The Growth of GPS Applications in Every Day Life
Though the Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system was first created to help military units find their way in difficult situations, the technologies use has fast become a valuable tool in modern day life. Over a short number of years many personal and commercial uses have developed for GPS navigational and tracking devices and the number of applications continues to grow.
Early one the use of GPS tracking was put to the test when the British and French governments cooperated on the construction of a new tunnel under the English Channel connecting England and France. With the availability of GPS receivers it was much easier for work crews tunneling from both ends of the tunnel to dig directly towards each other and meet almost perfectly in the middle. Because of this success many underground mines and facilities make use of the technology.
In the past few years there have been many situations where GPS devices have helped rescue teams locate people that were lost or trapped. The technology has also been adapted to help fire and police departments determine the units that are closest to emergencies so that response times can be quicker. Now the forest service is also using GPS to map out forest fires and keep the maps updated and the fire moves.
One use that is becoming one of the most common uses of GPS is automobile navigation systems. Ships and planes have been using the technology for many years, but now these navigation system are becoming standard equipment in many cars and vehicles (especially rental cars). These can prove very helpful when traveling in an unfamiliar area on business or on a vacation and can also help in locating the vehicle during emergency situations.
Transportation companies and courier services have also benefited from the reduction in size and price of GPS tracking devices. Now these companies and public transportation departments can track their trucks, buses and trains every minute of the day. This allows them to improve operational efficiencies as well as provides an added factor of safety for drivers and passengers.
Trucking companies and transportation departments are not the only ones to benefit from this system. Even farming companies are getting into the act installing receivers on tractors so that they can work field any time of day, even in the dark or during periods of low visibility. An additional application is tying the system into sensors that keep track of soil conditions allowing them to map problems areas that need water, fertilizer or other attention.
There have also been many advances in the scientific world. Balloons with GPS devices have been used to monitor such things as air quality and holes in the earths ozone layer. Buoys have been equipped so that they can track oil spills in open water. Archaeologists have use the GPS system to find and map ancient ruins, while biologists have put them to work tracking herd migrations and studying the movements of various species.
These devices have also become more personal as pet owners can now have tracking chips implanted in their pets so that they can be found if they become lost and as many people using hand held devices have taken up the hobby of Geo-caching where they use the GPS system to locate “treasures” that have been hidden by other Geo-cachers around the world. One thing is for sure. We have just seen the beginning of the effects of GPS on our lives.