[dan000892]

I have this same need and am preparing an evaluation of Meshtastic in the field this month.

I'm part of a volunteer EMS division within a paid fire department and we staff foot teams and medical carts at large events at our 90,888-capacity stadium (football, concerts, etc; well over 100k including tailgaters at our biggest game of the year) and music festivals with 10-40k attendees on the adjacent golf course.

While we have fancy Motorola APX 8000XE, our on-site dispatch wholly lacks visibility into unit locations and the abysmal cell service precludes software solutions leveraging mobile phones.

[jonah]

Doesn't Motorola have location tracking systems which integrate or add-on to their radio systems? I know we used to have this on some of our VHF radios.

You could also look at using APRS for location tracking...

Edit: Also - you should be able to set up your phones with priority network access on FirstNet, right?

[dan000892]

>Doesn't Motorola have location tracking systems which integrate or add-on to their radio systems?

Yes, the APX8000 has support for location tracking but we decided it'd be inappropriate to request anything of the regional communications center since they have their hands full with far more meaningful improvements to the 12 cities (40-odd fire stations) they support. Also, while I see value in tracking unit locations at our music festival events in particular, it falls well short of necessary.

>You could also look at using APRS for location tracking...

APRS would require we all have technician licenses and suitably equipped 2M radios. While a few of us are hams, it's not feasible to request dozens of volunteer EMTs go through that. Also APRS tracker hardware is at least twice as expensive as LilyGo's LoRa options ($55 for a T-Echo or $65-85 for a T-Beam w/case and battery vs $115 for the cheapest APRS tracker I've found--QRP Labs' LightAPRS [1]--not including designing a case and power delivery).

>Also - you should be able to set up your phones with priority network access on FirstNet, right?

We are indeed eligible for wireless priority services on our personal phones. AT&T FirstNet includes data priority but the couple members who got it didn't see an improvement. Verizon Frontline offers data priority but no one's opted in yet and T-Mobile only offers voice priority so low confidence in its viability.

Fundamentally, Meshtastic's attractiveness is not only in its low hardware cost but the lack of friction in not requiring anything of anyone beyond "hey, clip this thing on your bag, thanks."

[1] http://qrp-labs.com/lightaprs

[jonah]

> APRS would require we all have technician licenses

If you were using the "normal" APRS frequency, but if you set up your own iGate, you could run it in the public safety band, couldn't you? (If you had a frequency licensed and coordinated of course.)

Alternately, you could get a business band license and run it there. In that case, each individual doesn't need a license, just an org.

[dan000892]

Sure, I could coordinate or license a frequency and build or acquire radios to use APRS but why? It requires greater effort, risk, and expense for the same result as the off-the-shelf solution.