat GPS tracking steps in. Be it an individual boat owner or a fleet manager, GPS boat tracking systems are virtually impossible to ignore. From theft prevention and location tracking to weather updates, stay on top of your game with GPS boat tracking systems. Let’s take a look at the boatload of features they have to offer.

 

• Quickly locate, in real time specific vessels or barges at exact locations on a map or plotter. Receive immediate updates via SMS or email. Offshore handheld GPS receivers let you navigate the boat remotely from anywhere in the world.
• Plan, organize, reroute and chart routes with the help of your mouse, on an easily accessible, extremely user friendly interface.
• Man overboard Functions. Receive alerts in case of such hazards prompting you to take immediate action.
• Link GPS to autopilot on powerboats or sailboats, reducing the likelihood of manual error.
• Mark good routes, customize itineraries and refer to them as and when you require with the help of historical information saved on secure servers.
• Save and view log details of routes taken. This improves process efficiency.
• Track and find a lost boat easily.
• Prevent theft by setting up alarms and creating Geo-fences.
• Easy installation, work with most plotter devices.
• GPS boat trackers are waterproof and often weatherproof rugged devices.
• Create custom alarms for theft, anchor, man overboard and a lot more.
• Receive constant weather updates that will help avoid bad weather.
• Receive constant information on engine conditioned, top speed, direction, distance, and pace.
• Understand the effects of wind shifts and navigate sailboats accordingly.
• Label load contents as well to monitor delivery from loading to dock.
• Extremely affordable devices which can easily installed on a single boat or an entire fleet.

 

The Challenges:

While it does have a boat-load of benefits, GPS boat tracking may pose a few challenges. Here's a look at some of the pain points.

 

• Battery backup and battery life is an area which needs to be worked on. The standard battery lasts 7 days and may need further its longevity to continue to provide accurate readings.
• False alarms are commonplace and occur when a preset is not well defined or if the owner has not disarmed the system before turning on the ignition. False alarms result in higher operational costs.
• Bad weather can be a possible hazard to tracking as it might lead to a disruption of signals from the GPS device via satellite or cellular network.
• Humidity and salt content can interfere with a GPS device’s efficiency, causing frequent malfunctions.

 

The Solution:

We've seen the challenges facing Boat GPS tracking. Do we have any solutions at hand? Here are a few.

• Batteries can be sold based on the type of vehicle the consumer is purchasing. A bike does not need as much battery power as a cross country or adventure bike would, since the latter are more likely to be on the road for longer periods of time.
• There should be double checks in place to ensure that presets are well defined, reducing the incurrence of false alarms.
• A combination of RF technology and infallible GPS technology should be devised to overcome faulty signaling even in the harshest weather conditions.
• A heavy duty waterproof and anticorrosive casing must be provided for each device to ensure its longevity and efficacy.