TrackTag™ uses NAVSYS proprietary technology to dramatically reduce on-time for GPS data acquisition. This has a major effect on battery size and lifetime, permitting extremely small package archival GPS tags to be built for applications, such as bird and animal tracking.

• Captures GPS data for download when tag is retrieved.
• Extremely long duration (>2 years).
• Proven performance under tree canopy.
• Different package and GPS antenna options for different scenarios.
• Position record interval programmable from seconds to months.
• Typical capacity 64,000 positions (other options available).
• Unpackaged weight  as low as 13 grams including battery and antenna.
• Optional salt water switch wake-up.
• Optional external analog and digital input connector for additional data logging.

TrackTag technology overview

TrackTag has been designed for extremely low-power, long-duration, standalone position recording of assets. TrackTag is suited for applications including certain animal tracking and surveillance markets.

TrackTag has been designed to overcome the limitations of standard GPS receivers, which cannot be run for long periods of time off small batteries. A conventional GPS receiver, if woken up every hour, will (optimistically) need power for at least 6 seconds to compute a navigation fix. By contrast, TrackTag needs to be powered up for less than 60 milliseconds to acquire enough data for a GPS fix. This power saving is achieved by the use of the NAVSYS patented TIDGET process, whereby the raw GPS data is acquired unprocessed, and the time-consuming and power-hungry GPS signal processing is deferred until the data is retrieved from the TrackTag.

Each TrackTag is programmed to wake up at a user-definable interval (seconds to hours) to take a position fix. At the time of each position fix, an auxiliary data set is also automatically logged. This auxiliary data comprises: tag temperature, an uncommitted analog value (0-3 v), and two uncommitted digital values (an external connector permits the input of these uncommitted signals by the customer). The Tag can also optionally be woken by an external event (for example, a surface-break detector if used for marine mammal tracking).

The following pictures show results from successful TrackTag field trials in the South Atlantic (on albatrosses, although the Tags used were sufficiently small and light to be on much smaller species), and under rain-forest tree canopy in South America (50% of all TrackTag fixes computed a solution, while  with conventional GPS technology collars our customer reports that,  "In most parts of the forest the collar was not able to record any position.").

If the TrackTag is to be deployed in a poor signal environment (i.e., under tree canopy), the larger high-gain assembly should be used. For birds, the streamlined "lozenge" package is more appropriate. The lozenge package is light enough to tag birds as small as pigeons  while maintaining the “4% of animal’s weight rule.” ^[1]

All tags can be equipped with a salt-water switch for a hybrid timed/surface-break snapshot mode if used on diving marine species.

NAVSYS is happy to work with customers on individual packaging requirements and antenna optimization for a particular application.

[1] Bander, R.B. & Cochran, W.W. 1969. Radio Location Telemetry. Giles R.H. (Ed’). Wildlife Management Techniques (3rd Edition) pp 95-103. The Wildlife Society, Washington.

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