A vehicle tracking system has three parts: the device fitted to the vehicle, the mobile network that carries the data, and the platform that processes and displays it. The device works out its position from satellites, combines it with other data taken from the vehicle, and sends it to the platform at regular intervals; you then look at it from a web panel or a mobile app.
1. The device in the vehicle
The device is wired into the vehicle's electrical system and powered continuously. It holds two core modules: a GNSS receiver that determines position (GPS and similar satellite systems) and a GSM module that carries the data out.
The GNSS receiver calculates position by comparing the arrival times of signals from the satellites it can see. In open air that calculation is accurate to a few metres; in an underground car park or between tall buildings the error grows.
The device does more than read position. Whether the ignition is on or off, whether the vehicle is moving, speed and distance travelled are all produced here.
2. How does the data travel?
The device sends what it collects to the platform over the mobile network. For that it holds a SIM card — like a phone's, but it only sends data.
Transmission is not a continuous video stream; the device sends a packet at set intervals or when something meaningful happens (ignition on, harsh braking, a geofence crossed). If you pass through an area with no coverage, the device stores the data in its memory and sends it in a batch once coverage returns — which is why there is no gap in the route history when you come out of a tunnel.
3. What does the platform do?
Raw packets mean little on their own; the platform processes them. It joins consecutive positions into a route, calculates speed and distance, compares positions against the zones you have defined, and raises alerts when thresholds are crossed.
On the user's side that produces three things: live position on a map, route history with a date filter, and period-based reports.
What does CANBus add?
Everything above can be observed from outside the vehicle: where, how fast, when. To see what is happening inside the vehicle, the device has to connect to the vehicle's own data network — the CAN bus.
The CAN bus is the network the electronic units inside a vehicle use to talk to each other. Once the device is connected to it, fuel level, AdBlue, coolant and oil temperature, engine fault codes and accelerator or brake pedal use also become readable.
The practical difference: with GPS you know "the vehicle was here at 14:00"; with the CAN bus you know "the fuel level halved in 20 minutes while the vehicle was stationary". The second is a fuel theft alert.
How long does installation take?
A standard installation is the device wired into the vehicle's electrical system with a fused cable, and takes a short time per vehicle. A CANBus installation adds a connection to the vehicle's data network.
After installation the device connects to the network and starts sending its first position; nothing further is needed to see the vehicle in the panel.
Frequently asked questions
- Will a tracking device drain the vehicle battery?
- No. These devices draw very little current and go into a sleep mode when the ignition is off. In normal use their effect on the battery is negligible.
- Is data lost where there is no coverage?
- No. With no network the device stores data in its own memory and sends it in a batch once coverage returns, so no gap appears in the route history.
- Is a tracking device the same as an OBD dongle?
- Not quite. Devices plugged into the OBD socket are easy to fit but equally easy to remove. In permanent installations the device is wired into the vehicle's electrical system, with a separate connection to the data network when CANBus data is needed.