Infrastructure per hectare.
Gateways, gates and UWB anchors need power, mounting and network on every part of the site. Outdoors that adds up fast.
Q · A
What is BLE asset tracking with phones as readers?
BLE asset tracking with phones as readers puts a small Bluetooth Low Energy tag on each asset and uses the smartphones of the people on site to detect them, instead of fixed gateways. Rotion’s app scans in the background inside the site, places each sighting with the phone’s GPS and motion sensors, and merges sightings from several phones into one position per asset. Staff search by asset number and a radar guides them to it.
- No gateways or readers outdoors
- Reads any BLE tag, also tags you own
- Tag sightings only, never people
01The problem
Why fixed readers stall outdoors.
Tracking inside a building is a solved problem. A large, open site with thousands of items is where projects stop.
Scans depend on discipline.
Handheld and RFID scans record a move only when someone remembers. One missed scan and the map is wrong.
GPS trackers on everything.
A tracker with its own connection on every attachment or element costs more per item than many of them are worth.
02How it works
How a phone becomes a reader.
The app runs in the background. Nobody opens it to make the map work.
- 01
Tag
A BLE tag goes on each asset and is linked to its number by a scan or a list import.
- 02
Walk past
Inside the site geofence, phones pick up nearby tags in the background. Outside it they stop.
- 03
Position
GPS and motion sensors place each sighting. Sightings from several phones merge into one position.
- 04
Find
Search by number, walk to the spot, and the radar points out the last metres.
03The map
A map that fills itself.
Each phone that crosses the site adds sightings of the tags it passes. More passes, firmer positions. Nobody scans.
Sample data on a fictional site. Phones are not shown by name.
04Platform
Built for big, busy sites.
A map that fills itself, and a record behind every dot. Pick a feature to see it.
Explore the platform
Last seen per assetEvery move on recordUnusual movesERP and field apps Autopilot Fleet by regionassets
Assets412,300
In circulation71%
Idle at depots9%
utilization
Asset historyGR-2291BLE C3:4A:91:2F · 5 cycles
- 20 OctArrived, tag linkedInbound
- 21 OctMovedAssembly zone · seen by 2 phones
- 21 OctParts donorAssembly
- 23 OctBack in inboundRow 3 · seen by 3 phones
- 27 OctFound by numberRadar · 4 m
Every move stays on the record
Anomalies this week Autopilot
High
StockpilingRetailer 3 DC holds 1,140 more than its 90-day average
ReviewMedium
Breakage spikeFiller 07 damage rate 3.1%, usually 0.8%
ReviewLow
Slow returnsCarrier West average return 18 days
ReviewConnectorsAll in sync
last 24 h · 18,240 events
| System | Data | Last sync |
|---|---|---|
| SAP S/4HANA | Orders and deliveries | 2 min |
| Odoo | Customers and stock | 5 min |
| WMS | Dock scans | live |
| TMS | Routes and stops | 14 min |
| Webhook | Autopilot actions | live |
Add connectorREST · webhooks · EDI · CSV
05Find it
Search by number, walk to it.
Type the asset number, see where it was last seen and by how many phones, then let the radar take you the last metres.
GR-2291
GR-2291Crawler excavator 30 t
Show on mapSample data.
Field results from operators running Rotion across pools, retail and industry.
28%
S.01fewer assets lost
9%
S.02smaller fleet needed
575,310
S.03assets tracked
Trusted by these organizations.
06Field notes
What phone sightings show.
More phones, better map.
Each extra phone on site adds sightings, so positions firm up as more people carry the app.
Quiet zones stand out.
Parts of the site nobody walks show up on the map, so you see where coverage is thin.
Tags you own still count.
Rotion reads BLE tags already on your assets, so you start without relabelling.
Run a large site?
Q.01How is this different from gateway-based tracking?
Gateway systems install fixed readers with power and network across the site. Rotion uses the phones that already move around the site as readers, so there is nothing to mount outdoors. Where a zone needs a fixed position, such as inside a hall, a few cheap BLE tags serve as anchors.
Q.02How accurate is it?
In a first field test, positions landed within 3 to 5 metres, depending on the signal conditions: an open yard does better than a hall full of steel. That is close enough to walk to the right row, and the radar on the phone guides you to the asset. We measure accuracy on your own site in the pilot.
Q.03Do staff have to open the app?
No. The app scans in the background inside the site and shows only a small indicator. People open it only to search for an asset or use the radar, or they reach it through a link from the app they already use.
Q.04Does it track employees?
No. Rotion shows tag sightings only, never worker names or the routes people walk. The app scans only inside the site geofence and stops when a phone leaves it.
Q.05Which phones and tags work?
The app runs on the Android and iOS phones your staff carry. Rotion reads any BLE tag, including tags already on your assets, and can supply tags with replaceable batteries.
Q.06When does this not fit?
The map needs people walking the site every day. It fits sites with their own staff on foot, such as equipment yards, rental depots and stockyards, and fits less well where only rotating drivers pass through.
Q.07How do we start?
With a one-week pilot: 100 tags on assets in one busy zone, the app on the phones of the people who work there, and go or no-go criteria agreed up front. The pilot fee is credited to the first year.
