Cell Phone GPS Tracking Tutorial

A couple of worthwhile technical capabilities related to GPS cell tracking to consider include: Tracking Application “Persistence”. The tracking application on a cell phone typically must be enabled by the user. Depending on the device, the application may persist – remaining enabled when the phone is turned on after having been turned off. This feature can be particularly usefull if phone tracking is important and you do not want to require the person using the phone to turn tracking on and off. Another issue related to Tracking Application “Persistence” and mobile phone GPS location is the potential of wasting the battery. It is important to be able to remotely adjust how often of taking GPS position. Choosing real-time or periodic sampling affects both the accuracy of finding location as well as how long the battery will last. One typical method of minimizing battery and data use is Passive Tracking. Some cell phone GPS tracking devices will record location data internally so that it can be downloaded late

r. Also known as “data logging,” which can keep position information even when the device has traveled outside the wireless network. Passive tracking is not a universal feature built-in to standard cell phone, but the most up-to-date mobile phones tend to include Passive tracking features.

Much of the discussion surrounding cell tracking, cell phone GPS and cell phone tracking software could be helped by a GPS Satellite primer.

GPS satellites broadcast signals from space that GPS receivers utilize to determine three-dimensional location (latitude, longitude, and altitude) plus precise time. GPS is an acronym for Global Positioning System and is a system that is made up of 3 primary segments: Space Segment, Control Segment and User Segment.

The GPS Space Segment is composed of twenty-four to thirty-two satellites that orbit the earth at a height of about 12,000 miles. These satellites are referred to as the GPS Constellation, and they make an orbit twice a day. They are not geostationary, but rather move at over 7,000 mph. They are solar powered but have battery backup for when they are in the earth?s shadow. They are placed so that there are at least 4 satellites ?visible? from any point on earth. Small rocket boosters on each satellite keep them properly positioned. The satellites last about ten years until all their fuel is exhausted.

GPS Satellites are not communications satellites. Geostationary or communications satellites are at a much higher orbit of about 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 gravitational force and centrifugal forces are offset and are in equilibrium. This is the best location to place a communications satellite. The earth rotates at about 1,000 miles an hour, and because of their high earth orbit the geo-synchronous 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 don?t move relative to the earth.

The GPS Control Segment is comprised of Master Control Station, an Alternate Master Control Station, and numerous dedicated and shared Ground Antennas and Monitor Stations that work together to make sure the satellites are working correctly and the data they send to earth is accurate.

The GPS User Segment includes of GPS receivers taking the shape of mobiles 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 work.

GPS receivers determine position 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).

When satellite signals are not readily available, or accuracy and precision is less important than life of the battery, employing Cell-ID is a good substitute to GPS mobile phone tracking. The location of the smartphone might be determined by the cellular network cell id, that pinpoints the cell tower the phone is connected to. By understanding the position of the tower, you may know approximately the spot where the smartphone might be. But, a tower can cover an enormous area, from a couple of hundred meters, in high populationdensity zones, to a few kilometers in lower density zones. For this reason location CellID precision is less than than GPS accuracy. Having said that monitoring from CellID still provides a truly helpful substitute.

Cell Phone GPS Tracking Tutorial