How long do GPS devices last without GPRS coverage? They are designed to operate in real-time. This is a must to be able to see where the car is at any given moment.

What is GPS technology?

The real-time GPS tracking technology requires to have both GPS range and GPRS range. The GPS range is necessary to position the vehicle on the geographical map accurately. The GPRS range is needed to be able to transmit the collected GPS coordinates of the vehicle’s location to the software that displays the information for the user. Well, it’s a bit more complicated than that, as the waypoints first go through a server where they are collected and processed, and then displayed in the user’s software.

How long do GPS devices last without a range?

It’s happening less and less, but there are places without coverage. There are cases where the car leaves the territory of Bulgaria and the SIM card in the device is not roaming enabled. In this scenario, there can be no real-time tracking, but the vehicle movement data will be displayed as soon as the GPS/GPRS device enters an area with GPRS coverage. The subtle point is that if the car has been moving too long without GPRS range, some of the trip data will be lost unless additional memory is provided in the device.

GPS devices working with VEM Technology’s services

The SmartTracker ALM3A GPS/GPRS base unit used for GPS tracking at VEM Technologylasts between 24 and 96 hours. How long it will last depends on the amount of data that is recorded in the GPS/GPRS device. Generally, this is departure data, stops, and peripheral sensor data when monitoring such as fuel, temperature, onboard computer information, and more.

SmartTracker ALM3A with additional memory

The extra memory has a big impact on how long Viasat Technology’s GPS devices last. It’s not so much the amount of memory, but how many hours or days the GPS/GPRS device can last without range. SmartTracker ALM3A GPS/GPRS devices with extended memory can last between 240 and 960 hours without losing route and vehicle movement data.

The application of a GPS/GPRS device with extended memory is most often in international transport or for some companies for which real-time information is not critical, but the route the vehicle was traveling, fuel, or other data while the vehicle was out of GPRS range. Another use case is when the car is moving in a country with very high GPRS communication rates.

This ensures that while the car is out of GPRS range, the movement data will be stored in the GPS/GPRS device memory, and once the car is in range the movement data will be displayed in the user software.

If you have any questions on this topic, take advantage of a free consultation in the contact form or by calling 0700 1 49 49.