A lot of people don’t know what satellites do when it comes to tracking and communication. Some people, for example, believe that cell phones connect with satellites. When you check the website for one of the three major shipping services and get an update, that’s not actually done by satellites either, instead that’s related to things being scanned in and out of locations. Satellite tracking is, instead, what the company itself will do when they need to track the precise progress of something. Satellite tracking can be used for asset tracking. Satellite tracking is different than the other methods because it doesn’t rely on check-ins at given locations or times, but instead on a steady stream of information.
It’s a rather astounding and wonderful fact that our technology has outstripped our ability to easily understand it, at the same time it would serve may people to know the differences between what is, and what isn’t satellite based, because in practical applications the difference between the two actually does matter. The first thing to realize is that satellite systems tend to cost more, but if you think about it, that makes sense. The infrastructure they’re based off of is much more expensive and complex. On the other hand forms of satellite tracking don’t need to rely off of limited range infrastructure, and the data from it is much more continuous. For example cell phones, despite using cell towers for all forms of communication, and the fact that it is possible to find the location of one via the cell towers its using, yet cell phones still have GPS units installed so they can direct you to the proper district when you dial 9-11.
Satellite tracking has the advantage of working almost everywhere. Same is true for satellite phones. There are downsides, as was mentioned satellite tracking is much more expensive a service to run than just checking in at various points. The advantage is that it gives much more complete information, and from more areas. A cell phone doesn’t have a delay like a satellite phone, but it can only work within range of a cell tower, to some people this is unacceptable because their work will take them beyond the reach of cell towers. Satellite services as a general rule are universal. There can be interference with some of them, some people can’t get satellite TV because they live in the woods, but for a lot of things satellite technology is the most reliable option. In short if something doesn’t need to be able to be tracked or reached everywhere cellular technology is fine, it’s based off of land lines and geographically constrained. If you need to be able to reach it anywhere, anytime then satellite is king because it can reach anywhere on earth.
Satellite tracking and vehicle tracking are important tools in the modern business world. RASTRAC knows that and is ready to help provide the asset tracking solutions you need. Whether you want to reduce operating expenses or keep a close watch over assets in transit, RASTRAC can help. They can be found online at http://rastrac.com/ or reached via telephone at 877-680-1188.
