Posts Tagged ‘Satellite’

Why are GPS’s so Popular?

March 11th, 2010



It seems like the hot item for this holiday season is a GPS. These items have been quite popular for years, especially in aviation. The reason why they are so popular is because they are reliable. No matter where you are in the world the GPS will be able to pick up your location via satellite and by searching the maps it has the GPS is able to direct you step by step to your final destination. Pilots find this especially helpful when they are in the air and need to reach a specific location. If the instruments on board were to go out a Garmin Avionics GPS could save the day and allow the pilot to arrive and land with no passenger ever being the wiser. Every pilot has it or another brand of GPS to help them out regardless of whether they are flying for pleasure or work. The reason why that is the GPS has so much to offer.

First of all, a GPS is capable of locating you on a map and taking you where you need to go. It is also able to give you up to date information on the weather you may be flying or driving into, which is crucial if you are focused on safety and a fast arrival. Knowing where the bad weather is just might allow you to go around it, saving time and frustration. Another benefit of is that it can give you up to date traffic information. This is really good because if you are trying to reach your destination by a certain time and see there is a bad wreck up ahead then you can easily take an alternate route and still arrive on time. It is really amazing at how wonderful a it really is and how it manages to get you from point A to point B and alert you to weather and road conditions.

Once you are finally on the ground or out of the car the GPS can help you find restaurants, points of interest, and much more. This is really great because if you are in an area where you do not know the directions to a particular destination or if you are looking for a particular restaurant then the GPS can help you find it. A GPS makes life easy when you are on the road, whether flying or driving, and that is why the GPS equipment is so popular.

By: Caitlina Fuller

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The Advantages And Disadvantages Of The Three Major Types Of GPS Vehicle Tracking

December 26th, 2009



There are three major types of GPS vehicle tracking; cellular based tracking, wireless passive tracking and satellite based real-time GPS tracking. This article will outline the advantages and disadvantages associated with all three types of GPS Vehicle Tracking.

Cellular Based Tracking

The initial costs for setting up the system are slightly lower than the other two options. With cellular based tracking average costs are about $500. A cellular based tracking system transmits information about where a vehicle is every five minutes over a land network. The average monthly costs are about thirty-five dollars for airtime and for the information to be displayed over the internet.

Wireless Passive Tracking

A major advantage to this type of tracking system is that there is no monthly fee, so once the system is set up there will be no other costs associated with it. However, setting up the system is a little expensive. The average is about $700 for the hardware, and $800 for the software and database. With this type of system most people say the disadvantage is that the information about where the vehicle has been can only be found out when the vehicle returns back to the companies base. This is a major drawback especially for companies that are looking for a tracking system that will tell them where their vehicle is if it has been stolen or in an accident. However many systems are now inserting wireless modems to their devices so that tracking information can be viewed without having the memory card from the vehicle. With wireless modem wireless passive tracking systems are also able to collect information about how fast the vehicle is traveling, stops made and other detailed information. With this new addition many companies feel this system is a perfect fit because there is still no monthly bill.

Satellite Based Real-Time Tracking

This type of system gives less detailed information, but it works nationwide, which makes it a good choice for shipping and trucking companies. The costs for setting up the system average around $700. The monthly fees for this system vary from five dollars up to one hundred dollars; based on how detailed a company wants the reports to be.

New Technology

In the next few years GPS tracking will be able to provide companies with a number of other advantages. Some companies have already set up a way to have a customers sign and run credit cards onsite through the unit. Others are setting up ways for dispatchers to send re-routing information directly to a drivers GPS unit. Another new advancement for GPS systems is that they will have internet access and stored information about the vehicle so that a driver or mechanic can use the GPS unit to look up diagrams to help them fix the vehicle. In addition to this all of the information will be stored and saved in the companies database.

By: Chris Simons

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