[RNLD] Spot GPS Messenger [was satellite phones]

[Felicity Meakins]

Hi Nick,

We have just been going through investigating all of this technology at UQ
for people doing fieldwork. There seems to be a choice of three devices and
the trick is to get the combination right for the right activity.

Epirb ­ pinpoints a person in an emergency. No calling capability. Only used
in absolute emergencies. Most useful if they are worn on the body and not
kept in glove boxes etc where they might not be accessible during
emergencies.

Sat phones ­ calling capability, emergency services cannot pin point you
though (some have GPS functions, but you need to operate that before you
call), useful for emergencies when you are still mobile but need to arrange
medical help when you arrive to an allocated location, useful for being
talked through medical procedures by a trained person over the phone, useful
for checking in (over long trips or if you are late to your destination).

SPOT ­ no calling capability, pinpoints a person which is good in
emergencies, has a checking-in function, light so able to be carried. One
major disadvantage is that they must be registered every year which costs.

My conclusions is that for Australian fieldwork, a combination of an Epirb
and Sat phone is about right. The SPOT and Sat phone have a lot of
cross-over functions e.g. both can be used for checking in. Also both are
expensive and both require set up and have on-going costs associated with
them. SPOTs are typically used for long distance hikers who don¹t want to
carry SAT phones. They allow hikers to check in every night (so no one is
worried unnecessarily) and alert emergency services where necessary. A
combination of SPOT and Epirb makes no sense because neither has a call
function.

All of these devices have problems getting a signal with eucalypts, clouds
etc.

Having said that, we have been allocated SPOTS and Sat phones in our School,
but the rest of UQ use an Epirb and a Sat phone.

Regards, Felicity
_________________________________________
FELICITY MEAKINS | ARC Postdoctoral Fellow
Linguistics | School of Languages and Comparative Cultural Studies
UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND
Rm 517, Bldg. 32 (Gordon Greenwood Building)| University of Queensland | QLD
| 4072             
T +61 7 3365 2877 | F +61 7 3365 6799 | M +61 411 404 546
E f.meakins at uq.edu.au |
http://www.slccs.uq.edu.au//index.html?page=127733&pid=124851



On 13/06/12 10:22 AM, "Nick Thieberger" <thien at unimelb.edu.au> wrote:

> Does anyone have experience of using a 'Spot GPS Messenger' as an
> alternative to satellite phones?
> http://www.mapcgis.com.au/spot_12.html?gclid=CNGMptD2ybACFcIlpAodETAOVg
> 
> 
> Their blurb follows:
> 
> SOS (was 911): Use this function In the event of a life threatening or
> other critical emergency to notify emergency services of your GPS
> location and that you need assistance. The GEOS International
> Emergency Response Center alerts the appropriate agencies worldwide -
> for example contacting 9-1-1 responders in North America, 1-1-2
> responders in Europe and AMSA in Australia.
> 
> Help: In the event of a non-life threatening emergency, you can use
> this function to notify your personal contacts that you need
> assistance.
> 
> Check-in/OK: This feature allows you to let your friends and family
> know that all is OK with a pre-programmed message along with your GPS
> location. With a push of a button a message is sent via email or SMS
> to up to 10 pre-determined contacts and your waypoint is stored in
> your SPOT account for later reference. Your stored waypoints can be
> easily integrated into a SPOT Shared Page.
> 
> Custom Message: This feature allows you to let your friends and family
> now receive a custom message along with your GPS location with a push
> of a button. Use this feature as a secondary OK message or specialized
> Help message.
> 
> Track Progress: This feature allows you to send and save your location
> and allow contacts to track your progress in near real time using
> Google Maps. With your SPOT account you have the ability to set up a
> SPOT Shared Page which allows you to show your SPOT GPS locations to
> others on a Google Map.
> 
> Coverage:
> SPOT works around the world, including virtually all of North America,
> Europe and Australia, portions of South America, Northern Africa and
> Northeastern Asia, and hundreds or thousands of miles offshore of
> these areas.

_________________________________________
FELICITY MEAKINS | ARC Postdoctoral Fellow
Linguistics | School of Languages and Comparative Cultural Studies
UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND
Rm 517, Bldg. 32 (Gordon Greenwood Building)| University of Queensland | QLD
| 4072             
T +61 7 3365 2877 | F +61 7 3365 6799 | M +61 411 404 546
E f.meakins at uq.edu.au |
http://www.slccs.uq.edu.au//index.html?page=127733&pid=124851