Polte Corp. and GeoTraq Inc. announced a collaboration to embed Polte location technologies into two new GeoTraq NB-IoT / LTE-M modules: the Tracker-Module GT-TM100 and Sensor-Module GT-SM100.
Polte’s C-LoC location solution enables GeoTraq to eliminate the need for GPS / GNSS radios by leveraging globally available mobile IoT (NB-IoT and LTE-M) networks.
In addition to providing wide-area outdoor coverage from rural to dense urban, Polte’s location solution enables highly-accurate tracking indoors, even when objects are inside vehicles or in shipping containers. Polte’s cloud-based secure from chip-to-cloud software solution enables unprecedented reach for locating things wherever they are.
GeoTraq’s Tracker-Module GT-TM100 is designed for low-cost asset tracking and other location-based intelligent use cases. The module’s ultra-small 16 x 12 mm form factor allows it to be incorporated into almost any existing or new battery powered machine, tool, or product to provide intelligent insights.
GeoTraq’s Sensor-Module GT-SM100 offers fast, secure and efficient mobile IoT connectivity. The GT-SM100 includes both an eSIM and connectors for easy attachment of antennas, batteries, and a variety of sensors, including temperature, flow, pressure, humidity, motion, acceleration, and more.
The Sensor-Module GT-SM100 operates by transmitting small packets of data for scheduled reports or trigger-based event alerts, which GeoTraq expects will be configured using the GeoTraq’s WebTraq portal and integrated to the customer’s choice of IoT platforms for visualization.
“We see a huge market opportunity for low-cost, battery powered IoT asset trackers across many industry verticals from shipping & transportation to manufacturing to tracking everyday objects. We are at the very beginning of what is possible with Mobile IoT,” said Polte CEO Ed Chao. “Polte’s positioning technologies, together with GeoTraq’s innovative Mobile IoT modules, deliver on the promise of the Internet of Things. The most common everyday objects will now be able to connect at an extremely low cost with very low power.”
“We have been working with Polte for over a year and they have a superior technology for adding location services to our small, low-cost line of mobile IoT modules. We believe that the business world has not fully grasped the changes that are occurring in the tracking industry and the advancements that positioning on the LTE radio channel will provide,” said GeoTraq general manager Pierre Parent. Historical tracking solutions use GPS, which adds $3-$4 in extra component costs and produces a significant drain on the battery life. If your goal is to build a disposable tracking tag for less than $10 to monitor critical materials and packages while they are in the mail, GPS is a non-starter. It’s too bulky, expensive, and probably won’t work indoors. Polte resolves these problems for us, allowing GeoTraq to produce a low-cost module with enhanced location positioning technology.”
