maps, including street maps, displayed in human-readable format via text or in a graphical format,.Using satellite information and subject to the sophistication of installed software, a GPS device used as an automobile navigation system may be used in a number of contexts, including: Other satellite navigation services with global coverage are the European Galileo and the Chinese BeiDou. GLONASS can be added to GPS devices to make more satellites available and enabling positions to be fixed more quickly and accurately, to within 2 meters. The Russian Global Navigation Satellite System ( GLONASS) was developed contemporaneously with GPS, but suffered from incomplete coverage of the globe until the mid-2000s. However, the mobile network part of the A-GPS technology would not be available when the smartphone is outside the range of the mobile reception network, while the GPS aspect would otherwise continue to be available. The GPS capability of smartphones may use assisted GPS (A-GPS) technology, which can use the base station or cell towers to provide a faster Time to First Fix (TTFF), especially when GPS signals are poor or unavailable.
Today, most standalone GPS receivers are used in automobiles. Obstructed lines of sight may arise from a tree canopy or inside a structure, such as in a building, garage or tunnel. In exceptionally poor signal conditions, for example in urban areas, satellite signals may exhibit multipath propagation where signals bounce off structures, or are weakened by meteorological conditions. GPS reception requires an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites, and is subject to poor satellite signal conditions.
Though the GPS satellite data is free and works anywhere in the world, the GPS device and the associated software must be bought or rented.Ī satellite navigation device can retrieve (from one or more satellite systems) location and time information in all weather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth. GPS was originally developed for use by the United States military, but in the 1980s, the United States government allowed the system to be used for civilian purposes. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is one of a handful of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) made up of a network of a minimum of 24, but currently 30, satellites placed into orbit by the U.S. Using suitable software, the device may display the position on a map, and it may offer routing directions. A satellite navigation device, colloquially called a GNSS receiver, GPS receiver, or simply a GPS, is a device that is capable of receiving information from GNSS satellites and then calculate the device's geographical position.