3 ms·

OpenPositioningSystem

4 points by platz 13y ago

na85 13y ago
I browsed the website briefly but didn't see any actual science. Is there any data showing that this idea is actually feasible? It's certainly a lofty goal but I just don't see it panning out. 1. How will this system be useable for navigating in remote areas, like the desert, the ocean, or the wilderness, far from "seismic forces" produced by power plants? I don't need a navigation fix when I'm on the highway between Vancouver and Seattle. I need it when I'm in the Russian Far East in the middle of a forest. I need it when I'm trying to get my tanker to New York and it's cloudy. 2. I imagine that most generators work on a very small band of frequencies. I.e. Because generator designs are all fairly similar, I'm sure there are hundreds of points on the Earth's surface that would seismically "sound" the same to this receiver. If there are 6 plants with the same generator, and 3 are in California and 3 are in Germany, how does the receiver know if I'm in California or in Germany?
- malandrew 13y ago
  What about a computer vision system that uses the stars and the sun to determine location? I imagine that such a device would need an accelerometer to determine it's orientation relative to the horizon and a decent sensor with normal prime lens (focal length equal to diagonal dimension of sensor) A temperature and pressure sensor may also be useful because so long as the calendar is set correctly, the system could narrow down it's possible locations by comparing actual temperature and pressure with a database of historical highs and lows. I would imagine any approach using the stars in the sky would be extremely accurate. It only needs batteries and access to solar power to remain functional. What other sensor data would be valuable to help infer geolocation? Magnetometer?
  - na85 13y ago
    Well, I'm fairly certain that anywhere along the same line of lattitude, the Sun looks the same at any given time of day. As for the Stars, yeah that might work. But only on a clear night. Pressure would be okay for determining altitude, but that's it. Temp and pressure are so wildly variable that it would be a thoroughly useless metric for determining position. Not to mention that there simply aren't databases of historical temperature data for random expanses of Pacific Ocean.

4 points by platz 13y ago

na85 13y ago

I browsed the website briefly but didn't see any actual science. Is there any data showing that this idea is actually feasible? It's certainly a lofty goal but I just don't see it panning out. 1. How will this system be useable for navigating in remote areas, like the desert, the ocean, or the wilderness, far from "seismic forces" produced by power plants? I don't need a navigation fix when I'm on the highway between Vancouver and Seattle. I need it when I'm in the Russian Far East in the middle of a forest. I need it when I'm trying to get my tanker to New York and it's cloudy. 2. I imagine that most generators work on a very small band of frequencies. I.e. Because generator designs are all fairly similar, I'm sure there are hundreds of points on the Earth's surface that would seismically "sound" the same to this receiver. If there are 6 plants with the same generator, and 3 are in California and 3 are in Germany, how does the receiver know if I'm in California or in Germany?

malandrew 13y ago
What about a computer vision system that uses the stars and the sun to determine location? I imagine that such a device would need an accelerometer to determine it's orientation relative to the horizon and a decent sensor with normal prime lens (focal length equal to diagonal dimension of sensor) A temperature and pressure sensor may also be useful because so long as the calendar is set correctly, the system could narrow down it's possible locations by comparing actual temperature and pressure with a database of historical highs and lows. I would imagine any approach using the stars in the sky would be extremely accurate. It only needs batteries and access to solar power to remain functional. What other sensor data would be valuable to help infer geolocation? Magnetometer?
- na85 13y ago
  Well, I'm fairly certain that anywhere along the same line of lattitude, the Sun looks the same at any given time of day. As for the Stars, yeah that might work. But only on a clear night. Pressure would be okay for determining altitude, but that's it. Temp and pressure are so wildly variable that it would be a thoroughly useless metric for determining position. Not to mention that there simply aren't databases of historical temperature data for random expanses of Pacific Ocean.