MalaysiaGIS.com

Source: Business Computing (page 10)

Today, variations of GPS technology have extended into the development of a huge range of useful equipment for land surveying, marine or mining construction, avionics, military, mapping, timing and synchronisation, and even agricultural purposes.

GPS Usage
In Malaysia, the high-end applications of GPS-related systems are largely employed in hydrographic surveys of coastal areas, dredging, and marine construction such as oil and gas platforms.

Meanwhile, numerous government departments and private research agencies use GPS-type equipment to conduct quantifying surveys of land sites, property and offshore locations.

There is also opportunity to leverage GPS products for precision farming in local plantations. But of these various usage, GPS is still most commonly known for its capability of tracking remote, mobile positions.

Don Govan, managing consultant of DGPS Consultants Sdn Bhd, shares with Business Computing the availability of such viable solutions for fleet tracking.

"A good example of GPS usage is in the monitoring of high-value transporters such as armoured cars, or trucks, carrying high-value cargo," says Govan. Other than cash, examples of high-value cargo are semiconductor/processors or even cigarettes.

Apparently, the Trimble dealer currently supplies to two high-value transporters companies locally. But commercial fleets such as dispatch, rentals, limos, shuttles and roadside service mobile units are also suitable candidates for GPS tracking.

"GPS tracking for positioning is good for public emergency situations, for example, when a rented car has to be located immediately," says Govan.

Utility companies may also use the solution to be able use the solution to be able to respond quickly to their customer calls.

Aside from tracking, Trimble's GPS system for mobile positioning can also perform remote monitoring and control of certain vehicle functions from a central location.

The intelligent Cross Check mobile unit (located in the vehicle) is incorporated with a reporting and data storage capabilities via an 'event engine' firmware.

"This means that rather than mindlessly sending out signals to report its location, the device sends out a signal only at the occurrence of a predetermined event," explains Govan.

Together with the FleetVision software, the system can enhance asset (cargo and vehicle) management as well as enhance security; by alerting of an unauthorised vehicle activity so that the operation centre can instruct a vehicle function, such as the opening of the cargo bay blots, or blaring of the horns, directly from a remote desktop.

Govan also illustrates the extend of detailed customisation of such "excursions" using the many field combination of "if-then" instructions. He prices a single CrossCheck mobile unit, that carries a warranty of four years, between RM5,000 to RM6,000.

Improvements in GPS
Improvements in GPS technology has driven up its adoption around the world. "Firstly, the size of the GPS receiver has shrunk tremendously. Although the antenna of radio and satellite-based GPS devices are clearly visible, the antenna of cellular-based devices is rather discrete," explains Govan.

Hence, cellular-based GPS systems are the choiced method of transmission, because the antenna involved is simply a clear embedded wire that can be applied on the windscreen; not any whip antenna, bubble, dish or dome shaped object.

Obviously, a major consideration for security applications is how well, the fact that a vehicle is tracked, can be concealed. Secondly, other than the reduced power consumption of GPS devices, their cost has dropped dramatically making them more affordable.

"A marine grade GPS for hydrographic survey cost about 500 per cent higher five years ago, for the same high-quality, four-year warranty device." says Govan.

Other than that, GPS technology has become almost totally reliable, with the last of the 23 satellites, being launched in 1994. Orbiting higher than most imaging satellites in the sky, these 24 satellites now allow full operations of GPS worldwide.

Local Awareness
Several local environment factors also contribute to the progress of GPS development and activities in the local market. On the awareness of GPS, Govan feels that Malaysians generally understand what the term entails, but other than within certain niched industries, news about GPS technology and developments are still rarely mentioned.

Apparently, the adoption of GPS technology by independent members of the public such as field workers or outdoor hobbyist, is hindered by the lack of adequate mapping information.

"You can walk into any bookshop or store in the US and be able to find detailed, updated maps of highways and countrysides, in both physical and digitised formats. Here, such maps are difficult to come by" says Govan, pointing out the main restriction commercial GPS users face.

As digital maps (in GIS format) is critical for GPS tracking, DGPS Consultants had taken the initiative to map every single road in Peninsular Malaysia.

"Our maps were not traced out of a government map, but was compiled by physically driving a GPS-enabled vehicle through each route for position and landmark data," claims Govan.

The good thing about Malaysia, according to Govan, is the significant efforts to improve the naming of streets and highways over the past four years.

"Other than more signboards, the highways are 'numbered' now, allowing people to better identify themselves on the GIS map," says Govan. Since its launch in September last year, some 35 units of Trimble's CrossCheck has been sold in the local market. DGPS targets for the sale of another 500 units within the next six months.

"The economic condition was holding back interest and investment into GPS equipment. But companies are looking into a future of greater competitive advantage and increased customer satisfaction through better asset management, via GPS," says Govan.

Other than plans to move into customer navigation, using palm pilots for guided GPS instructions in vehicles, DGPS is working with an application hosting provider to provide GPS mobile positioning and tracking capabilities via the Internet.

"Soon, all the user needs to do is to log on to the Website, key in his ID and be able to track his fleet real-time from that site," says Govan.