G(ee)PS

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, March 28, 2002

Associated Press

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Per Enge remembers the days when global positioning system devices were the size of microwave ovens and were temperamental. They had to wait for passing satellites to get their bearings.

Considered one of the pioneers of GPS, the Stanford University professor never imagined more than two decades ago how the technology would improve while shrinking in size and cost.

Now, GPS receivers are built into all kinds of things.

Cars. Watches. Cell phones. Hand-held computers. Soon, maybe even a microchip implant for humans.

Once strictly a government tool, GPS was quickly adopted by pilots, boat captains and map geeks as the navigation system — based now on a network of 24 satellites — became available for civilian use.

Now there’s a crop of GPS-based devices that will help you find your child, car or the best fishing spot.

Global positioning devices receive radio signals from satellites to tell users where on Earth they are. Coupled with software and mapping programs, the devices pinpoint locations by altitude, longitude and latitude to within a meter of accuracy.

"It’s stunning," Enge said. "In the beginning, the expected marketplace was 40,000 receivers — total — for military use. Today, we build 100,000 receivers a month, and most of it isn’t for the military."

Wherify Wireless Inc. just introduced a GPS car-tracking device and a GPS-enabled battery pack that can turn a cell phone into a personal locator. In June, the company plans to start selling a wristwatch device that can help parents find their children or track down a lost Alzheimer’s patient.

Soon, Pulse Data HumanWare will sell a portable GPS navigation system that tells sight-impaired users how to get to more than 15 million points of interest such as museums and amusement parks.

Blind since birth, Carrie Schieu, 24, of Los Angeles, can’t wait to use it. "I stick to routes I know because I don’t have to rely on others for help. This will help me be a little adventurous and go other places I haven’t been."

The GPS market in the United States accounted for $4.2 billion in revenue and 5.3 million units shipped last year, according to Allied Business Intelligence Inc., a market research firm.

Already, golf courses are outfitting carts with GPS systems to help players measure distances between shots. Automakers are offering in-dash navigation, allowing drivers to get directions or find the nearest restaurant.

Farmers are using GPS for precision mapping of crop yields and to keep their rows straight. Wilderness firefighters are starting to use hand-held computers with GPS to enhance tactical plans.

Five years ago, SiRF Technology Inc., the leading GPS chip supplier, produced a chip set the size of a playing card. Today, it’s as small as a thumbnail.

Recreational hand-held GPS devices, which first sold for $3,000, now sell for as little as $100, though they are not as precise as the $10,000 advanced systems for professional surveyors.

GPS devices have also become more accurate.

Several years ago, navigation systems would take a while to cue up a location. Drivers could be traveling five minutes in the wrong direction before the system would alert them to the mistake. Some would even tell motorists to make a U-turn on the highway if they missed an exit.

Another factor for GPS growth is the government "E911" mandate requiring wireless carriers to pinpoint locations of 911 cellular phone calls.

Companies such as Enuvis Inc. are working to improve GPS so receivers could work indoors and in so-called urban canyons — downtown areas with tall buildings that have long acted as barriers for GPS signals.

"We imagine a world one day where you’ll never lose anything and nothing will ever be lost," said Michael Kim, president of Enuvis.

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