Cellular add-on board, what would you use it for?
tonyp12
Posts: 1,951
I have been playing around with a Sara-G3 350 GSM/GPRS module.
It got a lot of features, like TCP and CellLocate location based on cellular network
I was thinking of making a Quikstart add-on board for it, it will have micro sim card socket so you can add your own sim
As the module alone cost $100, the board probably will be ~$150
I got a free sim card from T-Mobile and is using their unlimited 2G for $2 a day.
They have a $100 prepaid card that last 1year, so if you only connected once a week
and even if you dumped huge amount of data that day it will last you 50 weeks.
Beside a GPS tracker that call home with data, what else would you use it for?
A remote cabin in the woods?
It got a lot of features, like TCP and CellLocate location based on cellular network
I was thinking of making a Quikstart add-on board for it, it will have micro sim card socket so you can add your own sim
As the module alone cost $100, the board probably will be ~$150
I got a free sim card from T-Mobile and is using their unlimited 2G for $2 a day.
They have a $100 prepaid card that last 1year, so if you only connected once a week
and even if you dumped huge amount of data that day it will last you 50 weeks.
Beside a GPS tracker that call home with data, what else would you use it for?
A remote cabin in the woods?
Comments
Home security? I wouldn't rely on a wired system as all the intruder would need to do is chop the cable.
Regards,
Mickster
Cell coverage goes up 10,000 feet in height, you could send data or receive new destination instructions etc.
If you had a camera on board you could send video, though that probably will be best with 4G
Ublox are coming out with a 4G LTE version too, but with usb2.0 interface only.
It would be great to have one of those ready to plug into a QuickStart. Lots of possible uses. I completely agree with Mickster's security application.
Have you seen Tubular's Telit project? It looks like it's limited to 2G.
They are cheap, but data connection is very unstable. I settled with sms. They are easy, reliable, work even with marginal connection and have not issues in roaming.
Localization with gps or cell id and ericsson lab server query.
Massimo
I am also working on a project with the SIM900. It will use SMS as the function to
Generate text messages during power failures, temperature extremes or motion detection.
I was about to start converting the Arduino code that I found on the wiki (http://www.geeetech.com/wiki/index.php/Arduino_GPRS_Shield)
to spin. If you have done this already, please share an example of your code. This would save me many
hours of trial and error testing.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Larry
I'll post in another thread right now my work in progress.
Massimo
I've been keeping away from these primarily due to cost. Anything not on the main project line has to be budgeted $0.
But, the main project may soon include a long distance laser range finder, similar to the DS00 from a couple years back. Since that sensor cost is over $350, an expensive communication module could be appropriate. The communication subsystem would wait until after the sensor work is complete.