|
August 20, 2009  Application Brief GPSFlight Personal Tracking System Luke Air Force Base  Overview Luke Air Force base was looking to find a better and safer way to track base personnel when out on the bombing ranges. The goal was to provide coverage while not having to pay for costly monthly cellular or satellite fees. Knowing where individuals are at any given time is critically important to range management particularly when bombing runs are taking place. The idea is to provide base workers a small portable GPS tracking device when heading out on the range and have those devices (people and vehicles) become moving dots on a map….in real time.  One of the key issues was installing (locating) the proper number of base stations on the range providing the necessary coverage. Turns out Luke could piggyback on their existing equipment (on mountains and towers) out on the range. The final network will have seven strategically repeaters and two Ethernet end nodes covering over 100 square miles of terrain.  Seven solar powered repeater base stations where place in and around north and south ranges with one Ethernet base station (end node) on a 2400 foot mountain and the other on a 200 foot tower in the central part of the base (in Gila Bend). The Ethernet end nodes and repeaters are located between five and ten miles apart  and again, piggybacking on existing infrastructure. The coverage is designed to pass data between repeaters eventually touching down at one of the two Ethernet end nodes thereby greatly extending coverage.  When a transmission lands at an Ethernet end node, it is delivered via Ethernet backbone to HQ in Phoenix. One transmission may be repeated through two or more repeater base stations thereby greatly extending overall coverage.  In terms of equipment there are 50 transmitters programmed at 5 second intervals and nine total base stations, two Ethernet and seven RS232 solar powered repeaters. The main software is running about 50 miles away on the base.  About GPSFlight GPSFlight manufactures the smallest, most capable high performance GPS tracking and telemetry tools in the industry. Both software and hardware are designed together so you get the best telemetry possible. If you are looking for small, long range wireless GPS tracking without cellular or satellite, GPSFlight is your solution. |