Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Fly Rod

Fly Rod

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You may want to wait before spending a couple of thousand dollars on up grading or buying a new GPS. A private company has made a proposal to the federal Communication Commission to use radio frequency bandwidth right next to the existing GPS radio bandwidth.

At issue is an unusual conditional waiver granted by the Federal Communication Commission to a broadband wireless communication provider. The company Lightsquared has proposed to build 40,000 high powered ground stations.

The FCC has received a report of the widespread harmful interference to the GPS system that this new bandwidth will do.
 
JB

JB

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Snowball in Texas has a lot better chance, Fly Rod.

You overlook the tens (hundreds?) of thousands of vehicles equipped with billions of bux worth of "nav" gps.

The GPS system cares not whether you are a boat, an M1 Abrams tank or a Honda Civic. It will not be compromised. DOD will see to that.
 
GA_Boater

GA_Boater

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Since GPS is a Military development and almost all of their location systems are GPS based, this is highly unlikely.
 
skargo

skargo

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Not gonna happen. Lightsquared is going to put a 4G network owned by sprint on a parallel band. There are interference issues but I am sure they will all be worked out.

In other words, the sky is not falling.
 
Fly Rod

Fly Rod

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

I was informed that the FCC has voted this down recently.

Just think what this would have done if passed, especially to the coast guard emergency GPS system nation wide.
 
j_martin

j_martin

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D

DJ

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Availabilty and ACCESS are two different things.

Expect a "Charge/Fee", soon, for GPS access.
 
j_martin

j_martin

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

bruceb58 said:
Not a chance. No good technical way for that to occur for one thing.
Click to expand...

I beg to differ.

Old technology fails (interference)
New technology is taxed.

SOP. Refrigerant is a good example.

The spectrum problem, I suspect, is that LightSquared technology is too high powered and dirty (sideband splatter) GPS is long range and relatively low powered.

FCC dragging it out may have the positive effect of more refined technology at rollout.

I remember when we thought 1200 baud on a voice line was a miracle. The technology finally pushed it to 56 Kbaud under good conditions, 28 kbaud reliably. I'm gettin' too old to figure out how they did it.

I think this problem will be resolved also, but I don't mind seeing LightSquared and their billions sit and cool their heels awhile rather than put many people in actual danger.
 
bruceb58

bruceb58

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

j_martin said:
I beg to differ.

Old technology fails (interference)
New technology is taxed.
Click to expand...
True, but there is no way to have a "pay to play" with the present system, especially "soon" as DJ mentioned. As far as taxing users currently, the only real way to do that is to put a tax on the receivers themselves which seems kind of silly since we are already paying taxes to put the system up in the first place right? Its not like this is a commercial venture here.

I too believe the problem is due to "out of band" RF. LightSquared is blaming GPS receivers for having to wide of receiving bandwidth and GPS receiver companies are blaming LightSquared for transmitting out of band.

Boating's use of GPS is the least of the worries. Its the commercial aircraft use of GPS which is the biggest problem.
 
D

DJ

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Mark my words. TAX.

This is something that the Fed's can easily track and tax.

The GPS system, Reagan's Legacy, is in disrepair. The current Admin. has some clue how to fix it and they have a clear clue on how to pay for it.

Thus=Tax.

The data, is there for a taxing agency, to gather WHO used it and when.

Get Ready.
 
bruceb58

bruceb58

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

DJ said:
The data, is there for a taxing agency, to gather WHO used it and when.
Click to expand...
There is absolutely no data about who uses it. GPS satellites only communicate within the GPS system and that is for GPS control use only. Users do not communicate with the GPS system.

For example, your GPS in your boat does not transmit. Please explain how you think anyone would know if you are using GPS?

http://www.gps.gov/policy/legislation/uscode/#title10
"U.S. law and policy require the civil GPS service to be provided free of direct user fees."

GPS was started in early 70s...way before Reagan became president.

What makes you think it is in disrepair?
There is a whole modernization process in the works planned years ago!
http://www.gps.gov/systems/gps/modernization/
 
D

DJ

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

bruceb58 said:
There is absolutely no data about who uses it. GPS satellites only communicate within the GPS system and that is for GPS control use only. Users do not communicate with the GPS system.

For example, your GPS in your boat does not transmit. Please explain how you think anyone would know if you are using GPS?

http://www.gps.gov/policy/legislation/uscode/#title10
"U.S. law and policy require the civil GPS service to be provided free of direct user fees."

GPS was started in early 70s...way before Reagan became president.

What makes you think it is in disrepair?
There is a whole modernization process in the works planned years ago!
http://www.gps.gov/systems/gps/modernization/
Click to expand...

We're kidding ourselves and believing it.

We'll have the same conversation, three years from now, and someone will say: What happened?
 
JB

JB

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Re: Boaters Stand to lose GPS System

Careful, amigos. This thread is beginning to smell of politics.;)
 
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