ACR’s ResQLink AIS Personal Locator Beacon is the first to leverage the automatic identification system (AIS), the global navigation satellite system (GNSS), and the 406 MHz and 121.5 MHz frequencies. This multi-signal beacon gets position information from its GNSS receiver, and then bundles and transmits that information to a Cospas-Sarsat satellite via its 406 MHz transceiver. The beacon also shares its position information via AIS frequencies with nearby AIS-equipped vessels; it alternates its AIS bursts with 121.5 MHz transmissions that can be received by rescuing authorities.
“The real challenge of this product was trying to design an all-in-one product that meets our customers’ expectations,” says Mikele D’Arcangelo, ACR’s vice president of global marketing and product management. The solution, he says, involved miniaturizing circuit boards, bundling previously discrete componentry, and ensuring that the beacon satisfied AIS MOB and personal-locator-beacon regulatory requirements.
The ResQLink AIS Personal Locator Beacon measures 7.87 by 1.41 by 1.18 inches, weighs 0.42 pounds, has a 24-hour operational life, is waterproof down to 33 feet for up to one hour and comes with a five-year warranty.
How It Works
ResQLink AIS Personal Locator Beacons have near-field communications antennas. This tech lets ACR store all a beacon’s technical information in the antenna, which can be interrogated by a smartphone that’s running ACR’s Beacon App without draining the beacon’s internal battery. ResQLink AIS beacons are compatible with the Cospas-Sarsat Return Link Service, meaning an on-device LED illuminates when a beacon’s signal is received. The beacon also has infrared- and white-light strobes and can be fitted into a PFD to activate automatically if the PFD inflates.
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