Help with finding lost plane

[savagefrank]

Hello all. Im a novice with geocaching, but I reckon you guys should be able to steer me in the right direction.

My interest is in remote piloted model aircraft. I fly these up to 25km away via video downlink and GPS navigation.

Occasionally one will go astray. I include a GPS locator in the plane which will respond with SMS of the coordinates.

My problemis navigating to the crash site. I hope to use my Android device to steer me to the coordinates, but have yet to find an app that will allow me to input the lat/long numbers and steer me directly to the site.

My device is GPS enabled Samsung Galaxy Ace. I hope to be able to use the device without network coverage.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Cheers

Frank

Edited August 4, 2012 by savagefrank

[+T.D.M.22]

Well I'd think that with all the money you spend-and I do have an idea how much it costs-you could easily justify paying for a dedicated GPS unit. You can get one that will give you road directions as close to the site as you can, and then it will give you an arrow and distance away. About $200-$250 That's less then the cost of a high end engine.

Something like the (link>>>) Garmin Dakota 20

Edited August 4, 2012 by T.D.M.22

[+Lil Devil]

For the road navigation part, just open Google Maps on your Android, and enter the coordinates in the search field. Google Maps has the unfortunate feature that it will snap the destination to the closest road, but it will give you turn-by-turn directions to get you as far as you can drive.

 

I'm not familiar with any software that will get you the rest of the way from there, but someone else will probably come along here with an idea.

[savagefrank]

Thanks for the input chaps. I kind of reached that dead end too. I need to be able to navigate off road, on foot, as the last plane I lost came down in a farmer's paddock about 800m from nearest dirt track. Luckily for me the low tech solution worked. I had a phone number on the plane, and somebody just happened to be walking along a dirt track and saw it go down!. I had a phone call even before I had packed up my ground station!

I might end up with a Garmin dedicated device. I was just hoping to use what was at hand.

Heres a short clip of what I do:

https://vimeo.com/35122804

Cheers

Frank

[+daScientist]

Hello all. Im a novice with geocaching, but I reckon you guys should be able to steer me in the right direction.

My interest is in remote piloted model aircraft. I fly these up to 25km away via video downlink and GPS navigation.

Occasionally one will go astray. I include a GPS locator in the plane which will respond with SMS of the coordinates.

My problemis navigating to the crash site. I hope to use my Android device to steer me to the coordinates, but have yet to find an app that will allow me to input the lat/long numbers and steer me directly to the site.

My device is GPS enabled Samsung Galaxy Ace. I hope to be able to use the device without network coverage.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Cheers

Frank

 

I have used an OpenStreetmap on a mobile device before. It was an IOS device, but I think the app is available for Android as well. You can download parts of the excellent OSM maps for off-line use, and when in map view, there is an option 'locate' that shows your actual position on the map. You can drop pins, and edit their map coordinates,so that gives you your destination on the map.

[AZcachemeister]

The app I use for this is 'GPS Status & Toolbox', a free app available in the 'Play Store'.

The app can download assistance data to help improve it's accuracy, and I generally use it over the built-in compass of other apps.

[+laker91]

GPS Essentials includes all kind of tools that would be useful for you. It includes adding waypoints, maps, routes and a compass. The dashboard is a really neat feature as well. I use it and it works well for me.

[savagefrank]

GPS Essentials includes all kind of tools that would be useful for you. It includes adding waypoints, maps, routes and a compass. The dashboard is a really neat feature as well. I use it and it works well for me.

This is getting better and better. Thanks for your kind consideration guys. I really dont intend getting involved in searching for any geocaches just yet, but I figured you chaps would be the best group to quiz about the best way to locate stuff in the wild.

[+Markwell]

I know this doesn't specifically answer your question about the Android, but...

 

(A): If you have the coordinates, technically, you could navigate using maps and compasses.

 

(B): But I just did a quick search on an internationally known auction site, and found several items for around $30 that would be adequate GPS handhelds to enter coordinates an navigate to a location.

 

(C): Have you checked out the GPS Garage Sale section of the forum?

[+kunarion]

My device is GPS enabled Samsung Galaxy Ace. I hope to be able to use the device without network coverage.

Compare Sygic and Navigon, in the Google market. They each have offline maps with street routing. They require lots of device memory and a high-end droid. I haven't tried either product yet.

 

There are lots of reasons to prefer a handheld dedicated hiking GPSr. I had to buy routable maps for my Garmin 550T, which come in handy at times. Even a car GPSr may be fine for what you need.

Edited August 4, 2012 by kunarion

[savagefrank]

I know this doesn't specifically answer your question about the Android, but...

 

(A): If you have the coordinates, technically, you could navigate using maps and compasses.

 

(B): But I just did a quick search on an internationally known auction site, and found several items for around $30 that would be adequate GPS handhelds to enter coordinates an navigate to a location.

 

(C): Have you checked out the GPS Garage Sale section of the forum?

Thanks again guys.

I think considering the amount I have invested already in the flight hardware, a dedicated device is warranted. I am currently bidding on a used entry level Garmin Etrex which should provide the solution I need.

Cheers

Frank

[+kwcahart]

The Android app "GPS Status" has a radar screen that will take you right to the coordinates you input in your phone. Works very well.

[+Arndtwe]

Yet another option for you is to get into contact with a local geocacher who may be willing to show you the ropes, or even help you with getting to a location. You might start by searching for local geocaching events to meet some locals. From there who knows... maybe you will find someone who shares you interest that is into geocaching!