Mastering Geotab
★ Geotab Products · Asset Tracker
Bluetooth tags let Geotab track items too small for a GPS tracker, such as tools, ladders and attachments. The tag has no GPS of its own; a nearby Geotab device hears it and reports where it was last seen.
Geotab's small asset tracking uses Bluetooth Low Energy beacons, small battery-powered tags that broadcast an identifier. A tag does not know where it is. Instead, a Geotab device within range picks up the signal and attaches its own GPS position, and MyGeotab records that as the tag's last known location. Each tag becomes its own asset in MyGeotab, with a map position and location history.
Three Geotab devices can act as the reader. The GO10 detects compatible beacons with its built-in BLE 5.4 radio and needs no added hardware. A GO9B or newer device can do it with the IOX-BT add-on plugged into its expansion port. The GO Anywhere Plus can read tags when it is wired to external power and running firmware 132.3.13 or later. Geotab supports specific tag models, and we supply those approved models with the install: Link Labs E7, E8 and E9 puck tags in North America, and ELA Innovation beacons in Europe and the Middle East.
Electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors. Expensive cordless tools and meters walk off job sites or get left in another crew's truck. A tag on each one shows which van it was last near.
Ladder and gear accountability. Ladders, generators and toolboxes are often loaded on the wrong truck or forgotten at the curb. A left-behind alert catches it before the vehicle is miles away.
Construction attachments. Buckets, forks, breakers and other yellow iron attachments rarely have power and are easy to misplace across sites. Tags give them a location without a full tracker.
Preventing tool hoarding. When one crew hoards equipment the company keeps rebuying, tag data shows where the inventory actually sits.
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Technology | Bluetooth Low Energy beacons with public MAC addresses |
| Supported tags (North America) | Link Labs E7, E8 and E9 Puck Tags |
| Supported tags (EMEA) | ELA Innovation Blue Coin ID, Blue Puck ID, Blue Lite ID, Blue Puck MAG, Blue Puck T |
| Tag battery life | Up to 3 years |
| Tag mounting | Screws or adhesive |
| Reader: GO10 | Built-in BLE 5.4, no added hardware |
| Reader: IOX-BT | BLE 5.1 add-on for GO9B and newer; up to 60 beacons in range; detection under 100 m |
| Reader: GO Anywhere Plus | Wired external power and firmware 132.3.13 or later required |
| Setup in MyGeotab | Each tag added as a single asset using its serial number and MAC address |
The tags are the easy part; the reader is where the install work happens. On a GO9B or newer vehicle, the IOX-BT goes in with the GO device unplugged, connected by its USB connector to the expansion port and cable tied in place. If it shares the port with other IOX units, Geotab requires the termination shunt removed from every unit except the last in the chain. Then the GO device is powered and communication is checked in MyInstall. A GO10 needs no add-on. A GO Anywhere Plus only reads tags when wired, so a battery-only Plus install will not work for this. For each tag, record the serial number and MAC address before it goes on the tool, because MyGeotab asks for both when the asset is created. Geotab also notes that the IOX-BT loses a beacon beyond about 200 m, so readers belong where the tagged items actually spend their time.
Bluetooth tags fit fleets with many small, valuable items that travel with vehicles and keep going missing. They work best when the items regularly come within range of a reader, such as tools that ride on trucks or attachments parked in a yard with a wired tracker.
A tag only reports when a reader hears it, and Geotab notes that beacon locations update less often than a GO device. An item stolen and taken far from any reader will not report again until it comes back in range. Trailers, generators and other assets that need their own location and theft recovery should get a GO Anywhere Plus or Next Gen GO Anywhere instead.
No. Geotab supports only the listed Link Labs and ELA Innovation models, identified by serial prefix, and the beacons must use public MAC addresses. Consumer tags designed for phone networks are not part of the system.
Only in the vehicles or locations where you want tags to be heard. A tag carried in a truck without a reader shows its last position from the previous reader that detected it.
Not necessarily. A GO9B or newer can read tags with an IOX-BT added. The GO10 has the radio built in, which removes the add-on when vehicles are due for new devices.
API Signal supplies the approved tags along with the reader hardware, then installs and registers everything on site at your yard, logging each serial number and MAC address for you. Call 803-513-1009 or use Get a Quote with your item count.
Sources: Geotab: Asset tracking solutions, Geotab Support: Small asset tracking, Geotab Support: Small asset tracking product update, Geotab Support: IOX-BT, Geotab Support: GO10, Geotab Support: GO Anywhere Plus overview. GEOTAB is a registered trademark of Geotab Inc. API Signal is an independent installer and is not Geotab.
Tell us how many vehicles and what they are. We'll quote the hardware and the install together.