Abstract
This project is about the Design and Construction of a Vehicle Tracking and
Accident Alert System (VTAA) using GPS and GSM Technology. It comprises of
integration between GPS receiver, microcontroller and GSM module, and of
course the push button for accident alert activation. The combination of all this
technology will produce our VTAA system. The GPS module receive the
coordinate of the point at which the system is located, controlled by the user using
command interfaces through GSM module as a transmitter and receiver of data.
This project is of two basic parts, the hardware and the software development. The
hardware development includes the GPS, Push button and the microcontroller
wiring connection, and its integration with GSM module. The software
development includes the programming of the microcontroller (ATMEGA 8) with
the source code, GSM message command, the NMEA protocol command and
Google map API achievement. This system is controlled by users with centralized
1.0 Introduction to a Tracking System
The vehicle tracking system is a total security and fleet management solution. It is the
technology used to determine the location of a vehicle using different methods like GPS and
other navigation system operating via satellite and ground based stations. Modern vehicle
tracking system uses GPS technology to monitor and locate our vehicle anywhere on earth, but
sometimes different types of automatic vehicle location technology are also used. The vehicle
tracking system is fitted inside the car that provides location and the data can even be stored and
downloaded to a computer which can be used for analysis in future. This system is an essential
device for tracking car any time the owner wants to monitor it and today it is extremely popular
among people having expensive cars, used as theft prevention and recovery of the stolen car. The
data collected can be viewed via SMS [receiving the position coordinate} or on electronic maps
via internet and software.
However, the high demand of vehicles has also increased the traffic hazards and the road
accidents. Life of the people is under high risk. This is because of the lack of best emergency
facilities available in our country. An automatic alert system for vehicle accidents is introduced
in this project. This system which can detect accidents in significantly less time and sends the
basic information to a defined contact (say next of kin and emergency dispatch Centre) within a
few seconds covering geographical coordinates, the time and angle in which a vehicle accident
had occurred. This alert message is sent to the central emergency dispatch server in a short time
so that the emergency dispatch server will inform the ambulances which are near to that location,
which will help in saving the valuable lives.
When the accident occurs the alert message is sent automatically to the central emergency
dispatch server. The message is sent through the GSM module and the location of the accident is
detected with the help of the GPS module. The accident can be detected precisely with the help
of vibration sensor. This application provides the optimum solution to poor emergency facilities
provided to the road accidents in the most feasible way.
The project, “Vehicle Tracking and Accident Alert System using GPS and GSM Technology” is
designed and developed to accommodate the needs of today’s vehicle fleet company to keep
track on their fleets. It is a very useful and versatile device, and in fact it is able to be used by
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anybody with the need to keep track on their valuable goods, increase safety and not just by the
vehicle fleets company. This chapter will be covering the general background of this project, its
concept, objectives, scope and the problem statement.
A GPS-GPRS based tracking system gives all the specifications about the location of a vehicle.
The system utilizes geographic position and time information from the Global Positioning
Satellites in order to track the movement of the vehicle. Google Maps is used for mapping the
location. The GSM modem fetches the GPS location and sends it to the server using GPRS. The
device includes modern hardware and software components that help to track and locate
automobiles both online and offline. A tracking system comprises mainly three parts- vehicle
unit, fixed based station and database with software system (ASHUTOSH et al, 2014)
The integration of GPS and GSM was first established using SMS as a method of transmitting
GPS coordinates. The inclusion of GPRS technology to transmit location coordinates to a remote
server facilitates the tracking of object remotely using any computer connected to the web.
A GPS tracking unit is a device that uses the Global Positioning System to determine the precise
location of a vehicle or other asset to which it is attached. A GPS receiver is operated by a user
on Earth, it measures the time taken by radio signals to travel from four or more satellites to its
location, it then calculates its distance from each satellite, and from this calculation it determines
the longitude, latitude, and altitude of that position. By following triangulation or trilateration
methods the tracking system determines the location of the vehicle easily and accurately
(ASHUTOSH et al, 2014). Trilateration is a method of determining the relative positions of
objects using the geometry of triangles. To “triangulate,” a GPS receiver accurately measures the
time taken by the satellite to make its brief journey to Earth(less than a tenth of a second) and
hence measures its distance from the satellite using the travel time of the radio signal. To
determine the distance between it and the satellite, the measured time is multiplied by the speed
of a radio wave that is 300,000 km (186,000 miles) per second (ASHUTOSH et al, 2014). The
coordinates of latitude and longitude can be sent to the user on request via SMS, or it may be
transmitted and stored in the database, using a cellular or satellite modem that is the GSM
modem embedded in the unit. This enables the user to display the asset’s location on the Google
map either in real time or later whenever the user wants the data for further analysis.
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1.1 Background of the Project
A vehicle tracking and Accident Alert system consists of an electronic device installed on a
vehicle so that it could be tracked by its owner or a third-party for its position. Most of today’s
vehicle tracking system uses Global Positioning System (GPS) to get an accurate reading of the
vehicle position. Communication components such as cellular (GSM) and satellite transmitter
will be combined to transmit the vehicle’s position to remote user. Vehicle’s information can be
viewed by using software on a computer. Vehicle tracking systems are commonly used by fleet
operators for fleet management functions such as routing, dispatch, on-board information and
security.
Other applications include monitoring driving behavior, such as an employer of an employee, or
a parent with a teen driver. Vehicle tracking systems are also popular in consumer vehicles as a
theft prevention and retrieval device. Police can simply follow the signal emitted by the tracking
system and locate the stolen vehicle. When used as a security system, a Vehicle Tracking System
may serve as either an addition to or replacement for a traditional Car alarm. The existence of
vehicle tracking device then can be used to reduce the insurance cost, because the loss-risk of the
vehicle drops significantly.
Vehicle tracking is also useful in many other applications such as Asset Tracking scenarios
where companies needing to track valuable assets for insurance or other monitoring purposes can
now plot the real-time asset location on a map and closely monitor movement and operating
status. Meanwhile, in field sales mobile, the situation of sales professionals can easily access
real-time locations. For example, in unfamiliar areas, they can locate themselves as well as
customers and prospects, get driving directions and add nearby last-minute appointments to
itineraries. Benefits include increased productivity, reduced driving time and increased time
spent with customers and prospects.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The global issue related to a constantly increasing crime rate needs to be urgently addressed by
both developed and developing countries. In Nigeria, 2,000 cases of car theft in average are
reported each year in [Nairaland.com, 2011], and the number is still increasing. If not recovered
soon, stolen vehicles are generally sold, revamped or even burned if the resale price is
considered to be too low. Once a vehicle is stolen, it becomes hard to locate it and track it, which
considerably decreases the chances of recovering it. In this work, we propose the design and
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implementation of a car tracking anti-theft system that will protect, secure vehicles. More so, the
bad culture of private and commercial drivers accompanied with the poor roads and road
trafficking in the country has in time increases the rate of casualties on the road so rapidly, 35%
of death rate in Nigeria was caused by Vehicle accident and road casualties in the year 2016.
This project is focused mainly to increase the chances of survival for the victims of these
causalities as introduced earlier.
1.2.1 STEEPLE Analysis
STEEPLE Analysis is “a model for strategic decision that takes into consideration seven main
macro-environmental factors in the activity of analysis, assessment and forecast of the impact of
the decision to be made” (WEBERIENCE LLC, 2017). STEEPLE stands for societal, technical,
environmental, ethical, political, legal and economic factors. In this project, I adopted STEEPLE
model to analyze and assess the potential impact of my solution. The following table identifies
the seven macro-environmental factors related to this project which include societal, technical,
environmental, ethical, political, legal and economic factors.
Societal: Poverty, population growth and urban migration are considered among the main
drivers of crime. In this context, rising thefts means rising demand and rising need for anti-theft
sand accident alert solution.
Technological: The emergence of microcontrollers and single board Nano-computers in the past
few years has enabled the design of efficient embedded system.
Ecological: Tracking, tracing and monitoring a vehicle help in analyzing drivers behavior. In
fact, analyzing driving behavior makes it possible to lessen risks of accidents and decrease fuel
consumption, thus, CO2 emissions.
Ethical: Ethics issues of liberty and privacy is a main concern in geo-location systems.
Political: In April 2016, the Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi made more
efforts in dealing with criminal phenomena that threatens the security and serenity of citizens
valuable in transport networks (Nairaland.com, 2016).
Legal: National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) does not address in a direct and
clear way their concern regarding the use of geo-location systems and I argue that the
implementation of this will be of a huge benefit to the security and protection of their members
and clients.
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Economic: Nowadays, many companies tend to use fleet management solutions to lessen their
transportation costs. Furthermore, insurance companies in Nigeria (Nairaland.com, 2014) start
embracing and mandating anti-theft solutions as part of the conditions for insurance.
1.3 Motivation
The alarming rate of vehicle theft and road accidents was the major motivation for this project. I
had been inspired to develop a solution since I was once a victim of a road accident. I believe
this system if well implemented will help increase the chance of recovering stolen vehicles in
essence increasing vehicle security. It also will increase the survival chance of accident victims
through the accident alert system.
1.4 Project aim and objectives
The aim of this project is to Design and Construct a Vehicle Tracking and Accident Alert System
using GPS and GSM Technology.
Objectives of this project are:
1) To study and investigate the basic operation of the GPS module.
2) To design the GPS/GSM and Push button based on the system.
3) To ensure design perfection through simulation and breadboard layout.
4) To implement the designed system on a hardware prototype.
5) To analyze the efficiency of the developed system.
1.5 Scope of Study
In this project, software and hardware developments were the major scopes put into
consideration. The power supply unit (AC to DC) and wiring of the modules with the
microcontroller defines hardware development. The software session on the other hand
encompasses writing of source code to the microcontroller and generation of Google API to view
position on Google map. The appropriate integration of this sessions cover the design and
construction of the VTAA (Vehicle Tracking and Accident Alert) system
1.6 Organization of report
Chapter one presents the introductory part of this project work. The rest of this work is organized
as follows: Chapter two reviews the current related literature to the work, while Chapter three
describes the methodological approaches and design specifications. Chapter four presents
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simulation results and analysis, followed by Conclusion, Recommendations, Limitations, and
Future work directions in Chapter five