- #1
Thomas Lyons
- 9
- 0
I'm not sure I'm posting in the right category or even on the right forum but I need some guidance on building a simple signaling device.
I want to make or buy a device that when installed on a piece of rental equipment a person can push a button and it sends a signal back to my office and integrates with my Google map program and tells me that the equipment needs service or picked up depending on which button is pushed.
Is this an Electrical Engineering problem or a Computer Programming question or maybe a little of both? I am thinking I would need it to run on a small efficient battery and have some sort of cellular communications back home. The problem is the scope is quite grand I would need to communicate with a minimum of 1000 locations up to a potential of 100,000 plus.
My main questions are; Who would one go to for that many devices? Would you get a Verizon plan with 100,000 users? I'm thinking a better way is possible. Do you need to make your own device and apply for a mac address for each device? The area covered would be the entire US. Once the signal is received I think a good programmer could make that location light up on a map as long as it has the device tied to a specific site which could easily happen. I would want the dot on the map to turn red for service and green for pickup depending on which button was pushed.
I think a simple membrane switch and overlay tied to a cellular device like an alarm company uses may be what would work. The issue is that I need the whole thing to be self contained. I will have no power on a location, The good thing is I do not need power till activated and then stay awake just long enough to generate a signal so battery life should be easily maintained. I'm thinking life alert type device except I don't need the GPS locator if I tie a mac to a physical address on my end.
Any help would be greatly appreciated or just someone to point me in the right direction would be nice.
I want to make or buy a device that when installed on a piece of rental equipment a person can push a button and it sends a signal back to my office and integrates with my Google map program and tells me that the equipment needs service or picked up depending on which button is pushed.
Is this an Electrical Engineering problem or a Computer Programming question or maybe a little of both? I am thinking I would need it to run on a small efficient battery and have some sort of cellular communications back home. The problem is the scope is quite grand I would need to communicate with a minimum of 1000 locations up to a potential of 100,000 plus.
My main questions are; Who would one go to for that many devices? Would you get a Verizon plan with 100,000 users? I'm thinking a better way is possible. Do you need to make your own device and apply for a mac address for each device? The area covered would be the entire US. Once the signal is received I think a good programmer could make that location light up on a map as long as it has the device tied to a specific site which could easily happen. I would want the dot on the map to turn red for service and green for pickup depending on which button was pushed.
I think a simple membrane switch and overlay tied to a cellular device like an alarm company uses may be what would work. The issue is that I need the whole thing to be self contained. I will have no power on a location, The good thing is I do not need power till activated and then stay awake just long enough to generate a signal so battery life should be easily maintained. I'm thinking life alert type device except I don't need the GPS locator if I tie a mac to a physical address on my end.
Any help would be greatly appreciated or just someone to point me in the right direction would be nice.
Last edited by a moderator: