Mobile Phone GPS Basics

Soon GPS will become almost as common as the telephone, or more likely included with every cell phone.  GPS can calculate locations accurate to a matter of.  In fact, amazingly with advanced equipment you can make measurements to less than a centimeter!

It’s just like assigning every square meter on earth its very own address.  GPS receivers have become very affordable as they have been miniaturized to just a few integrated circuits.  Nowadays days GPS is incorporated into cars, boats, planes, construction equipment, movie making gear, farm machinery, laptop computers and especially  phone handsets.

Tracking cell phones is a popular topic getting a lot of interest.   Much of the discussion surrounding GPS tracking, mobile GPS and cell phone tracker software programs would be more meaningful with a GPS Satellite introduction and glossary.

GPS is an acronym for Global Positioning System.   GPS satellites broadcast signals from medium earth orbit that GPS receivers use to provide three-dimensional location (latitude, longitude, and altitude) plus precise time.  The GPS network is made up of 3 main segments: Space Segment, Control Segment and User Segment. 

The GPS Space Segment made up of twenty-four  to thirty-two satellites that orbit the earth at a height of about 12,000 miles.  These satellites are also known as as the GPS Constellation, and they make an orbit once every 12 hours.  They are not geosynchronous, but rather move at over 7,000 mph.  They are solar powered but have battery reserve for when they are in the earth’s shadow. They are positioned so that at any given time there are at least 4 satellites ‘visible’ from any point on earth.  Small rocket boosters on each satellite keep them flying in the correct path.   The satellites have a lifetime of about 10 years until all their fuel is exhausted. 

GPS Satellites are not communications satellites.   Geostationary or communications satellites use a higher altitude 22,300 miles above the equator.  These satellites are used for weather forecasting, satellite TV, satellite radio and most other types of global communications.  At exactly 22,000 miles above the equator, the earth’s force of gravity and centrifugal forces are canceled and are in equilibrium. This is the best location to place a stationary satellite.   The earth rotates at about 1,000 miles an hour, and because of their high earth orbit the geostationary satellites need to travel at about 7,000 mph to sustain position.  This is approximately the same speed as GPS satellites, but since earth-synchronous satellites are 10,000 miles further away they stay in place relative to the earth. 

The GPS Control Segment is composed of Master Control Station, an Alternate Master Control Station, and a host of dedicated and shared Ground Antennas and Monitor Stations that work together to ensure the satellites are working to specification and the information they send to earth is accurate. 

The GPS User Segment incorporates of GPS receivers  taking the shape of cell phones and , laptops, in-car navigation devices and hand-held tracking units along with the people that use them, and the software applications that make them function.  

GPS receivers determine location by precisely timing the signals sent by GPS satellites.  This information includes the time the message was transmitted, precise orbital information (the ephemeris), and the general system health and rough orbits of all GPS satellites (the almanac). 

Consider that there is a basic difference between cell phone GPS Tracking and GPS Navigation.  GPS cell phone tracking is typically related to a third-party maintaining records of either real-time or historical handset  position, while Navigation deals with the handset  user figuring out how to get from point A to point B.  Neither use works without some sort of third-party software application.

A very good software package that features  remote control of handset settings, and combines Cell Phone Tracking  with SMS text message, Call Log,  MMS multi-media message monitoring, and a web account for storage and review is PhoneBeagle. 

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Global Satellite System Frequently Asked Questions

Why does GPS receiver only work outside?
GPS satellites are positioned in their orbits to be sure that from any location on earth there are a minimum four satellites visibile at any given time. Even though they send signals by radio wave, the signal needs a clear of site to the receiver. Once the GPS satellite slips below, or a building, or even heavy cloud cover, the radio signal may not reach the receiver.  

What do the satellites do?
Each satellite is broadcasting the time. Both the satellite and the GPS receiver use atomic clocks for extreme accuracy.  By comparing the difference between the time given by the satellite and the time in the GPS receiver, it can calculate the distance between it and the satellite.

How do GPS satellites know their location?
The satellites keep position archived inside in calculated tables. But satellites can get off course over time. To make adjustments, the satellite communicates with ground stations positioned around the world. Whenever it touches base with the ground stations, the satellite adjusts its internal position tables.

Does a GPS receiver transmit information back to the satellite?
No, they don’t do that. GPS equipped cell phones will send data but not to the satellite.

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