Posts Tagged ‘gps watches’

GPS On a Dog Collar?

Since the advent of GPS systems, the cost of production has decreased to the consumer so much that it’s now quite practical to incorporate the technology into systems one would never have though of a few years ago. Examples are GPS Running Watches, and dog tracking collars, gps wrist watch to name a few.

In order to determine if some of these commercially available units are for you, it’s likely wise to understand a little of the history & workings of present GPS systems.

Global Positioning System satellites transmit signals to equipment on the ground. GPS receivers passively receive satellite signals; they do not transmit. GPS receivers require an unobstructed view of the sky, so they are used only outdoors and they often do not perform well within forested areas or near tall buildings. GPS operations depend on a very accurate time reference, which is provided by atomic clocks at the U.S. Naval Observatory. Each GPS satellite has atomic clocks on board.

Each GPS satellite transmits data that indicates its location and the current time. All GPS satellites synchronize operations so that these repeating signals are transmitted at the same instant. The signals, moving at the speed of light, arrive at a GPS receiver at slightly different times because some satellites are farther away than others. The distance to the GPS satellites can be determined by estimating the amount of time it takes for their signals to reach the receiver. When the receiver estimates the distance to at least four GPS satellites, it can calculate its position in three dimensions.

There are at least 24 operational GPS satellites at all times. The satellites, operated by the U.S. Air Force, orbit with a period of 12 hours. Ground stations are used to precisely track each satellite’s orbit.

Determining Position

A GPS receiver “knows” the location of the satellites, because that information is included in satellite transmissions. By calculatinghow far away a satellite is, the receiver also “knows” it is located somewhere on the surface of an imaginary sphere centered at the satellite. It then determines the sizes of several spheres, one for each satellite. The receiver is located where these spheres intersect.

GPS Accuracy
The accuracy of a position determined with GPS depends on the type & quality of receiver. Most hand-held GPS units have about 10-20 meter accuracy. Other types of receivers use a method called Differential GPS (DGPS) to obtain much higher accuracy. DGPS requires an additional receiver fixed at a known point nearby. Observations made by the stationary receiver are used to correct positions recorded by the roving units, producing an accuracy greater than 1 meter.

When the system was created, timing errors were inserted into GPS transmissions to limit the accuracy of non-military GPS receivers to about 100 meters. This part of GPS operations, called Selective Availability, was eliminated in May 2000.

Get On Track With A Garmin Forerunner Watch

Nowadays communication and navigation systems such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) are becoming more prevalent in athletics and exercises such as running , biking , competitive rowing, and skiing. With the Garmin Forerunner GPS Watches, you are able to keep track of your actual rate and your median and top speeds as well as the area that you covered . This communication and navigation system manufacturing company has released its Forerunner GPS series of watches. You take your pick from the 50, 101, 201, 301, 205, 305, 405, and 705 models of the Garmin Forerunner series of watches.

These models provide some workaday as well as model-specific components. As you might assume , every one of the GPS forerunner watches will give you accurate information about your location and all relevant statistics concerned with your rate of activity, but several of them boast neat features such as keeping tabs on your heart rate, a computer info recording interface, a GPS transmitter, speed and pace targeting alarms , distance alerts, lap details recorder, auto time and distance splits, and a milometer.

The heart rate monitor offers you important information on your heart during your exercise session . It is crucial to keep an eye on one’s heart rate when one is exercising or getting rid of unwanted calories, because that will give you an idea of it your efficiency . Exercises are intended to be done at prescribed rates and they can cause a bad effect on the heart if you vary from the correct intensity. The 301 model gives you a heart rate monitoring function.

With the computer info recording facility, you are able to download your workout statistics on to your home computer and tweak them via some compatible software. Both the 201 and 301 models offer the computer data-recording capability. The GPS transmitter is likely to be found as an integral part of GPS watches in the Garmin models . It helps you see the latitude and the longitude of the place where you are standing. Unfortunately, they make your watch a wee bit weighty.

If you are a professional runner, you will want to be alerted when your pace goes past or goes below certain parameters. Your GPS Forerunner watch can make this happen. You can also make your watch alert you when you reach your goal distance. If you fear that viewing an abundance of details is likely to confuse you, simply turn to the smoothing feature to smooth out any tiny differences. The Lap recorder allows you to record and save your statistics for each individual lap that you take during your sprint. The Autosplits feature gives your watch the ability to take recordings either in time and distance. The milometer keeps tabs on the distance that you’ve gone.

The Garmin Forerunner GPS Watch is a great choice for you if you are a professional athlete.