SPOT (satellite communication)
SPOT is a commercial, satellite-based emergency radio beacon used to transmit simple data sets and position data via communication satellites . The system is offered by the US company SPOT Cooperation from Virginia . It is a subsidiary of the satellite operator Globalstar .
power
The SPOT Connect satellite transceiver is connected to a smartphone with an Android operating system ( apps from Android 2.0) via Bluetooth . The system then transmits SMS , GPS coordinates, Twitter and Facebook data and emails via satellite . An emergency call with position data can be made using an emergency button : SPOT Connect then sends an emergency signal with the GPS coordinates to the GEOS International Emergency Response Coordination Center (IERCC), which in turn alerts the responsible rescue services worldwide.
With the " Check-In " function, a message can be sent with the GPS coordinates. The " Tracking " function enables contacts to follow the user's journey on Google Maps .
Device types
In the meantime, three different generations of the device have appeared, all of which are still available in stores:
- SPOT Personal Tracker
- SPOT X satellite GPS messenger
- SPOT GEN3
Technology and degree of coverage
The coverage area of the system, which uses a commercial satellite system (such as that used for satellite telephony), covers the entire land area of the world with the exception of northern parts of Russia and southern Africa.
SPOT Connect uses the Globalstar satellite network .
literature
- Uli Straßer: Sicherheit: SPOT on fire , in: DHV-Info , No. 184 (November / December 2013), pp. 48–51.