GPS Person Tracking

This guest article, by Greg Bartlet, discusses how GPS tracking can improve the personal safety of your loved ones with certain uses of GPS tracking devices. Read on for more on how these devices can increase personal safety. This article is more family focused, however the same concepts can be used between employers and their employees as well.

by Greg Bartlett / guest author

Are you the parent of a young teenager? Maybe you are a young college student living in a strange new city away from friends and family. Maybe you have a loved one that suffers from Alzheimer’s. Perhaps you enjoy hiking or running alone. If any of these scenarios describes you, you might want to consider investing in a GPS tracking device for your personal safety. Back in the “good old days” children could walk down the street to the corner drugstore, or deliver newspapers, or any number of things and be safe. Students looked forward to the day (and still do) when they achieved independence by beginning their studies in a vibrant college atmosphere.

For older loved ones with difficulties, it was easier for a member of the family to be at home making sure things were safe. In the 21^st century, however, we face new challenges with higher crime rates including abductions, rape, and murder. In 2007, the Bureau of Justice reported 22,879,720 personal and property crimes. Crimes on college campuses have also escalated—recently several stories were featured about rapes related to college campuses.

For families with aging loved ones, it is nearly impossible for members of the family to quit jobs in order to become primary caregivers. In the United States alone, 5.3 people have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Perhaps one of the most frightening stages of Alzheimer’s is when the victim begins to “wander.” There are many statistics of “wanderers” who leave home in all kinds of weather never to be found again. Others are found later in confusion—sometimes after having sustained injuries from exposure. The dangerous part about this symptom is that the individual doesn’t know that they are in trouble and doesn’t seek help.

Anxieties that we face in our lifetimes may be aided by the technology that sometimes overwhelms us. One such device is a GPS tracking system. This technology utilizes just over 24 satellites that orbit outer space. They work in groups of three to determine the latitude and longitude of an individual/vehicle/object on earth that is wearing the receiver. This information can be accessed constantly through downloads to the internet or mobile device (active system). The passive system is more like a record of where the receiver has been. An investment in a GPS tracking system is certainly worth peace of mind and personal safety.