GPS tracking for small yacht???

[benlui]

My poor folks are a nervous wreck with us going to France in several weeks. They have me plagued, to try to set up some sort of an AIS (is that what its called) where they can track me online. Is there such a thing? I know that larger commercial shipping use this, and that boats on the blue water rally do too, but im not sure where i would get something like this, and even if i am correct in calling it AIS. I want them to be able to log in on line, and see our position, speed etc. We have a DSC radio and SH chart plotter that is compatible. Can anyone advise? Before my folks die of fright!
Is this even possible without spending a fortune?

 

[AIDY]

Are you talking about Mailasail.com

It's cheaper to send them a text every day or pick up the phone ! if there that worried just log your long passages with the CG and use them as a shore contact.

 

[oldsaltoz]

Mobile phone

 

[Eeyore]

[ QUOTE ]
Is this even possible without spending a fortune?


[/ QUOTE ]

Er.....No!

Your positiion needs to be sent to orbiting satellite, then back to terrestial receiver, plotted onto web based application and then accessed by your worried folks. Cost around £1000 plus £60 month airtime.

Or you could hire a Yellowbrick for around £150 for the week.

 

[MoodySabre]

You could ask OC Technology what they can do.

 

[dukes4monny]

I'm considering one of these Spot messengers, perhaps it will do for what you (or your family) need?

 

[Channel Ribs]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm considering one of these Spot messengers, perhaps it will do for what you (or your family) need?

[/ QUOTE ]

You beat me to it!

They are great, the tracking can be active or passive so you can choose if people follow your progress or if you send a message.

At 130 quid they are the best tracking option available at the moment, I think.

You do need a subscription too, but I think that works out well so long as you plan you use it a few times a year.

There are links on our home page to press releases about real rescues (all on land) that SPOT has been pivotal in.

 

[Channel Ribs]

[ QUOTE ]
No! Your positiion needs to be sent to orbiting satellite, then back to terrestial receiver, plotted onto web based application. Cost around £1000 plus £60 month airtime.


[/ QUOTE ]

Or get the above linked SPOT, cost £130 plus £100 p/a for unlimited tracking and messaging.

 

[Ian_Edwards]

If you buy an AIS B system, sold by Digital Yachts and others, it’s possible to track the boat over the internet using:
http://www.shipais.com/index.php

There may also be other sites that do the same thing. The coverage is not complete, on a yacht it’s limited by the transmitter power and it relies of “volunteer” AIS receivers hooking into the system .... I don’t know the hows and the whys. But it dose work for a good deal of the time, even in the north of Scotland.

This link shows me crossing the Pentland Firth at 10.3 knots (tide assisted) at the end of last month
http://www.aisliverpool.org.uk/historymap.php?map=PentlandFirth&hh=17&mm=0&date=20090429
Lots of debate on the Forum on the utility and advisability of fitting AIS to yachts, but keeping our daughters informed about where we are is one benefit we hadn’t thought of. I had a phone call last week from one of our daughters asking how Colonsay looked on our port bow .... she’d been monitoring our progress over the net!
There’s a kind of sweet revenge, our daughter now worry about where we are and what we doing..... Makes a change from us worrying about what that where up to when they were teenagers!

 

[Eeyore]

[ QUOTE ]
Or get the above linked SPOT, cost £130 plus £100 p/a for unlimited tracking and messaging.

[/ QUOTE ]
Very interesting and much more affordable!

However, that is the duty free price and the link given shows initial purchase price of £199.99. Then there's the £99 annual service charge, plus another £39 for unlimited tracking.

I'm sure some company could come up with a cheaper option given the technology available nowadays.
/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[lenseman]

Before considering SPOT, you have to be warned that it uses the nearly defunct GlobalStar satellite system which is becoming more and more unreliable as time goes on.

I believe the company selling SPOT is using the remaining working circuits and transponders whilst it can, but reports I have read are not encouraging.

http://www.gpsmagazine.com/comments/000419.php#comments

Really, unless you are crossing oceans and away from land for any length of time, a common mobile (cell) phone will do. This is what I have done in the past. You read the GPS off the chart plotter and SMS it to your friends and family. I created a group of five friends and family members to receive the SMS text messages.

Of course, they would need Google Earth so they can plot the co-ordinates. With my 86 year old mother, my younger brother downloaded the position to Google Earth and emailed my mother a copy in JPG format.

I also market a GPS to SMS device but your mobile phone will be the cheapest of all /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Channel Ribs]

[ QUOTE ]
However, that is the duty free price and the link given shows initial purchase price of £199.99. Then there's the £99 annual service charge, plus another £39 for unlimited tracking.

[/ QUOTE ]

If you must pay duty then it comes to £146.63 /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[nimbusgb]

Get a spot from jg technology.

 

[oldsaltoz]

As I said, mobile phone see here

 

[benlui]

LOL very funny!!! Caught me anyway thats for sure. Perhaps I can sent that to the folks and they may be happy!

 

[benlui]

But mobile phones loose coverage when off shore? Has this changed? So what good is it then, its on the offshore passages we require a device. As we will be out of contact for more than 24hours while on passage. It would be great if they did work, and sms would be ideal.

 

[ADLS]

My T Mobile account only lost cover in the mid 5th of the channel, Dunkirk to Ramsgate.

 

[telford_mike]

A Nokia mobile phone running Sportstracker would do the job - provides live tracking via the sportstracker website. The biggest problem with this is battery life on the phone - with GPS turned on the device will only last around half a day on a charge. Should the phone go out of range for a while it will keep tracking and upload the stored track once a GPRS signal is found.

http://sportstracker.nokia.com/nts/main/index.do

 

[geoid96]

[ QUOTE ]
Before considering SPOT, you have to be warned that it uses the nearly defunct GlobalStar satellite system which is becoming more and more unreliable as time goes on.


[/ QUOTE ]

You are correct that GlobalStar has some issues. However these are reported as only effecting duplex voice and data services. The Spot tracking system will only be using the simplex data service and GlobalStar say that is fully operational. They also state that there are 8 spare satellites in orbit and that 2nd generation satellites will start launching later this year.
See: http://www.globalstareurope.com/en/news/update.php