When suspicions arise about the movement of any person or vehicle, a GPS tracker (above) can help you know the truth

Remember the scene from The Da Vinci Code when cryptologist Sophie Neveu warns symbologist Robert Langdon that he was bugged with a tracking device and that he must get rid of it for his own good? Langdon places it in a bar of soap and throws it through the window of the men’s washroom on a passing truck. The French police assume Langdon has escaped and begin chasing the truck.

The tracking device is now a reality in India and closer home in Calcutta. Better known as a Global Positioning System (GPS) personal tracker, this portable device has been made available by Riverplate International, a Calcutta-based Internet consultancy and system integration company.

The device is an advancement on the previous GPS-based vehicle tracking device which has to be fixed with several wires in a vehicle whose movements are to be tracked. Light and sleek, it resembles a cellphone. “Our services will add a new dimension to the visibility of mobile assets with the aid of modern technologies,” says Partha S. Sadhukhan, CEO of Riverplate International. “Unlike in the past, it can now be carried by an individual whose movements may be tracked on the computer screen.”

Reasonably priced at Rs 14,000, another USP is that the tracking application integrates well with Google Map and Google Earth data. “So one can track an object or a person at different zoom levels right up to the building level in many cities in India,” says Sadhukhan whose website www.gpsonroad.net has already received over 10,000 hits in a span of just a few weeks.

The GPS already has its uses in India. While it hasn’t as yet caught the fancy of the police, banks or even car rental services, there are a few sectors trying to tap its potential. Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation has been one of the first local administration bodies to try out the revolutionary technique in India to track its garbage collection trucks. In the process, it has reaped clean rewards.

Nearly 30 trucks are fitted with GPS receivers. Truck drivers have been given pre-determined routes with each truck having several garbage pickup points. “We download the data from the onboard GPS every fortnight to check whether trucks have actually visited all points. The technique has helped improve garbage collection in the city,” says Kothandaraman Saravana Kumar, the engineer in charge of the project. This system has helped the municipal corporation to manage the vehicles better and save on fuel.

Six months back, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), too, installed GPS on 229 of its 250 water tankers. The sophisticated system has helped its authorities nab a few of its errant drivers who have been diverting water to ice factories instead of delivering it to the needy living in water-scarce residential colonies. “At any given point, we now know how many of our tankers are standing idle, or if they are being used properly. We have already initiated action against six tanker drivers who were indulging in foul play,” says Arun Mathur, chief executive officer, DJB.

But now with the introduction of the GPS personal tracker, the task is likely to get simpler. All it needs is for it to be placed in the truck, no strings attached, literally. With a simple Internet connection and a web browser such us Internet Explorer, the results of the tracking and movements can be viewed and replayed. “One can even define Geo fences to get instant alerts on the movement of vehicles into or out of some specified areas,” stresses Sadhukhan.

So at the click of a mouse, a user can view the live location of one or all his/her vehicles, including their current speeds, odometer readings and travel status (i.e. stopped, idling or driving). For a view of any previous journey undertaken by a vehicle, the history section displays travel between any two dates, detailing the start and end locations as well as speeds travelled along the way. The same applies to an individual carrying the tracker.

“The best part is that the web-based interface is customisable by the user who can select his/her time zone, as well as his/her preference for kilometres or miles,” says Ellora Sadhukhan who is actively involved with the project. “The GPS position data and other details reach the server over a GPRS connection,” she elaborates. “Mobile phone operators have started rolling out customised data plans, primarily meant for vehicle tracking services.”

But like all technological inventions, this personal tracker comes with a flaw. That was what resulted in Langdon faking his escape — by simply throwing the device on a passing truck. Since it is portable, it can also lead you on a wild goose chase.