Mobile App for the Equestrian Community

QBurst developed mobile applications for an equestrian rescue company based in the UK. Founded in the year 1986, the rescue company provides assistance to horse-drawn vehicles during breakdowns. With mobile applications, we enabled them to extend their services to smartphone users. When a horse-drawn vehicle suffers breakdown, the applications detect the physical location of the user and call corresponding rescue service numbers. The applications also perform a number of towing-related calculations. The rescue company has published the applications in all popular mobile platforms—iOS, Android, and Blackberry. Drivers using smartphones built on any of these platforms can download and use them right away.

• There was a need to pinpoint the rider’s exact location when attending to rescues requiring veterinary/mechanical assistance or tire/wheel replacement
• There were a lot of problems managing logistics associated with stranded horses and vehicles leading to delayed registration for rescue services
• The client required a mobile based solution to manage rescue situations efficiently

The rescue application that we developed is a tab-based application for the equestrian community to use during breakdowns. When registered users tap the ‘Rescue Me’ button in the application, the nearest rescue center can be informed by phone or email. The application, before initiating the call, identifies the physical location of the user, gathers information on the problem (mechanical, tire, horse or vehicle related) and contacts the corresponding preloaded number. The application contains four main tabs—Tow Outfit, Tow Vehicle, Trailer, and Horses.

• Tow Outfit section performs a set of calculations taking into consideration the weight of the trailer and tow vehicle, and length of the outfit to determine whether the vehicle can be towed.
  • The final result is displayed as a match ratio
  • If the match ratio is above 85%, towing can be performed
• The remaining three sections are used to enter dimensions of vehicle, trailer and horse, which are used for the final calculations in the ‘Tow Outfit’ section.
• The application automatically calculates the weight of the horse based on user inputs.
• The user’s location is identified and displayed in maps.
• In an emergency situation, automated calls and emails are sent out for prompt assistance.
• The application can manage user registration and also display basic animations.

We developed native rescue applications for iOS, Android, and BlackBerry platforms using iPhone SDK, Android SDK, and BlackBerry NDK. We used Objective C for iPhone, and Java as the coding language for Android and BlackBerry platforms. SQLite database was used for offline storage.

• iOS
  • Core Graphics
  • Core Location
  • MapKit
  • AddressBook
  • SQLite
• Android
  • Location Services
  • Google Maps
  • Call Mail
• BlackBerry
  • BlackBerry Location Provider
  • Eclipse IDE
  • Google Maps
  • BlackBerry Email

• The application gives users fast, convenient, and easy access to the company’s rescue services making it very popular among the equestrian community
• Being the first of its kind to utilize smartphone global satellite positioning to aid equestrian rider safety, the app was well received and led to an increased demand for similar apps serving riders
• Increased demand for the app has created an additional revenue stream for the company