GPS Tracking - A Brief History

Bookmark and Share
By Krish Rock


The ability to track the whereabouts of a person, vehicle or object has been around since 1973 when the first ideas of GPS were discussed. The idea of the GPS project was to establish a system that did not suffer the problems associated with traditional navigation systems of the day.

The ability to use the GPS tracking system to find your phone is a great help, especially if you are one of those people who are always putting it down and forgetting where you left it. The other advantage with being able to track down your phone (or anyone else's for that matter) is that you can effectively convert your mobile into a GPS tracking device.

Another definition for land surveyors is supplied by the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (also known as ACSM). Here it is described as the science or art of making the measurements needed to determine relative positions of points and cultural details on the surface or below the surface of the Earth, and the ability to depict them in a readable format. In other words then surveyors are used to create all kinds of maps and information regarding a piece of land in three dimensions for access by a range of different services.

The military asserted that it was important for them to be able to track their submarines, aircraft and intercontinental ballistic missiles in the event of war. An accurate GPS tracking system meant that submarines could pinpoint their exact position should they need to launch their missiles.

GPS works using satellites. These satellites move around the Earth in geosynchronous orbit meaning that they stay in the same position relative to the Earth - moving in accordance with the Earth's natural rotation. The system you carry on the ground then works by sending a message up to those satellites, and when the satellite receives them, they send them back down for your device to receive. Your device then uses the amount of time that the exchange took in order to calculate the distance from that satellite.

Of course doing this wouldn't be sufficient for precise surveying, and so in fact a GPS device will send a message to lots of different satellites at once and will then be able to calculate the relative distance from all these points. Then, using this information it can 'triangulate' its precise location.

From its initial military concept, GPS tracking has now evolved into many civilian applications and along with satellite navigational systems there are implications for private surveillance and the GPS tracking of vehicles, people and pets. Geofencing ensures that a device remains within a predetermined area and geotagging allows attributes to be given to a specific GPS location such as a restaurant or hotel.




About the Author:



{ 0 comments... Views All / Send Comment! }

Post a Comment