What Is GPS Navigation?
GPS is short for Global Positioning System, a satellite-guided system of electronically determining the position and other variables that specify the movement of an object like a ship or a craft. GPS navigation is used for a number of both academic and daily life purposes. That is why the progress in enhancing the technology of GPS navigation has become quite rapid over the last two decades.
Now, GPS navigation is used widely in developed countries in devices like pocket computers, autos, and even cell phones. Many people find GPS navigation a useful guide in locating and specifying the movement of their personal cars along roads and streets.
Navigation refers to the processes of moving ships, aircrafts, or spacecrafts from one place to another. These processes aim at determining the position and course of the object, and the distance traveled by it. GPS navigation is a kind of modern navigation that is broadly called Celestial Navigation, which has been used by sailors for a long time. Celestial navigation uses celestial objects (mostly the sun, moon, starts, and planets) to determine the course of a ship or craft. Modern celestial navigation started in the 19th century. GPS navigation is the process of navigating by means of the Global Positioning System (GPS).
The Global Positioning System, or GPS, is essentially a small radio receiver capable of receiving signals from particular satellites in space. This gives a navigator the exact information about the position and velocity of his/her navigating ship/craft in real time. Earlier GPS navigation used non-mapping GPS receivers which presented the course of the navigator (ship/craft) in the form of dots on a computer screen. Later in GPS navigation, mapping GPS receivers were invented which show the movement or course of the navigator on a computerized map of a particular region. GPS navigation with mapping GPS receivers obviously has an advantage over the non-mapping GPS receivers. However, they also have their limitations since majority of the earth’s surface maps are in formats that are not recognized by the computer programs used for running the data of mapping GPS receivers.
Modern GPS navigation mostly uses GPS receivers (both mapping and non-mapping) that are resistant to water, shock, and rough weather. Besides having fast processing speeds and large storage capacity, these receivers can be connected to one’s personal computer, including pocket computers. If the mapping GPS receiver does not have a map for a particular area, the user may choose to use his/her own maps (scanned or downloaded from the Internet). Bluetooth GPS receivers do not even require a cable to connect with a pocket computer, though they need to be recharged independently of the computer. Other GPS receivers used in GPS navigation include GPS Mice, extended CF (Compact Flash) cards, and extended SD (Secure Digital) cards, each having its own advantages and limitations. The best GPS navigation device, invented so far, seems to be Pocket PCs with a built-in GPS receiver.
Passive GPS Navigation is widely used now in some developed countries. This kind of navigation is done by using portable car GPS navigation systems that have their own database of maps of the streets and roads of a particular region. The GPS guides the traveler from one point on the map to another as long as the traveler stays on the road. This type of GPS navigation is especially useful in case of emergencies, particularly for people who do not know the area very well and need immediate guidance on the road. Now a day, many new cell phone models allow both passive and active forms of GPS navigation.
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