Edward Pultar (PhD 2011) is the Founder, President, and Geographic Information Scientist for a company that markets a powerful software platform for collecting geo-located sensor data. But, let Ed speak for himself:
I’ve recently been working with my brother Lorenzo on Valarm, the “Versatile Asset Locator And Remote Monitor.” Valarm was born when Lorenzo woke up one morning to discover his motorcycle had been stolen by professional thieves. Originally, Valarm was conceived as an affordable and accessible theft-prevention and vehicle tracking device which Lorenzo would use himself to protect his replacement bike. Today, Valarm has evolved into a general purpose platform for asset tracking, data acquisition, and remote monitoring.
You can use it to track almost anything via GPS and to monitor almost any environment via sensors. Commercial fleet managers use Valarm as a vehicle or container-tracking device with additional sensor information. Scientists and hobbyists use it as a remote environmental monitor or Data Acquisition platform. Consumer applications include use as a motion-sensing or sound-sensing, GPS-tracking, anti-theft alarm and tracking device, or a powerful property monitor.
Valarm also integrates with externally connected sensor hardware (via USB or Bluetooth) to record environmental and/or mechanical factors including, but not limited to, temperature, lumens, voltage, barometric pressure, humidity, presence of volatile organic compounds or other gases, and the status of vehicle OBDII or OBD2 sensors (on-board diagnostics), including engine efficiency/workload, throttle position, coolant temperature, fuel consumption, and more. The Valarm-equipped Android device can immediately distribute configurable alerts via SMS/text, email, or the web.
The Android platform and the flood of powerful, inexpensive Android devices offer an opportunity for extremely useful, connected monitoring applications. Whether running on phones or tablets, a small, mobile, energy-efficient, and highly compute-capable platform such as Android is a very compelling vehicle for data acquisition and remote monitoring. Connected via 3G/4G or WiFi, Valarm-equipped Android tablets and phones easily create the powerful “sensor-web” long dreamed of by academia and research organizations; manufacturing, food, and chemical storage facilities; farms; and even hobbyists.
Editor’s note: Visit Ed’s website for more information, case studies, and application ideas (and check out the press kit page). Many thanks to Ed for providing this material.
