IoT Pet Tracker: GPS Collar with Geofencing Alerts

India’s pet ownership is growing rapidly, with over 30 million pet dogs. GPS tracking collars provide peace of mind by letting owners track their pets in real-time and receive alerts when they leave designated safe zones. This guide covers building a custom GPS pet tracker using ESP32.

Introduction and Overview

IoT Pet Tracker: GPS Collar with Geofencing Alerts is an important IoT application with growing adoption in India. The convergence of affordable microcontrollers like ESP32, low-cost sensors, and open-source cloud platforms makes this technology accessible to individual makers and small businesses alike.

Key benefits include:

• Real-time monitoring: Track critical parameters 24/7 without manual intervention
• Data-driven decisions: Use historical data and trends to make informed choices
• Cost reduction: Automate monitoring tasks and prevent expensive failures
• Scalability: Start with one node and expand to hundreds as needed

Hardware Components Required

Select components based on your specific requirements:

• ESP32 Development Board: The brain of your IoT node. Choose ESP32-WROOM-32 for basic projects or ESP32-S3 for advanced features.
• Primary Sensor: Select based on what you need to measure — temperature (DHT22/BME280), distance (HC-SR04), or environmental conditions.
• Power Supply: USB for indoor installations, solar + battery for outdoor deployments
• Enclosure: IP65 rated junction box for outdoor use (₹100-200 on Amazon India)

Total component cost per node: approximately ₹800-2,000 depending on sensor selection.

GPS Module Integration with ESP32

This section covers the core technical details of gps module integration with esp32 for your iot pet tracker project. Understanding these fundamentals ensures a robust and reliable implementation.

Key considerations include:

• Reliability: Design for 24/7 operation with watchdog timers and automatic recovery
• Accuracy: Calibrate sensors against known references before deployment
• Maintenance: Plan for periodic sensor cleaning and battery replacement
• Documentation: Document wiring, configuration, and calibration values

Cloud Platform Setup

Choose a cloud platform based on your requirements:

• For beginners: Blynk 2.0 — mobile app dashboard in minutes, free for 2 devices
• For self-hosting: ThingsBoard CE + Grafana — unlimited devices, full control
• For enterprise: AWS IoT Core or Azure IoT Hub — managed infrastructure, pay-per-use

For most Indian makers and small businesses, a self-hosted ThingsBoard installation on a ₹500/month VPS provides the best balance of features, cost, and data sovereignty.

Set up a real-time dashboard showing:

• Current sensor values as gauges and stat panels
• Historical trends as time-series charts
• Alert status and notification history
• Device online/offline status map

Real-Time Tracking Dashboard

Choose a cloud platform based on your requirements:

• For beginners: Blynk 2.0 — mobile app dashboard in minutes, free for 2 devices
• For self-hosting: ThingsBoard CE + Grafana — unlimited devices, full control
• For enterprise: AWS IoT Core or Azure IoT Hub — managed infrastructure, pay-per-use

For most Indian makers and small businesses, a self-hosted ThingsBoard installation on a ₹500/month VPS provides the best balance of features, cost, and data sovereignty.

Set up a real-time dashboard showing:

• Current sensor values as gauges and stat panels
• Historical trends as time-series charts
• Alert status and notification history
• Device online/offline status map

Geofencing and Alerts

Configure multi-level alerts for different scenarios:

• Level 1 (Info): Dashboard notification when values approach thresholds
• Level 2 (Warning): Email and Telegram notification when thresholds are exceeded
• Level 3 (Critical): SMS and phone call for dangerous conditions requiring immediate action

For Indian deployments, Telegram Bot API is the most cost-effective notification channel — free, instant, and works on any smartphone. Set up alerts using Node-RED or ThingsBoard rule chains.

Power Management for Mobile Devices

Power management is critical for long-term IoT deployments:

• Indoor: USB 5V adapter or PoE (Power over Ethernet) for permanent installations
• Outdoor: Solar panel (6V 2W) + 18650 battery + TP4056 charger
• Deep sleep: ESP32 draws only 10 uA in deep sleep — extend battery life from hours to months

// Enable deep sleep for 15 minutes
#include 
#define SLEEP_MINUTES 15

void goToSleep() {
  esp_sleep_enable_timer_wakeup(SLEEP_MINUTES * 60 * 1000000ULL);
  esp_deep_sleep_start();
}

With deep sleep and a 3,400 mAh 18650 battery, an ESP32 node can operate for 50+ days without solar charging.

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