GPS Tracking

How GPS Devices Could Keep Your Child Safe

Most people are fairly well schooled on how GPS tracking systems are used at the business and consumer levels. From the business perspective, companies involved in manufacturing, distribution, construction or essentially any field can use both real-time tracking devices or data loggers for fleet vehicle management, mileage summation or checking up on a potential slacking worker. From the consumer prospective, spouses with the hunch their partner may be involved in an affair, family members with an aging and forgetful parent or parents of young drivers can use live tracking units or passive GPS trackers to help improve safety or validate concerns.

What many people are unaware of is that their is growing market in the area of child tracking systems, meaning GPS trackers designed specifically for the protection of children. (more…)

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CHENNAI, INDIA:  Children’s safety is always on their parents’ minds, especially with the increase in news reports of poor school bus drivers getting into accidents.  With many parents now aware of new technologies to improve their children’s safety, they are increasingly turning to GPS tracking systems for a solution.

At least 20 schools in Chennai, India, have shown interest in the GPS tracking devices to be set upon buses.  Local road transport authorities have also begun talks of obtaining GPS tracking technology.

The GPS tracking system will offer valuable information such as time of arrival of their children, emergency alerts and real-time vehicle tracking via the internet.

Software professional Annapoorna Srikanth declares, “It is a welcome step as my child studies at a school on the outskirts.  An SMS that he has reached the school or has boarded the bus is a huge relief for me.”  GPS tracking systems will help reduce parents’ concerns and alleviate fears regarding the whereabouts of their children.

In order to gain this peace of mind, many parents say that they would not mind spending a nominal amount periodically.  “An SMS alert when the school bus is in the vicinity of my apartment is extremely useful.  The fact that somebody is monitoring my child’s bus is definitely worth the money I am spending,” parent Jennifer Williams said.  LandAirSea Systems is a manufacturer that provides GPS tracking technology appropriate for tracking vehicles such as school buses.

GPS tracking devices that continuously send signals to the integrated central server are installed in the buses. For example, the GPS tracking units manufactured by LandAirSea Systems are able to track within 3 second intervals between data points.  The movement data of school buses that is generated is then converted into SMS alerts, which are sent out to school authorities and parents.  Thus, the system allows school authorities to track their school buses, as well as the drivers.  In addition, the GPS units also send out alerts due to speeding violations and route violations to school authorities.

Source:  The Times of India

In Beijing, China, the Chinese Red Cross is handing out GPS tracking units to young children as a preventive measure against kidnappings.

The official news agency of the Chinese government, Xinhua, has announced that 20,000 GPS tracking devices will be distributed throughout the city to elementary and middle school students; however, by the end of 2011, the goal of the Red Cross is to give out a total of 100,000 of these units. With the help of these GPS tracking units, parents and guardians can better monitor the location of their children throughout the day. The unit is even able to notify parents if their child is too close to certain dangerous locations, such as construction sites or major/busy streets. The GPS tracking devices are designed to be worn as a large wristwatch, sized especially for children. In addition, the GPS tracking watches also function as a limited cell phone, able to dial out to four different numbers and receive calls from twenty numbers. An emergency button is another feature of the GPS tracking device, which sets off an alarm if the child triggers it.

Chinese parents can rest assured that these new toys will not interfere with their children’s studies – the GPS tracking devices do not have the capability to allow game playing or communication through message. In addition, they have been programmed to go into sleep mode during normal school hours.

The Red Cross states that the GPS tracking devices are being provided in order to help prevent violence and kidnappings against Chinese children. In China, the number of children being kidnapped is steadily increasing. The Chinese Red Cross asserts that over 200,000 school children are listed as missing in the country every year, but recent figures show that last year, the number increased dramatically to an all time high of 600,000 missing children. Some speculate that the astonishingly high number of kidnappings may in part be due to the nation’s one child policy, which was established in 1979 after a massive population boom following the death of controversial Communist leader Mao Zedong. Since sons are highly prized over daughters, the need to have an heir to the family name may have contributed to a large number of these kidnappings. Many young Chinese boys are kidnapped and later sold to wealthy families that do not have an heir.

The Chinese Red Cross has distributed these GPS tracking units without charge; however, parents will be responsible for payments of service charges. Estimated at 400 yuan per year, or about $60 U.S.D., this policy has garnered criticism as unaffordable for most Chinese families.

Distracted Driving in Focus

New Laws Target All Distracted Driving Incidents

Source acquired via CTV, May 6, 2010, Edmonton, Alberta – Alberta has just made Bill 16 official, and drivers throughout the province are taking notice. Bill 16 prohibits driving distractions of any kind including personal grooming, reading, writing, and texting. The message that the Transportation Minister is giving Albertans is clear: “when you’re in your vehicle, your focus must be on driving.”

While this is one of the most stringent anti-distraction laws out there, Alberta isn’t the only province considering anti-distraction laws. In fact, many of the states within the United States are currently trying to find ways to prevent drivers from texting while driving – a dangerous habit that costs many drivers their lives. Throughout the world, texting while driving has become a major issue. (more…)

Another Tracking Win

GPS Enabled Cell Phones Notch Another Success Story

Source acquired via Vancouver Sun, May 6, 2010, Lake County, Florida – 11-year-old Nadia Bloom disappeared from her home last week. Nadia spent four days away from home before a rescue worker found her with help from her GPS-enabled cell phone. She was discovered in an alligator-infested swamp in Central Florida. (more…)

Source acquired from Edmonton Journal – May 2, 2010:  Parents of autistic children can finally breathe a sigh of relief.  The Autism Society of Edmonton Area, after consultation with local authorities, lent out three GPS trackers to families with autistic children, prone to wandering off without notice.  The Autism Society, a charitable organization devoted to help families and communities work with autism, offers the trackers free of charge.

The Autism Society is testing out new methods of keeping autistic children safe.  Off by themselves, autistic children can unknowingly put themselves in extremely dangerous situations.  Just a few weeks ago, Nadia Bloom, an 11 year old with Asperger’s went missing in the swamps near Winter Springs, Florida, an area highly infested with alligators.  According to her father, she had gone bike riding and stopped to take some pictures in the woods.  Search teams located Nadia unhurt, after almost four days alone in the wilderness.  (more…)

Technology Used for Nefarious Purposes

Children and Teens are Most Vulnerable

Source acquired via BC Local News, May 5, 2010, British Columbia, Canada – Last week, a 54-year-old Vancouver man was arrested on charges of sexual toughing, sexual assault, and sexual interference of a 15-year old. This week, the man in question will face a Vancouver court. The man allegedly contacted the teenage boy through a social networking application, and tracked the boy using a GPS-equipped cell phone.

Recently, 54-year-old Mark G. Woodland of Phoenix, Arizona, was found stabbed and beaten to death on the floor of his apartment. Woodland’s roommate told police that Woodland met a date using a social network application. When the murder was first reported, the application name was divulged. Today, Phoenix police have asked that the application be referred only as “an unknown social network.” (more…)

News stories about young children who have gone missing have a way of making parents uneasy. The world is not as safe a place as we once believed it to be.

To avoid this harrowing situation, perhaps we need to put up a stronger line of defense. What kind of Global Positions System (GPS tracking) device is portable, reliable and will help find your loved one if he/she is lost or kidnapped? Many are being advertised through electronics retailers and on the Internet, especially designed as a child tracking system. All have their limitations and they must be judged on their own merits.

From First Mobility, Children Love to Explore, Discover

The fact cannot be denied that once a child begins to crawl, his or her urge to explore becomes more intense. This curiosity makes them more vulnerable towards unexpected dangers: a sexual predator might take them, they could be targeted for ransom purposes, or they might simply get lost on their own. It is said that every 40 seconds, a child is abducted in the United States.

Needless to say, these alarming facts concern parents and make them afraid to let their children out of their sight. With every passing day, it becomes more difficult to keep track of a child’s activities. Yet it is the parents’ responsibility to ensure the safety of their children. (more…)