GPS maker Garmin is tapping into the geocaching community by introducing the Garmin chirp a durable, inexpensive short-range transmitter that geocaching fans can leave in (or near) their geocaches to offer hints and information to geocachers who come looking for your stash. Plus, the chirp keeps a tally of visitors, so folks will know how many hunters have come by.
“With chirp, geocachers have a new tool to enhance the joys of creating and finding caches around the globe,” said Garmin worldwide sales VP Dan Bartel, in a statement. “In listening to and participating in the vibrant geocaching community, Garmin created a one-of-a-kind device that builds on popular innovations such as paperless geocaching and downloading cache details directly to the device.”
For those unfamiliar, geocaching is a GPS-enabled activity where hunters use their GPS devices to find hidden caches of items placed outdoors by other geocaching enthusiasts. The caches are typically in durable waterproof containers, often stashed behind some rocks or in some undergrowth—easily accessible, but invisible to casual passers-by. The range of geocaches range widely: some are few and far between, some contain whimsical items, some encourage trading and replacement of items, while still others run on themes or series of clues.
The idea behind the chirp is that someone creating a geocache puts the chirp in with their items. When someone with a compatible Garmin GPS device comes by—currently that includes Garmin’s Dakota, Oregon, and just-announced GPSMAP handheld—the chirp will transmit information to the GPS, letting hunters know the cache is nearby, potentially including hints to the cache’s location, and coordinates of other caches in a multicache hunt. The latter is particularly useful, since it saves the effort of manually entering a bunch of coordinate sets to continue a hunt.
The chirp itself is tiny—just a bit bigger than a U.S. quarter dollar coin—and is build to stand up to the outdoors, with a user-replaceable battery that should run for up to a year. The chirps are also password-protected so only the owner can see visitor logs and add/update information offered by the chirp—if you use a good password, you don’t have to worry much about someone sabotaging your cache with bogus information…although someone could always leave a chirp of their own nearby.
The chirp is available now for a suggested price of $22.99; if the idea is embraced by the geocaching community—and other outdoor GPS makers—the technology stands to add a new dimension to geocaching…and maybe get a few more technology fiends into the great outdoors.
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Before buying one of these to use in a geocache, cache owners should be aware that the announcement of this product caught the folks at Groundspeak TOTALLY flat footed. Garmin provided no prior warning. Groundspeak has very quickly reviewed this gadget, and based partly on the fact that the receivers are sole sourced (only certain Garmin handheld GPS units can receive and understand the content of a Chirp transmission), have arrived at the following compromise in their use. Per Jeremy hisself…
“Garmin didn’t tell us about this product. We only became aware of it, by accident, two days prior to the public announcement.”
and per Groundspeak, the following will apply as of this morning:
Here is the current plan:
1. A new attribute for a “beacon” will be added soon. Any caches that use a Chirp (or any future similar device) should use this attribute.
2. If a cache owner puts a beacon in a traditional cache and geocachers have an alternative method to find it without using the beacon, then OK. I remind you to use the coming attribute.
3. If the cache owner insists on not providing an alternative means of finding the geocache, it must be listed as a mystery with the beacon attribute.
4. Cache descriptions may mention the “Chirp” as long as the text doesn’t go on and on with “overtones of advertising, marketing, or promotion” as per our long-standing commercial guidelines.
5. We do not plan to add a new cache type just for this.
They just won't allow you to create a cache that REQUIRES you to use the Chirp technology, which would limit finders to those that only use chirp-compatible Garmins, excluding users of other brands. You can put a Chirp in to help out those cachers with compatible GPSrs, but have to also include a means for people who don't have compatible units to find it.
I think what towtrkdug means is that Garmin hasn't given groundspeak a cut of the profits. Groundspeak is more than happy to allow proprietary technology, as long as it is profitable to them.
Groundspeak does not allow you to use these as designed. Copy and paste reviewer note on my cache submission……I'm afraid the new Chirp device is something very exclusive to Garmin, which brings it into conflict with our commercial guidelines. To be publishable, the cache needs to be findable with any type of GPS device, and the Chirp method must be optional. Please come up with an alternative option to do this cache which does not require a Chirp compatible device. After you have done this, please enable your cache and I will look at it again.
Thank you for your understanding,
Geocaching.com Volunteer Reviewer
Problem solved by Groundspeak. Adding attribute.
Hi: that is very interesting, previously I never ever heard about Geocaching, then just last week I'm up near Copeland Forest- wee bit north of Barrie ON, see this guy hunting around trees, bushes, thought he was a prospector for metal etc. Turns out he's Geocaching, explained it to me, sounds like fun, will consider getting one of these in the near future.