GlobalPositioningSystem
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Government testing smart parachutes that stay on target
GPS is not foolproof -- especially on the modern battlefield, where electronic warfare systems can interfere with the satellite guidance. And when packages miss their mark, soldiers often have to venture into hostile territory to retrieve them. That's why the US Army is developing a joint precision airdrop system, or JPADS, that guides equipment towards its target using only visual cues.
TomTom releases fix for leap year bug, gets GPS devices back on course
Not long after acknowledging that a leap year bug had borked a handful of its GPS devices, TomTom's releasing a fix to solve the problem. The company says some nav systems had tracking issues beginning March 31st, claiming the intercalary conundrum was mainly caused by a bug in the third-party software. Those whose GPS devices are acting a tad bit confused can head over to the source below, where deets on how to get things back to normal await you. [Thanks, Aryo]
Government report finds LightSquared's LTE interferes with GPS -- color us surprised
No one said bathing the great United States in LTE would be easy, but the hits just keep on coming for Falcone and co. Following up on reports and concerns about LightSquared's possible interference, a government study has found that the outfit's proposed broadband network does indeed impede GPS signals. According to the National PNT Engineering Forum, the federal advisory group that conducted the study, LiqhtSquared's network disrupted GPS signals for all of the devices tested in the area. The report lists OnStar, Garmin, John Deere, emergency services, the FAA, and NASA among those affected by interference. Both LightSquared and the GPS industry are scheduled to present their own tests for the FCC's consideration next week. The news isn't exactly shocking, but it certainly doesn't bode well for the ambitious LTE network.
Pentax releases O-GPS1 add-on for DSLRs, appeals to astronomy nuts
Pentax's Optio WG-1 GPS point-and-shoot satisfied geotaggers out of the box, but owners of its K-5, K-r and 645D DSLRs have had to make do with third-party taggers like the PhotoTrackr or Eye-Fi. The new hotshoe-mounted O-GPS1 module fixes that oversight by recording latitude, longitude, altitude, Coordinated Universal Time and shooting angle. Everyday snappers might find an extra hotshoe attachment cumbersome, but astro-photography enthusiasts could well be enticed by the device's interesting "ASTROTRACER" function. This helps you take clearer photos of celestial bodies by using the in-built sensors to calculate a star's movement and then employing the camera's shake reduction system to compensate. Sounds clever, but be advised: this module is only for Pentax DSLRs -- and only for very specific models at that. You'll get full functionality with the K-5 and K-r cameras, and geotagging (no ASTROTRACER) with the 645D. Oh, and you'll need to make sure your camera's firmware is up-to-date. Peer carefully through that lens and you'll see the O-GPS1 heading for a July landing, priced at $250. [Thanks, Iddo]
LightSquared's LTE breaks GPS in New Mexico trial, angers John Deere
With Best Buy, Cricket, and Leap already signed on as partners, LightSquared has a lot riding on the success of its nationwide LTE network. Unfortunately, the Airforce's concerns about it interfering with GPS have been born by a test run in New Mexico. Officials in charge of the state's 911 systems as well as trucker hat kings Deere & Co. reported loss of service up to 22 miles away from LightSquared's cell tower. The company believes it has a solution to the interference problem, but hasn't specified exactly what the fix might be. Now the 4G wholesaler's future rests on a June 15th report to the FCC detailing the potential issues for both consumer navigators and the precision GPS systems used by the military and airlines -- but when even John Deere is lobbying against you things start to look a little bleak.
Australia trialing new emergency finder system with centimeter accuracy
This year has seen the evil doings of many powerful natural disasters around the world, and while the capable organisations are doing their best to provide relief, many lives could've been saved if the stranded victims were able to provide their precise positions for quicker rescue. Having seen the number of recent floods and cyclones in Queensland, Australia, Ergon Energy started trialing a new emergency tracking system earlier this year, which utilises pole-mounted mobile GPS stations to pinpoint cellphones equipped with special but cheap location-based chips -- Samsung and Nokia are said to be participants in this project. Over the next 12 to 18 months, said energy firm will be deploying 1,000 of these stations to cover 95 percent of the state, in order to let emergency services track down calling victims within centimeters -- that's a huge leap from conventional GPS devices' 10 to 20 meters, though an updated land database with matching accuracy is still required before the system reaches its full potential. Regardless, here's hoping that this brilliant project will be brought over to many more disaster-prone areas sooner rather than later. [Thanks, Justin]
US Air Force raises concerns over LightSquared's LTE network messing with GPS
Following a navigation system's instructions without driving into a ravine is hard enough as it is -- can you even imagine how hard it'd be if you kept losing GPS reception every time you drove within range of an LTE tower? There have been a few anecdotal concerns raised over the last several weeks that LightSquared's proposed LTE network -- which would repurpose L-band spectrum formerly used for satellite -- is too close to the spectrum used by the Global Positioning System, leading to unintentional jamming when the towers overpower the much weaker GPS signals. Things have gotten a little more interesting, though, now that the US Air Force Space Command has officially piped in. General William Shelton has gone on record saying that "a leading GPS receiver manufacturer just ... has concluded that within 3 to 5 miles on the ground and within about 12 miles in the air GPS is jammed by those towers," calling the situation "unbelievable" and saying he's "hopeful the FCC does the right thing." Presumably, the USAF thinks that "the right thing" would involve pulling LightSquared's license, but for its part, the company says it believes Shelton is referring to a test conducted by Garmin (possibly explaining that recent outage in the Southeastern US?) using simulated interference filters -- not the actual filters that it has spent several million dollars developing and perfecting. Regardless of how effective the filters might be, the idea that the only thing standing between a functional GPS system and a constellation of space-borne paperweights is a private company's privately-developed, privately-operated filtering equipment... but then again, we love LTE. Decisions! [Thanks, Brian]
Is Garmin prepping a GPS mouse? Answer... no
It seemed like the Deluo GPS-in-a-mouse combo was going to be a one-off deal, but our attitude is changing thanks to a recent discovery at the FCC. According to the agency's reports, GPS navigation mainstay Garmin is planning on producing a wireless mouse, and while the existence of a GPS receiver in the peripheral isn't clear, we'd have to assume that given the company's past, they're probably not just knocking out a regular old AA-battery-powered mouse to boost profits. Does this mean we'll be seeing a wave of mouse / GPS match-ups, and does the combination make any sense? What do you -- the clever, good-looking, and infinitely talented reader -- think about it?Update: Thanks to a helpful reader, we've unraveled the mystery of this Garmin device, which appears to be this RF wireless mouse (or some variant of it), used to control the company's marine navigators... now, on to finding out who's really behind the JFK assassination.
Garmin's Mobile XT turns your phone into a GPS superstar
Garmin -- your favorite GPS team ever -- is to drop some serious map-styles all over your mobile phone. The company today announced a new set of microSD cards preloaded with its navigation software and standard maps of the US or Europe. The cards will turn your average, boring, ugly phone into a bona fide GPS superstar. Dubbed the Garmin Mobile XT, the card will tout all of the features of a typical hardware Garmin GPS unit, like turn-by-turn directions, route planning, and voice prompts. Additionally, the card provides access to the GPS-maker's online service, which lets you get real-time fuel prices, traffic reports, and weather updates. We know, you're thinking all of this sweet and easy action is going to cost you an arm, leg and first-born... but you're wrong. The company is offering the card right now for the painfully affordable price of $99, with no monthly fees or other costs, thus making this purchase seem attractive even if you don't really need it.
User-created GPS tutorial
Creativity in the gaming community runs feverishly high, especially amongst modding communities. If you've recently looked at your PSP and wondered how come you haven't put a GPS navigation system on it yet, wonder no more. A poster by the name of PSPPOSTERTHREAD just drew up a convenient (though fairly complicated) walkthrough for some user-created GPS software. We needn't remind you that homebrew in general, is quite a risky venture. Not only do you risk bricking your PSP, but you'll also have to be up to speed on the digital rights management wordplay. Ultimately, it may prove to be more trouble than it's worth. But you already know all that, right? So, enjoy!
