LynQ’s network-free location tracker featuring u blox M8 GNSS receiver goes into pre-sale

u-blox (SIX:UBXN), a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies, announced their collaboration with USA-based LynQ on a tracking device that lets groups of users locate each other. LynQ, which surpassed its fundraising target on the Indiegogo crowdfunding platform, raising over US$ 1.5million, is now on pre-sale. Featured in the device is the u-blox CAM-M8Q GNSS receiver. It is a GPS/GLONASS/BeiDou positioning module with an embedded antenna. With its slim size of 9.6 x 14 x 1.95 mm, it is easy to integrate it into handheld devices.

LynQ’s crowdfunding success shows the extent to which the company’s founders uncovered an unmet demand on the market. While smartphone-based solutions to locate friends and family, for instance in a crowd, abound, they are limited by the availability of mobile network reception. The location tracker developed by LynQ gets by without cellphones, networks, apps, or monthly fees. By simply syncing up the devices before heading out, group members can find each other within an up to five-mile radius and link up again.

The first generation of the weather-proof tracker uses long-range, low power radio frequencies to connect devices. Up to 12 people can join a group, split up, and use the only button on the clip-on device to toggle through the group members and find out in which direction and how far away each one is. LynQ’s location tracker helps friends regroup outdoors or at crowded events, parents keep an eye on their children, and caregivers watch over the safety of people with special needs, elderly family members, or loved ones suffering from diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

Dependability is central to the LynQ’s location tracker, which has been field-tested on numerous continents and in most topographies and use cases. “We found the u‑blox CAM-M8Q to be the best solution for us to achieve the requirements our use cases demand,” says Drew Lauter, Chief Operating Officer at LynQ. “We’re extremely price sensitive, yet we need a highly dependable GPS module. u‑blox worked closely with us to deliver that.”

For u‑blox, accompanying LynQ in the development of its product has been an exciting adventure, says Suresh Ram, President of u-blox America. “We’re thrilled to see how well their idea has been received by the public and look forward to our continued collaboration in the future.”