Car GPS navigation systems

What is sometimes known as an automotive GPS navigation system, the satellite GPS device in cars aids the driver in finding the best route to a certain destination. The difference between a car’s GPS device and other GPS devices is that the system in the car uses information from a database in which to place the position of the car as indicated by the satellite feed. What this means is that the GPS still pinpoints your location as other GPS devices like the Garmin nüvi 360 gps do, but the context of your position, or the surroundings of your position, are stored in the memory of the car’s navigation device, and are not gained directly from the satellite feed.

So in order to function optimally and provide the driver with the most up to date and reliable information on the route, the navigation device makes use of a road database. We can discuss the road database in terms of its contents, format and media type.

The contents of the road database come in the form of a vector map. This map holds the details of a specific area for your car GPS system. The street names and often house numbers are coded in as coordinates by which the system orientates itself. This allows the driver to follow a route to the desired street and house number. It is also possible to include other landmarks or points of interest in the map. The inclusion of a dam, monument or Fun Park makes it all the more a breeze for the driver to find his or her way around town. These points of information, or the contents of the vector map, can be updated on the go as the driver navigates existing roads and the user base communicates through the internet, producing a free update to the map. You can even download maps off the Internet. You will find downloadable GPS maps of Ireland, Scotland or anywhere you wish to go!

When it comes to the format of the map on your GPS kit, there is no industry standard that dictates the uniformity of navigation maps on car GPS devices.

There are sources that produce the maps in a standardised format (Tele Atlas and NAVTEQ), but each navigation system manufacturer puts things together in their own way, making for differences of format between different brand names.

Speaking of media, we are referring to mainly the medium utilised by the navigation device for database memory. The road database can be stored in ROM, on CD or DVD, on a Flash Disk, on a hard disk or on a combination of these.

Not uncommon is the use of ROM for the basis of the map, with another medium utilised to add detail to the map when the user wishes to visit a specific area. Generally the ROM is always programmed at the time of manufacture, but the other media can be downloaded from CD or DVD by use of a computer or wireless blue tooth GPS connection. Direct reading of new media can be done by using a card reader.

Another use for GPS in your car is a miniature GPS tracking device. This can be used to track your car in the event of hijacking or the likes. The most common use of GPS in business is for delivery or fleet vehicles. Owners can track where their drivers are, how long they take to complete their deliveries, and route them to roads less traveled during construction or traffic jams.