GPS Tracking

Enterprising Shipping Entities Realize the Benefits

Recovering from Theft that Runs in the Millions of Dollars

A change is taking place in the cargo shipping industry.  This change is for the betterment of the business segment and will help keep them profitable for years to come.  The focus of this change comes in the form of GPS Tracking systems that are being implemented world-wide.

Further proof of this change is realized from stories of businesses that provide tracking to those that move freight on a daily basis.  Faced with pressures to reduce cargo theft and improve service these alliances are proving quite formidable in monitoring and following up on the theft of product.

GPS Tracking for Short or Long Runs

These efforts have made GPS Tracking a must-have for cargo transporting whether across the country or from continent to continent.  The main thrust of these systems is the ability to monitor shipments as they traverse the globe in real-time.

Then, the ability to react quickly to attempts to steal the cargo has helped minimize losses while protecting profitability.  Here’s how it works:

GPS Tracking Devices Deployed.  As shipments are prepared for movement from one location to another, they are outfitted with GPS Tracking devices.  These are hidden among the goods and are then activated for real-time tracking. (more…)

The City is Caught in an Awkward Position

Which is More Important: Community Safety or Individual Rights?

Source acquired via 10 News, June 10, 2010, San Diego – Daniel Zetterholm, 51, molested a 14-year-old child during the 1990s. He spent 13 years in prison, and now he is living somewhere in the downtown San Diego area. Police do not know Zetterholm’s location, and this convicted child molester cannot be tracked via GPS due to a legal loophole.

Offender Slips Through the Crack

Zetterholm registered as a transient, which means that police cannot legally track him. According to Lt. Andra Brown (San Diego Police Department), Zetterholm is “…currently not wanted for any crimes, not on parole or on probation, and not subject to any electronic monitoring at this time.” This is frightening news for San Diego residents who could be living next to a child molester – without knowing about it. In the past, child molesters who have been released on parole have committed other crimes, though these criminals are usually monitored. (more…)

Criminal Justice System Benefits From GPS Tracking

Cooperation Means Lower Crime

Source acquired via Sign On San Diego, May 26, 2010, San Diego, California – The California Department of Corrections is looking to crack down on gang violence within the San Diego area. Presently, the department monitors 160 gang members with the help of GPS tracking bracelets. Recently, the Department of Corrections announced that it plans on monitoring 1,000 gang members within the next year. (more…)

GPS Tracking Provides a Method of Staying Connected to Those Who Need It Most

Data Gathered Helpful in Fighting Addictions

Source acquired via CNET, April 22, 2010, Washington, D.C. – National Institute on Drug Abuse researcher David Epstein is now tracking drug users with the help of GPS tracking technology. By tracking various drug users, Epstein hopes to find out whether or not environment has a direct impact upon addiction, and whether or not certain “trigger environments” can be avoided.

While drug addiction is usually seen as a mental disease, Epstein believes that one’s environment may have a lot to do with addiction. After finding 25 willing heroin addicts at a methadone clinic, Epstein and his team of researchers has begun to track each addict using GPS trackers. Prior to equipping each participant with a GPS tracking device, Epstein explained that the “…purpose of the GPS is not to keep an eye on you but to study how neighborhoods affect behavior.”

Even though a recovering addict may attempt to avoid any tempting situation, sometimes certain situations cannot be avoided. If an addict winds up walking through a neighborhood that triggers a mental reaction, the response may be to find a quick fix. These types of scenarios are exactly what Epstein is hoping to uncover patient by patient.

In addition to the small trackers that each participant carries, Epstein also handed out PDAs that beep throughout the day. The PDAs send a series of questions such as: “are you feeling stressed?” to participants on a regular basis. After considering each question, participants then respond to the questions based upon current emotions. By gathering this kind of information, Epstein hopes to find out about the direct impact one’s environment can have on a drug addiction.

A New View of Addicts

If this study proves to be useful, treatment centers all across the globe may begin to treat addicts differently. While addicts are currently treated for the mental illness that is addiction, some addicts may be encouraged to avoid certain environments within the near future. At the moment, the outcome of Epstein’s study is still unknown, though many believe that his research could provide an important breakthrough.

GPS tracking devices can be used in a number of different ways including helping researchers gather vital data. From tracking wildlife to tracking the speed of a moving vehicle, GPS tracking technology provides answers to many fundamental questions. While Epstein’s project is the first of its kind, many different researchers from around the world are currently using GPS technology for a number of unique reasons.

Source acquired via Sky News Online, April 22, 2010, United Kingdom – There’s a new satellite hovering in the sky above the United Kingdom, and this one aims to catch speeding motorists using GPS technology. While tracking a motorist’s speed is nothing new, tracking a motorist for miles is a notion that has England up in arms.

The new device called SpeedSpike has the ability to track motorists on major highways for miles on end. In theory, the device could track a motorist for an entire day. SpeedSpike combines license plate recognition technology with GPS technology in order to track motorists traveling on busy roads.

If a motorist is found violating any kind of traffic law at any point, traffic tickets will be sent to motorists through regular mail. The system is currently being tested throughout Britain – much to the dismay of British residents. Residents argue that traffic violations cannot be clearly seen from space, and attempting to do so is ludicrous. Further, many residents are protesting this new form of GPS tracking by stating that speeding drivers aren’t always repeat traffic offenders.

There are no plans to allow SpeedSpike to replace street patrolling police officers quite yet, but it looks as though this could be the future of traffic control. Allowing a GPS tracker and satellite system to take the place of police officers may give police more time to concentrate on crime. Tracking a motorist for miles is something that no police officer would commit to.

One resident (Dylan Sharpe, Campaign Director of Big Brother Watch) told press that the new SpeedSpike system “will only be used to heap more misery on British drivers, and put more money in the council coffers.” Shape claims that “Britain is already the most watched country in the world,” and he believes that the new SpeedSpike system will only make matters worse.

Presently, billions of photographs of British vehicles are being snapped by the SpeedSpike system. At the time that this article was written, the British government refused to comment on the SpeedSpike system. A spokesperson for the Home Office stated that the government does not “…comment on speed camera trials until the devices are approved.”

While the SpeedSpike system has not been approved quite yet, there is a good possibility that this system may become commonplace throughout Britain. Whether or not this type of GPS tracking technology is over-the-top is debatable, though many British residents are beginning to become a bit nervous about continuous government monitoring from space.

Business and leisure travelers across the U.S. are expressing support for a new regulation approved by the federal government Jan. 26, 2010. Effective immediately, it is illegal for drivers operating commercial trucks and large passenger vans and buses to text while their vehicles are in motion. While many people admit it will be difficult for police to catch disobedient drivers in the act of texting, the mere existence of the law makes many feel our highways will be safer to travel. (more…)

Winnipeg Wants to put GPS Tracking in Trucks; Union is Suspicious

GPS tracking devices have been ordered for all the vehicles in the forestry department in Winnipeg Canada. Meanwhile, the local union is questioning the city’s motives and threatening to walk.

Winnipeg is already using vehicle tracking devices in police cars and street and sanitation trucks. City fathers said the GPS tracking systems help them closely track workers, respond faster to calls, and as a result work more efficiently. The Local 500 Union, however, is not so sure. Some members there think the GPS tracking devices are an excuse to micromanage their department or discipline certain workers for making errors on the job.

The union spokesman said GPS tracking is unfair because it allows supervisors to single out the actions of certain union members. They want to negotiate a GPS tracking policy. If they have to, he said, the union will fight the GPS tracking system and if necessary, go on strike.

“This is a city of 650,000 people,” responded Ed Richardson, a communications representative with the city of Winnipeg.  That’s a big area and our employees have a lot of responsibility. With GPS tracking we can assign the closest vehicle to a particular call at any time.”

The Urban Forestry division’s responsibilities include tree planting, trimming and disease control.
(more…)

Not Track Shoes, But Tracking Shoes

When Dad’s on the move and you’re concerned he might wander too far and get lost, put on his tracking shoes.

Not “track shoes,” of the athletic variety, but “tracking shoes,” of the GPS variety.

A GPS tracking device dealer in Europe has teamed with a shoe manufacturer to make shoes fitted with tracking systems available for Alzheimer’s patients.

It’s not available yet. A prototype is said to be coming by the end of 2009, and assuming the technology is a success, a debut sometime in 2010.

Alzheimer’s a Devastating Disease of Memory

Alzheimer’s disease is considered one of the main forms of dementia, a brain disorder, which gradually robs the sufferer of his abilities to remember, imagine and learn. The disease usually affects those people who are above 60 years of age, but there is also a progressive and rare form of Alzheimer’s disease that strikes people in their early 40s and 50s. Numerous drugs are used to treat symptoms, which include anxiety and depression. But the disease itself is not curable.

Family members who are taking care of loved ones with Alzheimer’s might soon have another tool in their arsenal: a pair of GPS shoes enabled with GPS tracking technology. Will it be a savior or a savings-drainer for those patients suffering from this malady? (more…)

Real-Time Tracking System

Real-time tracking system information aided authorities in the recovery of a stolen backhoe in the Blandford-Blenheim region. The real-time tracking system data was used by local authorities to accurately determine the backhoe’s location and eventual to the arrest of an unidentified man for possession of stolen equipment over $5000.

Bruce Weeger of Ebersole Excavating went online to view his real-time tracking system to check and verify his equipment was in the appropriate location. Weeger installed real-time tracking systems, a form of GPS tracking system technology, as additional security for his expensive construction equipment. When the GPS tracking system showed that the backhoe was missing from Weeger’s property he quickly called authorities and provided him the real-time tracking system data. The real-time tracking system data was then used by authorities to determine the location of the backhoe and led them to the suspected thief’s home. GPS tracking systems have been widely used by companies to monitor vehicles and other assets.

Staff Sergeant Shelton, who was involved in the case, was surprised how easily it was for the authorities to locate the vehicle and suspect thanks to the GPS tracking data provided by the real-time tracking system. The real-time tracking system provided exact longitude and latitude coordinates. When asked about the crime, Shelton expressed how much easier police work would be if all stolen items were equipped with GPS tracking systems.

FRAMINGHAM, MA – Three men are facing long prison sentences after Massachusetts police seized a massive marijuana shipment with the aid of a GPS tracking system.

The drugs were in a 360-pound crate that had been moved about 24 miles, from Framingham to Norwood. Police believe it has a street value of about $700,000.

Charged with marijuana trafficking on August 17 were: Peter Bryson, 24, of Roxbury, Boston; Paul Bryson, 36, of Dorchester, Boston; and Richardson Rhau, 35, of Milton.

Police had suspected a drug deal was pending and had a business on Beaver Street in Framingham under surveillance. Framingham Police and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration got a search warrant and entered the building about 1 a.m. to find a large crate with what appeared to be marijuana in it. The crate was further divided into a dozen bricks of alleged drugs.

With the consent of the Framingham District Court, authorities placed a real-time GPS tracking device – very similar to those used in vehicle tracking – in the crate and repackaged it.

It didn’t take long before GPS tracking indicated the stash was on the move. Later that morning, police returned to the business and found a man driving away, with the crate in tow.

GPS tracking led police to a warehouse on Kerry Place in Norwood. Surveillance officers observed the three men putting boxes in a van on the loading dock. The men fled, but were later arrested.

GPS tracking technology is heavily used by police. Time and again, vehicle tracking has helped police not only find a suspect, but prove exactly where he is or was at any particular time. Some defendants have challenged vehicle tracking in the courts. The legal system has concluded that placing a vehicle tracking device on the outside of a car does not constitute an invasion of privacy. However the courts in different states have different opinions about whether a warrant is needed prior to placing the vehicle tracking device.