Global Positioning, What Next?

Just a few years ago GPS was something used by aircraft to find their way around the globe. Now you can buy one to carry around with you. Satellite Navigation in cars is already familiar and will soon be as common as ABS and sunroofs. It may even become compulsary as governments seek new ways to track us for tax purposes. But the power of the GPS systems has so far only begun to be realised. A walker can use it to find her way up a mountain, yes, but connect it to a G3 phone and hook into the web and the fun really begins.

You are in London and you need to find the nearest sushi bar? No problem, just ask the GPS and it will show you the nearest one and how to get there. GPS can also be used as a tracking device. How long will it be before every car comes equipped with a tracker that can be called up remotely at any time to locate its position to within a few meters? Even smaller valuables might be tagged in this way. The latest PSP is to have a GPS device attached so you can switch from playing games to finding out where you are. How long before the GPS becomes part of a multi=player street game then?

Current GPS uses a set of Satellites launched by the US government between 1983 and 1993. They can locate a position to within 5m using a single device, or 1cm using a differential GPS system. Now the European Union is launching a new set called Galileo that will improve accuracy and reliability even further. The future for GPS sat-nav gadgets looks very interesting indeed.