GPS stands for Global Positioning System and was initially designed to be used by the U.S. military and is operated by the U.S. Defense Department. This system consists of 24 satellites, these satellites are 12,000 miles above us, are constantly moving in a precise orbit, have an atomic clock, and are solar powered. They do have a battery backup so they will continue to run in the event of a solar eclipse, and each satellites has a small rocket booster to maintain their orbit. The first satellite was launched in 1978 and it wasn’t until 1994 when there were a total of 24 satellites. Each satellite has a life expectancy of about 10 years, so new satellites are constantly being built and launched. Each satellite weighs about 2,000 pounds and is approximately 17 feet in width when the solar panels are extended. In the 1980s the GPS became available to the public, and although it is still maintain by the U.S. Defense Department there is no charge for its usage by the public.

These 24 satellites orbit the earth twice a day and continuously sends the location of the satellite. A GPS system can tell how far a satellite is away by comparing the time difference between the time a signal was transmitted and the time it was received, the longer it takes the signal to be received by a receiver, the farther away the satellite is. If a GPS is receiving signals from three satellites it can calculate latitude and longitude. Altitude can be determined if the GPS is receiving signals from four satellites.

GPS can be used for navigating your car through traffic day-to-day or tracking a fleet of vehicles. Not only can a driver use a GPS for directions the main office knows where that vehicle is and the speed of the vehicle. GPS can be used while on vacation for activities such as hiking, camping, or hunting. Is your passion fishing but get frustrated trying to find the fish? With a fish finder which uses both GPS technology and sonar you’ll know exactly where to go to find those fish. GPS technology is also being used as a way to track your pet if he wanders off or to safeguard a pet from being stolen.

Another use for GPS is as a child finder with a receiver in a child’s cell phone or wristwatch to ensure a child’s safety. It can be used in a teenager’s car in order to both know where they and how fast they are driving. This could also be used to keep track of someone who tends to ‘roam’ but is not capable enough to find there way back; i.e. someone with Alzheimer’s disease.

As GPS technology improves, it uses will increase. Who knows where it will take us next?

Picture this: you’re lost in the middle of a storm on country roads or you’re hunting in the middle of nowhere and can’t find your way home. You check your compass, but still can’t find your exact location. You look at your map, but it’s too difficult to determine where you are in the first place! Save yourself the trouble and discover the world of GPS navigation systems.

Put away your compass and don’t bother with your maps, a GPS tracking system will take care of all your navigation needs. Quite simply, a GPS system is the most effective navigation tool on the market today. Using satellite systems around the world, a GPS navigation system is able to locate your exact position in the world, no matter where you are.

GPS is a satellite-based radionavigation system developed and operated by the U.S. Department of Defense. GPS allows land, sea, and airborne users to determine their position, velocity, and time 24 hours a day, in all weather, anywhere in the world with a precision and accuracy far better than other systems available today or in the foreseeable future.

GPS has become a widely used program used for map-making, commerce, land surveying, hunting, and scientific research. Not only is it used for civilian purposes, it is also used for military and naval exercises. Most importantly, what is trusted by the military and navy is now available to the average person. With technological advances and improvements in on-screen maps, there has never been a better time to use a GPS navigation system.

Developed by the Department of Defense in the United States, GPS is officially known as the NAVSTAR GPS. The satellite constellation is managed by the United States Air Force and has been used as navigation tool for quite some time.

A GPS receiver calculates its position by measuring the distance between itself and three or more GPS satellites. By measuring the time delay between transmission and reception of each GPS microwave signal, the GPS calculates the distance based on the time delay.

GPS receivers come in a variety of formats and, due to the increase in technological advancements with regards to GPS, can be integrated into cars, phones, and even watches. GPS systems have become easy to use and easy to care for – people all across the world are taking the time to understand the benefits the GPS navigation system can bring to one’s life.

Because the GPS system is owned completely by the government, the GPS will be free as stated in the Presidential Decision Document of 1996 – which indicates that the U.S. will continue to provide the GPS Stand Positioning Service for peaceful civil, commercial and scientific use on a continuous, worldwide basis, free of direct user fees.

Who would use a GPS system? There are many different uses for GPS devices:

Farming – For navigation during the night time on tractors

Balloon Tracking – to identify your location while high in the sky

Cell Phone Tracking – Used by 911 emergency assistants to locate the whereabouts of a missing person with a cell phone

Roadside assistance – to tell the towing company exactly where you are

Hunting – to track your location and your hunt

Boating – to help you find your location whenever fog rolls into your area

Consider asking yourself why you don’t have a GPS navigation system. And by considering all the benefits of GPS systems, you may begin to realize how a GPS navigation system could improve your life.

RESOURCE BOX:

• Realistic display of motorway interchanges and exits
• Speed assistant with adjustable audio-visual warning
• Manual zooming in 2D and 3D while navigation
• Phonebook contacts and contract groups can be selected as navigation destinations

Product Description
Get what you need on the go with the Navigon 2090S GPS system. This GPS has all the features you require, including pre-loaded maps of the continental U.S. along with a MicroSD card slot for additional storage.

Navigon 2090S Color Car GPS System

Does a GPS unit need a Garmin logo on its back to be considered an efficient device? The answer is of course not. In fact, when it comes to the retail industry, ‘name’ can often just be an excuse to add hundreds maybe even thousands more to a product’s price tag. Many consumers get caught up in the hype simply because through the television, Internet and magazines they’ve had a chance to become more familiar with the brand names. Well, there are plenty of GPS brands that are not as well-known that are still wonderful devices. This article will talk about one of them, the Initial GPS models.

Initial GPSes are some of the most hard-to-find GPS brands in the market. Perhaps this might be due to the fact that Initial Technology, the company making them, is actually a business geared towards making entertainment devices. This seems to show in a couple of Initial GPS devices, but in a good way. These models, the Initial GPS GD-72, (which costs $449.99), the Initial GPS GD-71, (which costs $469.99), and the Initial GPS GM-410, (which costs $229.99), are the only GPS units that actually offer built-in DVD players. The Initial GPS GD-72 and the Initial GPS GD-71 even look like portable DVD players. The Initial GPS GM-410, on the other hand, has an appearance typical to most GPS units.

As far as navigational capabilities, Initial GPSes are no different than any other type of GPS. The above-mentioned Initial GPS GD-72 and Initial GPS GD-71 along with the other non-DVD Initial GPSes, (including the $199.99 GM-350 GPS Receiver and the $379.99 GM-501 GPS Receiver), are pretty much the same when it comes to navigation. Their interface consists of colorized touch screens and Bluetooth technology for hands-free telephone calls. The devices include preloaded U.S. maps and 2 million points of interest. As far as directions, they are voiced, a feature common in many famous brands available on the market.

Initial GPS models offer a unique choice for those looking for more affordable GPS options. Not only are they pretty much standard when it comes to GPS navigation, but many of them even have DVD players. Such a feature allows one to save even more money, since portable DVD players by themselves can be hundreds of dollars. Truly, these types of Initial GPS models can almost be considered an all-in-one device, since they provide both GPS capabilities as well as DVD capabilities. The only challenge one will face if they do want to purchase an Initial GPS is where to buy one. The Initial Technology site doesn’t even offer the products for sale, and of the few sites that do, the more interesting Initial GPS GD-71 and Initial GPS GD-72 models tend to not be in stock. Even the average shopping comparison site seems barren when one tries to search for Initial GPSes. However, you will find that Target stores carry a full line of Initial GPS receivers. Another good source is the Internet and auction sites like eBay. No matter where you find them Initial GPS systems are easy to use and reliable.

The GPS system is global navigation system introduced by the US military. The system provide navigation and positioning information anywhere on the face of the Earth. The GPS system also provides a highly accurate and precise time and frequency signal ideal for computer timing applications. The GPS system is a orbiting constellation of 24 satellites, each broadcasting time and position information around the globe.

This article describes how the GPS system can be used to provide an accurate time and frequency reference for NTP servers and computer network time synchronisation.

GPS timing information is continuously broadcast by each GPS satellite. GPS time is not affected by leap seconds. Therefore, GPS time is currently about 14 seconds ahead of UTC time. However, offset information is available to readily convert GPS time to UTC time, which is used in NTP server and computer time server systems.

Each GPS satellite transmits information as very low-power radio frequency transmission. Two frequencies are used, one for civilian use coded L1, and one for military use coded L2. The civilian L1 frequency is the most widely used and is transmitted at 1575 MHz. The broadcast GPS signal can easily penetrate less dense material such as plastic, but cannot penetrate higher density materials such as brick.

An antenna is utilised to boost the GPS signal and pass the signal along a coax cable. Ideally, a GPS antenna needs to have as good a view of the sky as possible to receive from as many satellites as possible. Ideally, it should be located outdoors on a rooftop with a good 360-degree un-obscured view of the sky.

GPS antenna systems transmit signals down a coax cable and are sensitive to coax quality and cable length. The coax type and antenna gain determines the cable length that can be utilised by a GPS antenna. Higher quality coax cable generally have much lower attenuation figures and hence provide much longer cable runs between the receiver and antenna. Typically, a low-quality coax can run to 20-30m, while a high quality coax can be used in excess of 100m cable runs. To increase these distances still further, a GPS amplifier can be used to amplify and boost the received GPS signal.

GPS timing systems also utilise a GPS receiver in order to decode the received GPS transmission and convert it to a computer readable format. The GPS receiver processes the transmitted GPS positioning information and provides a readable serial transmission as output. GPS NTP servers and computer time servers may also utilise a precise pulse per second output generated by the GPS receiver to provide ultra-precise timing. The pulse per second timing pulse on most receivers is accurate to within a few milliseconds of UTC.

To summarise, the GPS system is ideal for synchronising NTP server and computer time servers. Accuracies of a few hundred nanoseconds can be reasonably achieved with low-cost GPS receiving equipment.