Do You Know? GPS is All Around You.

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You may think of GPS as just something that you use to geotag your photos or help you find your way when driving to a new place. If you have a smartphone, you might also give it some credit for helping you find restaurants or public transport near to your current location. If this is all that you think GPS is used for, you are about to be extremely surprised. Check out this list of everyday uses of GPS tracking.

Use For The Military

GPS was originally developed for military purposes and is still a vital part of the US military’s operations. Military use of GPS includes:

• Navigation towards objectives, especially in unfamiliar territory or at night.
• Tracking of targets by military weapons systems.
• Guidance of projectiles and missiles to targets.
• Location of downed pilots in search and rescue missions.
• Tracking and monitoring of reconnaissance teams.

Civilian Use

Since GPS first entered the civilian sphere it has become regularly used across a wide variety of industries and technology.

• The signals from GPS satellites can be used for clock synchronization.
• GPS is used to help 911 operators locate callers who are in distress or need assistance.
• Geofencing refers to locating and tracking vehicles, people and pets when they leave a “fence” or designated area. While this can obviously help you to recover a missing pet or stolen car, it is also vital for law enforcement, which use it to track parolees and those under house arrest.
• Geotagging allows us to use GPS data to tie our photos, videos and more to specific locations.
• Aircraft also use GPS to track their location.
• For tourists, GPS tours allow your GPS enabled device to alert you to sights or attractions that are nearby, as well as giving you information and help. Other recreational pursuits that GPS facilitates include geocaching, waymarking and more.
• Of course, GPS is a wonderful tool for cartographers, allowing map-making to be conducted more easily and accurately than ever before. Surveyors also make use of GPS in their daily work, for accurate property boundaries.
• Managers of trucks and delivery vehicles rely on GPS to locate their vehicles, see where they are in real time, and track delivery of the cargo. Without GPS many stores and retailers would find it pretty difficult to keep goods in stock for you to enjoy.

Let me know your thoughts on what else can GPS be used for. As the technology is growing on a daily basis, it would be interesting to hear about what the GPS industry can apply in the future.