Small Wearable Antenna for Animal Tracking

Abstract

Many tracking devices exist in today's world. There are car tracking devices, hunting dog tracking devices, and even cell phone tracking devices. The use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) has increased the ability to track various subjects throughout all parts of the world. However, there is no reliable tracking device for small mammals that allows researchers to maintain an unobtrusive distance from the animals. The goal of this project was to begin the process for designing a tracking system for small mammals. The overall system design utilizes a Garmin Astro 320 GPS tracking unit in order to focus on effectively reducing the size of the external antenna. Through the use of current technology and the knowledge of several engineering disciplines, an antenna was designed and embedded into a collar which connects with the Astro unit. This new antenna is compact and more suitable for tracking the Golden Lion Tamarin, a small monkey living in the Brazilian rain forest.