A low cost vehicle location and tracking system

Abstract

A low-cost GPS (Global Positioning System) tracking system which provides a highly accurate service suitable for operation worldwide is described. The system includes a low-cost vehicle sensor, the TIDGET, developed by NAVSYS, and a PC-based workstation which is located at the customer's facility. The workstation includes aiding software that allows the vehicle's location to be computed even when only two GPS satellites are visible. This provides reliable GPS service even in an urban environment. The vehicle location is computed and displayed on a PC workstation at the customer's dispatch facility. The low cost of the TIDGET sensor combined with the performance of the PC-based workstation provides a highly accurate yet inexpensive vehicle tracking system that is capable of operating anywhere in the world. The system is designed to be integrated with a variety of alternative communication links for any vehicle tracking application.<>