One of the biggest concerns of most autism parents is the safety of their kids. People with autism – both young and old – are a flight risk. They can wander away, driven by motivations known only to themselves, and end up dead or seriously injured. Autism itself does not affect a person’s natural lifespan, but statistics show that people with autism are more than twice as likely as the general population to die of accidental causes, because of their tendency to wander off and get lost.
Thanks to companies like iLOC Technologies, the world is becoming a safer place for people with autism. iLOC has created a mobile personal emergency response solution called TRiLOC, which comes in the form of a GPS tracking watch worn by the individual with autism. A parent or caregiver can then track the movements of the individual using a secure website or a Smart phone app.
The TRiLOC GPS Watch
Although it is somewhat bulkier, the TRiLOC has the appearance and functionality of a regular watch. Because of its size, it is designed more for adults than children, but it does come with a spacer that can be attached to the strap to make it fit more snugly on children. Even with the spacer, the TRiLOC is probably not viable for children younger than about nine, since a child with a small hand would be able to slip it off. In any case, the bulk might make it too heavy and uncomfortable for very young children.
The strap fitted with a spacer
When I was told, before receiving the TRiLOC, that the clasp on the strap is childproof, I had my doubts. My child with autism has overcome many things claiming to be childproof, including just about every babyproofing device we tried to install in our home when he was born. However, the TRiLOC definitely lives up to this claim. The clasp is difficult for a typical adult to manipulate, never mind a child with autism. Not only that, it is lockable, and a sturdy cover clips over the top of the lock. I can close and lock the clasp and feel complete confidence that my child will not be able to get it open.
A lockable clasp makes this childproof
Before putting the TRiLOC on my son, I wanted to first use it myself to test the functionality. I had some initial trouble using the tracking app on my phone, but the man at iLOC Technologies was extremely helpful in getting me set up. Once I was sorted out, I discovered that I can locate the TRiLOC immediately, at any time, simply by tapping the “Find Me” button.
Map zoomed out for security
The app can be set up to notify you of the TRiLOC’s location every 60 minutes (default standby mode), every 10 minutes, or every minute (emergency mode). Notifications can come in the form of a text message to one or more cell phones, or an email to one or more email addresses. I have my alerts set up to go to both my text messages and my inbox. Alerts are also logged in the app itself, where they stay until they are cleared.
In addition to the basic alerts, you can set up the app so that you get notified about specific events, for example, the clasp being opened or the individual falling. The alert that really excites me, though, is the overspeed alert. You tell the app what the threshold speed is, and as soon as the TRiLOC starts traveling above that speed, you get notified. You can also set up the app to immediately go into emergency mode when the overspeed alerts kick in. Then you get minute by minute notifications of where the TRiLOC is, complete with full hyperlinked GPS coordinates.
Another nifty feature is the geofence. On the app, you simply select a central point and draw a circle around it. If the TRiLOC leaves that perimetre, you get a notification. Up to four geofences can be set for one device. We have one set up around our house and another set up around my son’s school. The geofence notifications can be turned on and off as needed.
After a period of rigorous testing, the TRiLOC definitely gets my stamp of approval. Right now, we are in Phase II of the testing, which involves my son wearing it on a day to day basis. A follow-up review will be posted, in which I will describe his experiences and those of his teachers and other caregivers in using the TRiLOC, and in which I will talk about more features that haven’t been described here.
In the meantime, it should be noted that although I am describing how TRiLOC can be used for individuals with autism, it can be a lifesaving device for people with other conditions as well. If you are the caregiver for someone with any developmental or neurological disability, TRiLOC is well worth considering.
This is an original post by Kirsten Doyle, published in accordance with my disclosure policy. A TRiLOC unit was provided to the author in exchange for an honest review. All photos are credited to the author.
Hello, I hope your having a good day. I read your review about the Triloc device for your child. I wanted to know how that was going? I sure am anticipating your follow up review. A few questions I have are; how long does the battery last for you and if your able to locate the device in real time? I have a son with autism and I’m researching all these products there are for children with special needs, like mine. Thank you for your time.
I will be posting the follow-up review a few weeks from now. In the meantime, here are the answers to your questions:
1) You can get at least a full day out of the battery, but they recommend that you charge it once a day. It charges up pretty quickly.
2) Yes, you can locate the device at any time by clicking a “find me” button on the app or website.
We are the #1 provider of the iloc watch in the US. Here is a link to our website with all the details. If you have any questions, please call us at 615-562-0043
Link http://www.assistivetechnologyservices.com/gpswatch.html
Thank you for the information!
Thanks for the review. This seems to be one of the smallest, watch type devices. I am considering this for a 20 year old with Prader-Willi Syndrome. The strap lock is important as well as the waterproof feature since he will try to ditch it or destroy the device if he figures out that he is being monitored. I can’t tell from the available information if the caregiver can call the Triloc or if it only works for the wearer to initiate the call. How has reliability and durability been? Another system on the market allows you to listen through the microphone without the wearer’s knowledge. I know that sounds invasive, but our kids are very creative at convincing friends to help them bypass our safeguards, so occasional eavesdropping would be useful.
Thanks for your comment! Durability has been great – I expected all the childproofing stuff to wear out, but it hasn’t. This device does allow caregivers to listen in without the wearer’s knowledge, but I have not yet fully tested that feature myself.
I too am looking for a perfect tracking devise for my 9 year old son with Autism. So far I have tested the “PAL” Watch through Project Life Saver. Currently we are using the “Flip” watch. The PAL seemed to be pretty accurate but the battery lasted only half a day, also the lag time on the tracking mode via the internet was VERY slow additionally they do not have a mobile “app” as of yet. The Flip is way more “child” friendly with it size and appearance but the accuracy is really vague. In a followup call to customer service they advised me that the feature to home in closer is turned off, and they can not turn it on. Have you tried either of these devices? If so how do they compare to the TriLoc?
I haven’t tried either of those, but I am going to look them up. My only real complaint with the TRiLOC is that is designed for adults. Having said that, my son has grown enough that this is no longer an issue. Thanks for pointing me to those other options.
I am desperately seeking out a lockable, tracking watch for my husband. He was diagnosed with a rare mental condition called dissociative fugue which results in episodes where he mentally breaks away and travels. After numerous episodes, his career as a financial analyst was cut short and he was placed on disability many years ago. Sadly, he has literally begged for a microchip to be put in his body because he becomes so depressed & frightened when he realizes he has left. We have been married for almost 30 years, and have 5 grown children. After 5 years of fugue free years, I woke up this morning and he is gone. I am so heartbroken and scared. I have spent this evening roaming through the internet for a device that locks on and provides locations. Myself and our children want to provide him with a device that will keep him safe and will provide us with the ability to monitor and help him. I’ve read everything above, do you still think this device is great?? We might have to set up a GoFund Me account to come up with the money. Please, I don’t want to spend money on something that will not provide peace of mind for us all.
Yes, this will work for him. It has a lock on the wrist strap so you can lock it on. If he opens the lock it will alert you. You can track it all the time and know exactly where he is. You can also call it like a cell phone and talk to him through the watch. He doesn’t even have to press a button If you call him, it will automatically answer.
I am so sorry about your husband. That must be so worrying for you both. The TRiLOC could certainly be a good option for him. A feature that it has that is not in this review (because I hadn’t tested it out at the time) is an SOS feature. The person wearing the watch presses a button, and this triggers a call to the guardian’s cell phone. The person with the watch can then say whatever they want – their location, whether they’re OK, and so on. It’s a good feature to have and it works.
The ONLY thing I would like to see improving on this watch is battery life. My son’s watch is unplugged and put onto him at around eight each morning, and by about four in the afternoon the battery is critically low. So you get 8-10 hours of life on the battery. When my son comes home from school I have to quickly charge up the watch to see him through the rest of the day. The good news is that the battery charges up really fast – within a half hour or so. You might be able to figure out times to charge it when you are able to keep an eye on your husband.
I really and truly hope that your husband will return to you quickly and safely.
Thank-you all for your concern and prayers. Amazingly, he was found about 500 miles away, sitting in a library very confused and scared. After med adjustments, he is back home. So, I did order the TriLoc watch. It showed up on Thursday. After charging it over night, I activated it on Friday and began the set-up. Sadly, it is not working as of yet. The watch is registered and such, but the locator is not “locating”. It keeps saying “Not Found”. Even while traveling around our area (we live in a major metropolitan city), it is not locating. I have placed 2 phone calls leaving voice mails and sent an email requesting help. No response yet. If anyone has any ideas, let me know. I am hoping that I will hear back soon from someone, as I would like to have some peace of mind.
Found this forum while checking out If there have been improvements in wearable tracking technology I could use on my autistic son, now 41. A few years ago, I subscribed to a tracking provider but I had no real time access on my son’s whereabouts. When he ran off with the tracker on him, the provider texted me his location but he was never there when I went. Then the battery ran out in less than 8 hours. So I discontinued the service. The latest tracking I tried was give him an iPhone which worked very well but only when turned on. When he ran off with the phone with him, I had close misses until somebody robbed him of the expensive phone from him before I could find him. So this tracker is a great improvement if it can provide real time location on my iPhone or iPad. The battery life is still limited as lamented by a commenter. All the comments were of last year. Any folks out there who could share more recent experience with this product?
Kirsten, thank you for this review. I am considering buying one of these for my 13 year old son with autism, due to some scary wandering incidents. My question is how pinpointed is the location when you activate the “Find Me” feature? What if the child is hiding somewhere inside? Is there a way for the watch to make a noise to help the caregiver locate them? Lastly, are you finding that the charge is lasting a full day? The website says it should be 30+ hours. Thank you!
It’s pretty accurate. When I look at the tracker on the app, I see readings in different parts of the school playground. With regard to the battery life, it really depends on how often the location is being recorded. When I had it set to every ten minutes for the purposes of the review, it was barely lasting for half a day. When I switched to once an hour, the battery started lasting a lot longer.
I have been looking at this watch for about 2 years now for my 25 year old son who has autism and seizure disorder. My son is a really big guy—I have measured his wrist it is 9 inches I have been talking with the mfg and they say it fits up to 8 inch wrists. Do you think it is possibly to extend the band with some time of watch band extender? also do you have any feed back about the fall detection feature?
A jeweller or watchmaker might be able to extend the strap. It would have to be extended on the end that connects to the watch, since doing it on the other end would affect your use of the strap’s latch and lock. Regarding the fall detection feature, it definitely works – a little too well for my purposes. My son loves rough and tumble stuff – jumping, wrestling and so on. His activity level was triggering the fall detection all the time so I turned it off. However, if your son does not habitually fall, or if him falling indicates a problem, this feature could definitely be helpful.
thank you so much for the information—I am going to go ahead and order it and hope like crazy they jeweler can help me out–I really do appreciate your advice!! THANKS AGAIN!