mcvickoffroad said:
In order for this to work do both radios have to be APRS cabable? In other words will an APRS radio recieve and position any signal with in the dual band range or does the transmitting radio need to put out a special APRS signal or signature?
What a great tool for Search and Rescue!
Yes, both radios need to have APRS capability in order to encrypt/decrypt the packets, although you do not have to connect the GPS.
You can broadcast text messages as well. here is an example;
I get in the truck and turn on the radio, of which one channel is dedicated to APRS. So initially if my GPS is on, it will broadcast my position. I then see a list of stations that are currently reporting. I can browse the list of stations, and if I recognize someone, I can send them a text message. Their position will also register on my GPS screen.
They receive a notification of the message, and can open it and read it. If they choose to, they can reply via text, or if the message is saying 'I am on x freq' they can move to that frequency.
end example:
In an expedition environment, if all vehicles in the train have APRS, you can track each individual vehicle regardless of visibility conditions. You can split up and know where everybody is.
You are right about the SAR scenario. If you are in trouble out in the field, your position can be broadcast along with a message with your condition/and or state.
It can also be setup on a handheld
It is pretty cool.........there is more info on the web, I will find the link and post it.