GPS Uses in Everyday Life:

The GPS system was developed to meet military needs of the Department of Defense, but new ways to use its capabilities are continually being found. The system has been used in aircraft and ships, but there are many other ways to benefit from GPS as follows:

Construction Work:

During construction of the tunnel under the English Channel, British and French crews started digging from opposite ends - one from Dover, England, one from Calais, France.

They relied on GPS receivers outside the tunnel to check their positions along the way and to make sure they met exactly in the middle. Otherwise, the tunnel might have been crooked.

Vehicle Tracking:

Vehicle tracking is one of the fastest-growing GPS applications. GPS-equipped fleet vehicles, public transportation systems, delivery trucks, and courier services use receivers to monitor their locations at all times.

Military Uses:

GPS receivers were used in several aircraft, including F-16 fighters, KC-135 aerial refuelers, and B-2 bombers; Navy ships used them for rendezvous, minesweeping, and aircraft operations. GPS has become important for nearly all military operations and weapons systems. In addition, it is used on satellites to obtain highly accurate orbit data and to control spacecraft orientation.

Disaster Management:

Many police, fire, and emergency medical service units are using GPS receivers to determine the police car, fire truck, or ambulance nearest to an emergency, enabling the quickest possible response in life-or-death situations.

Other Uses:

Automobile manufacturers are offering moving-map displays guided by GPS receivers as an option on new vehicles. The displays can be removed and taken into a home to plan a trip. Several rental car companies are demonstrating GPS-equipped vehicles that give directions to drivers on display screens and through synthesized voice instructions.

Mapping and surveying companies use GPS extensively. In the field of wildlife management, threatened species such as the Mojave Desert tortoise are being fitted with GPS receivers and tiny transmitters to help determine population distribution patterns and possible sources of disease. GPS-equipped balloons are monitoring holes in the ozone layer over the Polar Regions, and air quality is being monitored using GPS receivers. Buoys tracking major oil spills transmit data using GPS. Archaeologists and explorers are also using the system.

 

Present Status and Future Trends:

Present Status:

The Global Positioning System reached Full Operational Capability on July 17, 1995. As Per U.S. Policy and Law, the GPS Standard Positioning Service is available to civil users worldwide for their peaceful transportation, scientific, and other uses free of direct user charges. In January 1999, the Vice President of the Executive Board announced that two new civil frequencies would be added to the current GPS constellation. . These new civil signals will improve the robustness, accuracy and availability of GPS for users and will enable the development of a broad range of new and improved GPS applications.

Problems to be taken care of:

GPS satellite signals, like any other navigation signals, are subject to some form of interference. The FAA is actively working with the U.S. Department of Defense and other U.S. Government Agencies to detect and mitigate these effects and make sure the basic GPS service and any related augmentation systems are available for civil users for safe aviation operations. As with all navigation aids, interference, whether intentional or unintentional, is always a concern. A number of methods for minimizing interference have been identified and tested and others are being investigated. The FAA is also working to make sure augmentation systems detect and mitigate these effects.

 

conclusion:

In this project, we have taken a brief look on GPS, it’s functioning, types, uses and future trends that are likely to happen. GPS is used to support land, sea, and airborne navigation, surveying, geophysical exploration, mapping and geodesy, vehicle location systems, farming, transportation systems, and a wide variety of other additional applications. As per U.S. Policy and Law, the GPS Standard Positioning Service is available to civil users worldwide for their peaceful transportation, scientific, and other uses free of direct user charges. Hence, we can conclude that GPS will surely become one of the most advanced and used civil and electronic technology of the future.