How and When To Use GPS Tracking?A Small Guide To Know More

Ever wondered where your beloved dog has wandered off when you left it outside for a poo? Never thought over how to get back your lovely kitten which has forgot its way home from the usual tree trip that it goes everyday? Want to keep track of your kid who is going to school and you are concerned of his safety?

There is an answer and the most inevitable of all those answers is the technology which is available for the past few years, Global Positioning System(in short, GPS).

GPS is a technology which utilizes a constellation of 24 to 32 orbiting satellites which transmit a calculated wavelength of microwave signals. These signals enable the GPS receiver to trace out exactly the current location, the time and the velocity. So, who maintains this constellation of Satellites? Well, those satellites are managed by the United States Air Force 50th Space Wing.

Ok, so now I know about what GPS is? But, how would it help finding my cat or dog or my kid, if they get lost?

A GPS receiver calculates its position by precisely timing the signals sent by the GPS satellites high above the Earth. Each satellite continually transmits messages containing the time the message was sent, precise orbital information (the ephemeris), and the general system health and rough orbits of all GPS satellites (the almanac). The receiver measures the transit time of each message and computes the distance to each satellite. Geometric trilateration is used to combine these distances with the location of the satellites to determine the receiver’s location. The position is displayed, perhaps with a moving map display or latitude and longitude; elevation information may be included. Many GPS units also show derived information such as direction and speed, calculated from position changes.

It might seem three satellites are enough to solve for position, since space has three dimensions. However a very small clock error multiplied by the very large speed of light—the speed at which satellite signals propagate—results in a large positional error. The receiver uses a fourth satellite to solve for x, y, z, and t which is used to correct the receiver’s clock. While most GPS applications use the computed location only and effectively hide the very accurately computed time, it is used in a few specialized GPS applications such as time transfer and traffic signal timing.

Although four satellites are required for normal operation, fewer apply in special cases. If one variable is already known (for example, a ship or plane may have known elevation), a receiver can determine its position using only three satellites. Some GPS receivers may use additional clues or assumptions (such as reusing the last known altitude, dead reckoning, inertial navigation, or including information from the vehicle computer) to give a degraded position when fewer than four satellites are visible

Well, that’s an excerpt of what GPS is in basic terms from Wikipedia. And I agree that its purely technical. I will tell in simpler terms.

GPS Tracking can be used on any object which is to be supposed mostly on the move and its whereabouts are to be traced later. The satellites orbiting Earth constantly send microwave signals which carry the exact location of those satellites along with a time stamp. At any point of time 3 signals from 3 satellites is well enough to trace out the exact the location of any object which has a GPS tracking device on it. If a pin-point location is preferred, then service of 4 satellites is put in use which actually provides a result which is 99% exact. So, if you have a cat or dog which is always on prowl and is susceptible to get lost, you can easily purchase a GPS device and hang it on its neck to let you know where it is through a transmitter on its neck and receiver in your hand.

Even though, GPS devices are supposedly meant to higher end of needs such as military operations, from the 70′s GPS technology had been implemented in civilian life and it has so jelled along with us that even mobile phones have GPS devices embedded into them. So, now tracking your whereabouts too is easy and any one can pin-point your exact location, if needed.

Take a moment and tell us if you have any occassion where GPS Tracking has helped or caused trouble.