Have you ever wondered how other people are using their Juniper Systems rugged handheld? I mean, sure, there are the obvious possible uses, such as a coaster for your drink; a wheel chock for your truck; or even a defensive weapon in a dark alley (obviously), but how, you wonder, are people using them for data collection? Our customers use Juniper Systems rugged handhelds for a wide range of different applications. Here is one really unique use of the Mesa® Rugged Notepad. So read on if you’re curious…
The Nunavut Wildlife Management Board is using the Mesa to conduct a community-based wildlife monitoring program throughout the Canadian Arctic territory of Nunavut. In each of three Nunavut communities, groups of native Inuit harvesters are employed to collect wildlife data using the Mesa along with custom software developed by Noreca Consulting. While traveling by land, the Inuit hunters use the Mesa to log travel routes, mark GPS coordinates of wildlife catch and sightings, capture geo-tag photo images, and record a range of other species and environmental data. Once each hunter returns to the community, the data stored on the Mesa is synced and uploaded to the main database online.
This wildlife monitoring program aims at helping researchers and policy makers better understand the health of Arctic wildlife communities and harvest levels across Nunavut. From the project database, users can access and view geospatially referenced data and images of some of the earth’s most unique species such as polar bears, walruses, beluga whales, and caribou, as well as the traditional travel routes of Inuit hunters.
Dr. Joerg Tews, Data Management Project Manager for Noreca Consulting said of the Mesa, “In order for this wildlife monitoring program to succeed, we required the absolute best handheld device on the market and the Mesa Rugged Notepad definitely exceeded our expectations.”
We thought this was a really cool use of the Mesa Rugged Notepad. If you’d like, you can read more about this application here. Do you have an interesting application for your Juniper Systems rugged handheld? Comment below and you could end up featured in one of our blog posts!
