The General Positioning System (GPS) tracking system is the latest breakthrough of the technology aiming at improving people’s lives. The GPS tracking system is reported to be used as a travel guide and as a tracking device of vehicles. No matter its application, GPS devices are good traveling companions.
The actual process of GPS tracking system is straightforward. In short, there are exactly 27 satellites rolling around the center of the Earth. Out of them, 24 are used by the GPS technology and the remaining ones are used for storage purposes. A GPS receiver installed in your car emits a signal to these satellites. Four available satellites will be used to find out your exact position. The mathematical tenet involves in this computing process is called trilateration. It can be achieved in either two dimensions or three dimensions.
Adverse weather conditions can affect the accuracy of the position. This issue is still to be addressed by GPS vendors as they are struggling to tweak their devices as a way around this problem.
Applications of GPS devices are twofold: the first one being as travelling guide as you can set your destination and the receiver will work out your location. It will also tell the best trajectory to reach your destination. It should be noted that some devices are able to talk as well. The GPS technology is also reported to be used in the military industry as it was first created for such purposes.
Another application of GPS devices is for tracking purposes. For instance a car company may decide to install GPS device in their cars in order to record their position all over the time. This can help them improving their delivery times and also increase their efficiency. An employer also can make use of this device to make sure that his employees are not abusing company car privileges.
Private investigators also make use of GPS tracking devices in order to keep track of cheating wives. Law enforcement also makes use of GPS devices to locate people who steal cars. Recent GPS devices are also able to report a driver’s habits therefore deciding if the driver is responsible enough to carry on.
The GPS tracking system is also a perfect way around home construction site thefts. Indeed, recent news from the Tennessee reveals that GPS tracking devices have helped identify a rash of construction site thefts where many thieves were used to nicking home appliances. A Tennessee police spokesman later on claims that these hard to break burglaries could be tracked down in less than 24 hours with suitable GPS tracking devices.
Still in the US, it is well known that some school buses are equipped with GPS tracking devices for emergency response purposes. Indeed, school buses equipped with the GPS tracking devices can be used to shuttle emergency responders such as fire fighters, and evacuate those in need, including nursing home residents.
In summary, GPS device applications are growing more and more over the time. There are mainly used for military and civilian purposes as we described in previous sections. It is nowadays commonplace to see GPS devices almost everywhere as we saw in the previous sections.
By: John B Mayall
Posts Tagged ‘Gps Technology’
GPS System Tracking – Applications of GPS Tracking System
January 12th, 2010The GPS And It’s Future
January 8th, 2010
The use of Global Position System (GPS) has become quite diverse from automobiles, mobile phones, tourist facilities, city maps, and even pet collars. GPS works through a network (often called constellation) of 27 satellites that move around the Earth in geo synchronous orbit. These satellites exchange relative data to fix the position of one particular object on the surface. Similar to the Internet, the technology was original implemented for military use in order to help precise control of troops as well as getting accurate information about enemy troops and armament placement and movement. And like the Internet it was soon the commercial use that would dominate global reliance on GPS.
Mobiles phones are now more secure because they are outfitted with GPS tracking devices. It is now possible to use mobile communication and GPS technology to create a new type of mobile phone. The implications of this combination are so vast that those experts who saw only trouble in the future of wireless communication have begun to entertain some hope. There are developments in progress right now that would have seemed strictly science fiction material a few years ago. Some opinions even go so far as to say that the conventional means of human communication might just disappear if the plans under development succeed to their maximum.
Road-traffic management would itself be improved to quite an extent. For example, some of the newer cars are equipped with GPS technology so sophisticated that it acts like an airplane Black Box. The device can record data (for a short duration) like speed of vehicle, whether brakes were applied or not, if the seatbelt was used or not, so on, and of course, the precise location of the vehicle right down to a few feet accuracy. Another interested aspect is that apart from devices like phones and cars, GPS technology is available in sizes small enough to fit into pet collars. The collars can further be programmed to define a territory range and should the pet go outside this specified area, an instant alert is sent to the owner’s cell phone.
Other uses of GPS include making accurate maps, tracking of endangered species, and predicting some types of natural disasters. Farmers too may use the GPS system to get a fix on farmland that is less fertile and to spot wet and dry areas. This allows for better land use and precise farming techniques.
GPS technology is a bit invasive because it permits the precise tracking of human beings at all times. This raises issue regarding privacy of the individual. This is one of the biggest hurdles faced by a wider use of GPS. It is essential that people realize the inherent dangers of any technology while at the same time using it prudently. A good example is that car rental companies could use GPS records and accuse the renter of having violated traffic laws. While such a feature is ideal for the police it is completely unacceptable from a service provider. Controls are required to prevent such violations.
We have already faced the severe problems with identity protection and theft over the Internet and it would be wise to learn from those problems and make sure the GPS implementation comes with inbuilt safeguards and checks to ensure that the rights and privacy of the individual are not sacrificed to technology.
By: Joseph Brochin
The Truth About GPS Cell Phone Tracking
December 17th, 2009
GPS cell phone tracking technology is currently available on most cell phones manufactured after early 2005. FCC regulations require all new cell phones produced after that date to have the tracking device within the phone. This was spawned after 911 attacks and the beginning on the war on terror. It is also the result of the need to find lost individuals and people who have dialed 911 and are unable to provide location information.
Cell phone carriers generally do not monitor or track the phones of their subscribers. In addition implied FCC guidelines allow the tracking feature to be used in cases of emergencies. Despite these guidelines some carriers have contracted with so called location based service providers. For a fee these companies use data provided by cell phone carriers to provide GPS tracking information. The legality of these services many times depends on the local or state government regulations. Cell phone customers understandably are very wary of intrusions into their privacy and on occasion sought legal remedies to protect themselves. Some feel it is a violation of their 4th amendment rights under the constitution.
The GPS technology that is incorporated into cell phone handsets is not the same as the units used in your vehicle that you use to navigate the roads of this country. GPS auto tracker technology is just not the same as that used in cell phones. Depending on the carrier and the type of cell phone hardware used the location data may be continuous or only available when a location request is made. All these differences make tracking an individual cell phone that you do not own or have a legal interest in very troublesome at best.
Despite all the on line hype the bottom line is that accessing cell phone tracking information on your girl friend or business competitor is generally unavailable and most likely illegal.
By: Jim Kesel
