Invention

Satellite Navigation Device

Computer Engineering

A satellite navigation device, or satnav, is a receiver that determines its geographic position using GPS or another global navigation satellite system, often displaying the user's location on a map and offering turn-by-turn routing, and working in all weather with a clear line of sight to four or more satellites. The United States Navy's Transit system, deployed in 1960 for naval navigation, and the more comprehensive Global Positioning System planned from 1973 established the satellite infrastructure such devices rely on; President Ronald Reagan opened GPS to civilian use in 1983 after the shooting down of Korean Air Lines Flight 007, though initially with degraded civilian accuracy. Magellan Navigation Inc. unveiled the Magellan NAV 1000 in 1989 as the world's first commercial handheld GPS receiver, selling for about 2,900 dollars, and vehicle navigation followed quickly, with Mazda's Eunos Cosmo becoming the first production car with built-in satellite navigation in 1990; full civilian accuracy arrived in 2000 when the Clinton administration ended the deliberate signal degradation known as Selective Availability.

Facts
Year
1989 1
Significance
The Magellan NAV 1000, the world's first commercial handheld GPS receiver, sold for approximately 2,900 US dollars at launch. 1
Purpose
Transport 1
FAQs

Why can a satellite navigation device lose track of its position in a city or tunnel?

It needs a clear line of sight to four or more satellites.

A satellite navigation device needs an unobstructed line of sight to four or more navigation satellites, and its reception is subject to poor signal conditions. Obstructed lines of sight can come from a tree canopy or from being inside a structure such as a building, garage or tunnel.
Connections

In Field

Source Satellite navigation device, Wikipedia
Sources
1. Satellite navigation device, Wikipedia
  • History section, Magellan NAV 1000 unveiling sentence
    In 1989, Magellan Navigation Inc. unveiled its Magellan NAV 1000, the world's first commercial handheld GPS receiver.
  • History section, sentence following the Magellan NAV 1000 introduction
    These units initially sold for approximately US$2,900 each.
  • Lead section
    most standalone satnav receivers are used in automobiles
  • In Field: Computer Engineering, Lead paragraph
    A satellite navigation device, also called a satnav device or GPS/GNSS device, uses satellites of the Global Positioning System (GPS) or other global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) to determine the user's geographic coordinates.
  • In Group: Speech, Navigation and Autonomous Driving Technologies, Lead paragraph
    A satellite navigation device, also called a satnav device or GPS/GNSS device, uses satellites of the Global Positioning System (GPS) or other global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) to determine the user's geographic coordinates.
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