Re: [OT] a radar-like tracking device

["B. Alexander" <storm16@gmail.com>]

You should have a listen to episode 9 of Hack Radio Live (http://hackradiolive.org/), where they talked about DIY radar. It actually sounds like it wouldn't be insanely expensive to build your own radar set...Obviously, it wouldn't be military grade, but you could conceivably do it on a shoestring.

The episode is located at http://hackradiolive.org/show.php?show=9

--b

On Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 11:34 AM, Zhang Weiwu <zhangweiwu@realss.com> wrote:

Being off-topic I don't know which place better to ask such question.

I want to have a radar-like device to track moving object. It should offer me two piece of information: the angel and the distance of the object from me. I want to have the similar thing as the radar of "Conter-Strike" (in game it displays locations of all friendly team members) or the "Motion Detector" as in Halo (in game it displays moving objects near-by).

Given the technology available nowadays it's hard to believe such device not existing for consumers, but not knowing the name of such device it's hard for me to Google it out. Most google search lands in GPS tracking devices that offer me a lot of features I don't need. I don't need to see the object on a map, google map or anything, not need to know it's latitude/longitude, and I don't need to see the location on PC, mobile phone and color hand-held display with map on it. I particularly don't need it to work in global scale of 510GigaSquareMeter (surface of the earth), 300 meter coverage would do.

So if any one came across such a device can you give me a hint?

• It should come in pair, one stick/bind on the thing to be tracked, the other have a radar screen to find its partner. It is not even necessary have a radar screen, a wrist-watch-like or compass-like mechanical pointer thing would do.
• If it works outdoor it's enough. No need to use indoor.
• If it can find the 'partner' in 150 meters it's good enough. 300 meter even better. Longer not needed.
  
• Both are movable, not fixed on the wall.
• The information it provides should be close to real-time, update once per 15 seconds would be enough.
  

Thanks in advance for suggestions and tolerance of off-topic posts.

P.S.

I also went to local supermarkets, and the things they sell are all GPS devices, usually around 100USD (not cheap in China). Yet the feature list on such devices are everything I don't need. Even worse most of the devices need me to do the math or use a map to calculate the angel between me and the object being tracked, as they are designed heavily map-oriented.