São Paulo, Brazil (Business Wire) – Recominte, an aeronautic industry solution provider, and Telit Wireless Solutions, a global vendor of M2M modules, value-added services and solutions, have launched a portable tracking device for locating lost luggage.
Recominte’s solution is said by the developers to be capable of tracking luggage both on the ground and in transit. Telit is an M2M module supplier for the Tracer Tag, a portable tracking device.
The Tracer Tag addresses a growing issue for airlines and their passengers. Last year, according to a report by SITA, the number of mishandled bags per 1,000 passengers was 6.96 – or 21.8 million mishandled bags worldwide in 2013. Delayed and lost luggage cost the industry more than US$2 billion last year alone. Despite several improvements, passengers with at least one connection are the most likely to arrive without their bag. Almost half of all delayed or lost bags come from transfer flights.
Until now, the use of tracking devices to tackle this problem has been tricky due to strict airplane legislation and regulation for electronic and wireless communication devices. Recominte’s solution was designed to address these concerns by automatically shutting itself off when flying and turning itself back on when on the ground. Tracer Tag incorporates the Telit’s GL865-QUAD and JN3 modules to provide its best-in-class tracking solution.
The Telit GL865-QUAD is a GSM/GPRS module that comes with 4 GSM bands for global applications. With its ultra-compact design and extended temperature range, the Telit GL865-QUAD product is the perfect platform for high-volume m2m applications and mobile data devices. Additional features such as integrated TCP/IP protocol stack and serial multiplexer extend functionality of the application at no additional cost. The Telit JN3 is a GPS module that can be easily bundled with other Telit modules to provide a cost-effective, complete tracking solution. The combination of GPS with cellular connectivity supports a solution capable of tracking with maximum sensitivity even in challenging environments like indoors, garages and urban canyons — making it ideal for use inside a bag transported by car, train, bus or plane.
Tracer Tag is small and portable, with a battery life lasting up to 100 hours under good GPS reception conditions. The solution is also extremely robust and passed through nine resistance tests (MIL-STD-810G Standard), proving it can endure vibration, shock, extended temperature range, high humidity and low atmospheric pressure. Tracer Tag can also record any sudden falls and ambient temperature, important factors to determine where a possible damage to the baggage or cargo may have occurred, and essential when sensitive goods are involved such as electronic devices or perishable medicines.
“Telit offers the broadest range of modules on the market today,” said Paulo Schiphorst, CTO of the Tracer Tag project. “Their technology made Tracer Tag possible.”
“The solution provided by Recominte is a fine example of demand meeting ingenuity” According to Ricardo Buranello, Director for Telit Latin America. “Tracer Tag is a game changer and has the potential to achieve global success.”
