This Valentine's Day, 14 February, it will be 20 years since the Global Positioning System constellation of satellites was inaugurated and quickly became better known by its initials: GPS.

The latest issue of E&T magazine celebrates this landmark anniversary, with a special collection of features looking at the past, present and future of a military technology increasingly co-opted by the consumer electronics industry.

Where would we be without it?

Techno explorers take to the ice

Location location location

A new contellation

Coordinating content

Thinking about the more innovative deployments of GPS over the past 20 years, I've been wondering about where the engineering and technology community could take GPS in the next 20 years. How soon will it reach further into the four billion mobile phones in use worldwide announced this month by the GSM Association?

What would you most like to track or find with GPS, and why?

Thoughts welcomed.

DR MIKE SHORT

Oh how I love GPS... rarely use it as the applications side needs to get it's act in gear but one of the most beautiful solutions I've worked on.

If I had my way all maps would be OS standard and devices would share real-time routing info... in fact, I'd go the whole hog and slave the vehicle to it, sit back and read whilst I'm taken on the most efficient route to wherever I want to go.

Anyway, back to the real world of conflicting financial, political and social opinions...

Edited: 25 February 2009 at 12:55 PM by desertbootz

GPS navigation is the easy one, use it in my car on occassion and find it very helpful.

However what interests me more is using a GPS data logger while out taking photographs, and then geocoding my photos at home. When I have the time... one idea could be to geocode some holiday pics and put them on a map on the web to share.

-------------------------
EurIng John Hales CEng
Glasgow

i'd just settle for my Tom Tom to actually tell me the right way somewhere once in a while
and get me closer than 100m away and on the wrong side of the railway with no crossing point

Devices deploying GPS are still too costly for practical usage by the public.

For a start, taxis and all transport services will benefit the most from the technology if widely used all over the world.

If we could accept the fact that everyone is willing to be tracked there will be nobody who is difficult to locate.

GPS can only be used to the full if prices of related equipment can be driven down alot more.

Regards
Chris Chew

Edited: 18 April 2009 at 11:13 AM by sfchew

The time function of GPS has more potential. Grid substations have GPS fitted to provide an accurate, Synchronised time signal, this is used in the protection schemes. Also now that the BBC pips are late due to DAB, perhaps GPS clocks are the way forward.

lots still use the "Rugby" clock (not in Rugby anymore) but GPS does seem to be taking over slowly