DIY: Create a Tracker

with a Raspberry Pi and a USB GPS receiver

This guide explains how to build your own Trakkit.org live tracker using a Raspberry Pi or any Linux system.

Compatible systems include:

Raspberry Pi OS
Ubuntu
Debian
For this guide, we use a BU-355N5 USB GPS receiver — Affordable, widely used, and fully compatible.

Overview
Configure your boat on Trakkit.org
Install Raspberry Pi OS
Basic system configuration
GPS connection and test
Install Joli_Compagnon
Create the Python virtual environment
Manual launch of the tracker
Automate startup with systemd

Overview

The process is simple:

Prepare your configuration on Trakkit.org
Install Raspberry Pi OS
Install Joli_Compagnon
Test the tracker
Automate startup

⚓ - Configure your boat on Trakkit.org

Before installing anything on the Raspberry Pi, declare your tracker on Trakkit.org.

Create your Boat
Create a Tag
(give it a recognizable name)
Create a password for this Tag
Create a Track with:
- Start date: 01/01/2020
- End date: 01/01/2050
Mark this track as LiveTrack

You must have available:

TAG
TAG PASSWORD

These credentials will be used by the tracker.

🍓 - Install Raspberry Pi OS

Install Raspberry Pi OS normally on your SD card.

Follow the official instructions:

https://www.raspberrypi.com/software

There is no special configuration required.

You can choose the Desktop version, easier to configure, or Lite version if you are comfortable with Linux.

⚙️ — Basic system configuration

At first boot:

Create a user (In this guide we assume the username pi)
Configure normally:
- language
- keyboard
- network (Wifi to access the Internet)

It is recommended to set the timezone to UTC.

🛰️ — GPS connection and test

We will use a widely available BU-353N5 USB GPS

Connect the GPS to the Raspberry Pi and verify that it is detected.

List the USB devices:

lsusb

Example output:

Bus 001 Device 004: ID 067b:2303 Prolific Technology, Inc. USB-Serial Controller
Bus 001 Device 003: ID 0424:9514 Microchip Technology Hub Controller
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 0424:ec00 Microchip Technology SMSC9512/9514 Fast Ethernet Adapter
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub

The BU-353N5 GPS typically appears as a USB-to-serial adapter (often using a Prolific or similar chipset).

Identify the serial device

The GPS will create a serial device, usually:

/dev/ttyUSB0

To verify it, run:

dmesg | grep tty

Example output:

[  123.456789] usb 1-1.2: pl2303 converter now attached to ttyUSB0

This confirms that the GPS is available on:

/dev/ttyUSB0

Verify permissions

Check that the device exists:

ls -l /dev/ttyUSB*

Example:

crw-rw---- 1 root dialout 188, 0 Apr 21 12:34 /dev/ttyUSB0

If needed, ensure your user belongs to the dialout group:

sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER

Then log out and log in again.

Test GPS data reception

NMEA GPS devices typically use 4800 baud by default.

Display the incoming NMEA sentences:

cat /dev/ttyUSB0

If NMEA sentences scroll continuously, the GPS is working correctly.

If nothing appears, the GPS may be using a different serial speed.
You can manually change the baud rate of the device and test again.

Common NMEA speeds are:

4800
9600
38400

To change the speed of the serial device, use stty.

Example for 4800 baud:

stty -F /dev/ttyUSB0 4800

Then test again:

cat /dev/ttyUSB0

If nothing appears, try another speed.

Example for 9600 baud:

stty -F /dev/ttyUSB0 9600
cat /dev/ttyUSB0

Once the correct speed is found, you should see NMEA sentences such as:

$GPRMC,184551.00,A,4250.5589,N,07059.3421,W,0.13,309.62,210424,,,A*6C
$GPGGA,184551.00,4250.5589,N,07059.3421,W,1,10,0.8,12.3,M,-33.9,M,,*5A

Once NMEA sentences are visible, note:

the device path (usually /dev/ttyUSB0)
the baud rate (for example 4800)

These values will be used later in the config.ini file.

📦 — Install Joli_Compagnon

Download the software from the Trakkit website:

Trakkit.org → About → Download

Download the file:

joli_compagnon.tgz

Extract it in your home directory:

tar -xzf joli_compagnon.tgz

This creates the directory: joli_compagnon_last which contains all the scripts.

🐍 — Create the Python virtual environment

Move into the directory:

cd joli_compagnon_last

Create the Python virtual environment:

python3 -m venv venv

Activate it:

source venv/bin/activate

Install the required modules:

pip install -r requirements.txt

🔁 — Manual launch of the tracker

Activate the Python virtual environment:

source venv/bin/activate

Rename the configuration file:

mv config.ini.EXAMPLE config.ini

Edit the file:

nano config.ini

Configure the GPS section:

###############################################
# 🛰️  Data source from USB GPS device
###############################################
[GPS]
GPS_PORT = /dev/ttyUSB0
GPS_BAUDS = 4800

Then configure your Trakkit credentials:

###############################################
# 🔑 Your Trakkit.org login credentials
###############################################
[USER]
TAG = YOUR_TAG_HERE
PWD = YOUR_TAG_PASSWORD_HERE

Start the GPS reader:

./reader_usb.py

You should see NMEA frames displayed.

Start the sender in another terminal:

./sender.py

This script sends the GPS positions to Trakkit.org.

Wait a few minutes.

Your boat position should now appear on Trakkit.org.

🚀 - Automate startup with systemd

At this point, you now have a fully functional tracker for Trakkit.org. The final step is to configure it to start automatically at boot.

For the remainder of this guide, we assume the username pi and the following installation path:

/home/pi/joli_compagnon_last/

Scripts and virtual environment are located there.

Service for the GPS reader

Create:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/trakkit_reader.service

[Unit]
Description=Trakkit.org Companion GPS Reader
After=network.target

[Service]
User=pi
WorkingDirectory=/home/pi/joli_compagnon_last
ExecStart=/home/pi/joli_compagnon_last/venv/bin/python reader_usb.py
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Service for the sender