Nifty location tracker... adaptable to rocketry?

I know nothing more than having just looked at this Indiegogo page: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/lynq-location-tracking-even-when-cell-phones-fail-family-kids#/

Seems neat, claims range of 3 miles. I wonder if it's adaptable to rocketry...

It does look really interesting. Doesn't say the size or weight, but looks doubtful for small and mid-power.

I would love something that simple and intuitive to use, and does not require cellular fees.

Wonder how it would react to high-G's or mach+ speeds?

Mr Rocket said:

It does look really interesting. Doesn't say the size or weight, but looks doubtful for small and mid-power.

I would love something that simple and intuitive to use, and does not require cellular fees.

Wonder how it would react to high-G's or mach+ speeds?

Click to expand...

+1. I was coming here to say the same things you did. I can, however, offer dimensions and weights. If you scroll down far enough it has this info:

Dimensions: 4"x2"x1
Weight: 73g
Max range: 3 miles
GPS Accuracy: Typically 12 to 15 feet
Accuracy of directional indicator: 5 degrees.

It's a bit big, but it's designed to be handheld. It looks like it would fit into a 2.6" diameter airframe.

It doesn't say what happens if signal is lost.

It does note "WEATHERPROOF, WATERPROOF, MILITARY-TESTED DURABILITY" although it doesn't explain what that means or give shock ratings. I'm thinking of getting one since I can also use it with my family.

With all the tracking options out there designed by rocketry folks, I'd save the money and buy from them. Adopting existing stuff is a hack and will always be that. I have a variety
of high powered Byonics APRS trackers I was going to modify and see how far away I could ping and "get my position" out there. After passively tracking high altitude balloons
all over the Midwest I got that desire out of my system. There was a digipeater in my town 1400 feet away from me with an antenna 100 feet up so effectively my home station
was using that antenna to listen in on positions. Longest was from a balloon 425 miles away.

A guy in Iowa with the Nixhab moniker (flew rockets too) stuck a Kenwood D7A(g) up in a balloon and I knew danged well that H/T can do APRS messaging. Sure enough I fired off
a bunch of APRS text messages to the balloon and after recovery, they were able to read them. A couple of weeks later I get an envelope with a CD of all the pictures taken
and a stamped metal tag commemorating the flight. (Looked up my address from the callsign) Kurt

I backed the project and received a pair of LYNQs last week. I tested them on a golf course and later gave one to my son and turned him loose trick or treating. They work as advertised.

So I took them out to the desert and launched one in my Drago XL today on an M1315. It pulled 15 G's to Mach 1.3, apogee at 15,100 feet (or 16,300 feet depending on if you believe the altimeters or the T3 GPS). I clipped the LYNQ to the harness, wrapped it in nomex and put a few wraps of electrical tape around it. It survived the flight and took me to where the rocket landed 3/4 of a mile away.

Interesting, uses a combination of the 900MHz ISM band and GPS. I wonder what the effective range would be if it landed in a depression in tall grass, a cornfield, thick brush, cattails, etc. (all hazards where I fly).

dpower said:

Interesting, uses a combination of the 900MHz ISM band and GPS. I wonder what the effective range would be if it landed in a depression in tall grass, a cornfield, thick brush, cattails, etc. (all hazards where I fly).

Click to expand...

Good question. I haven't tested it past 3/4 of a mile yet. I did put one into standby mode to see what happens if you lose signal. It still showed direction and distance, and the display showed "last known position". Once I reactivated the other, it updated again. So in that respect it acts like the T3 and eggfinders I've used.

Probably worth pointing out, these things are bulky and weigh a lot more than the GPS transmitters available from rocket vendors like Missileworks and Eggfinder.

It'll fit in a 2.6" body tube, but it takes up a lot of it. And if you're measuring ounces to stay as light as possible, this is the wrong tool. In something like a 4" rocket being brute-forced up on an M, there's room in the rocket and the weight won't matter so much.

It's yet another option that, based on one flight, can be used in rocketry. I like it because of its simplicity. And the battery lasts more than 8 hours.

My primary tracker in the rocket was a T3 in the nose. Using it with Rocket Track (similarly using a Eggfinder with bluetooth) allows me to see where over the field my rocket is, track altitude real time, etc. These also let me know if the drogue is out, the main is out, etc based on descent rates from the altitude readings.

The LYNQ doesn't show vertical distance. Only two dimensional. But it is super simple and accurate showing where the rocket is in a horizontal direction.