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Geopositioning, also known as geotracking, geolocalization, geolocating, geolocation, or geoposition fixing, is the process of determining or estimating the
geographic position The geographic coordinate system (GCS) is a spherical or ellipsoidal coordinate system for measuring and communicating positions directly on the Earth as latitude and longitude. It is the simplest, oldest and most widely used of the various ...
of an object. Geopositioning yields a set of
geographic coordinates The geographic coordinate system (GCS) is a spherical or ellipsoidal coordinate system for measuring and communicating positions directly on the Earth as latitude and longitude. It is the simplest, oldest and most widely used of the various ...
(such as
latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...
and
longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east– west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lette ...
) in a given
map datum A geodetic datum or geodetic system (also: geodetic reference datum, geodetic reference system, or geodetic reference frame) is a global datum reference or reference frame for precisely representing the position of locations on Earth or other plan ...
; positions may also be expressed as a bearing and range from a known landmark. In turn, positions can determine a meaningful location, such as a street address. Specific instances include: animal geotracking, the process of inferring the location of animals;
positioning system A positioning system is a system for determining the position of an object in space. One of the most well-known and commonly used positioning systems is the Global Positioning System (GPS). Positioning system technologies exist ranging from worl ...
, the mechanisms for the determination of geographic positions in general;
internet geolocation In computing, Internet geolocation is software capable of deducing the geographic position of a device connected to the Internet. For example, the device's IP address can be used to determine the country, city, or ZIP code, determining its geogra ...
, geolocating a device connected to the internet; and
mobile phone tracking Mobile phone tracking is a process for identifying the location of a mobile phone, whether stationary or moving. Localization may be effected by a number of technologies, such as the multilateration of radio signals between (several) cell towers ...
.


Background

Geopositioning uses various visual and
electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...
methods including
position line A position line or line of position (LOP) is a line (or, on the surface of the earth, a curve) that can be both identified on a chart (nautical chart or aeronautical chart) and translated to the surface of the earth. The intersection of a minimum ...
s and position circles, celestial navigation,
radio navigation Radio navigation or radionavigation is the application of radio frequencies to determine a position of an object on the Earth, either the vessel or an obstruction. Like radiolocation, it is a type of radiodetermination. The basic principles a ...
, and the use of satellite navigation systems. The calculation requires measurements or observations of distances or angles to reference points whose positions are known. In 2D surveys, observations of three reference points are enough to compute a position in a
two-dimensional In mathematics, a plane is a Euclidean ( flat), two-dimensional surface that extends indefinitely. A plane is the two-dimensional analogue of a point (zero dimensions), a line (one dimension) and three-dimensional space. Planes can arise as ...
plane. In practice, observations are subject to errors resulting from various physical and atmospheric factors that influence the measurement of distances and angles. A practical example of obtaining a position fix would be for a ship to take bearing measurements on three lighthouses positioned along the coast. These measurements could be made visually using a hand bearing compass, or in poor visibility, electronically using
radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
or radio direction finding. Since all physical observations are subject to errors, the resulting position fix is also subject to inaccuracy. Although in theory two lines of position (LOP) are enough to define a point, in practice 'crossing' more LOPs provides greater accuracy and confidence, especially if the lines cross at a good angle to each other. Three LOPs are considered the minimum for a practical navigational fix. The three LOPs when drawn on the chart will in general form a triangle, known as a 'cocked hat'. The navigator will have more confidence in a position fix that is formed by a small cocked hat with angles close to those of an
equilateral triangle In geometry, an equilateral triangle is a triangle in which all three sides have the same length. In the familiar Euclidean geometry, an equilateral triangle is also equiangular; that is, all three internal angles are also congruent to each oth ...
. The area of doubt surrounding a position fix is called an
error ellipse In statistics, a confidence region is a multi-dimensional generalization of a confidence interval. It is a set of points in an ''n''-dimensional space, often represented as an ellipsoid around a point which is an estimated solution to a problem, ...
. To minimize the error,
electronic navigation Electronic navigation are forms of navigation that ships, land vehicles, and people can use, which rely on technology powered by electricity. Methods of electronic navigation include: *Satellite navigation, satellite navigation systems *Radio navi ...
systems generally use more than three reference points to compute a position fix to increase the data redundancy. As more redundant reference points are added, the position fix becomes more accurate and the area of the resulting error ellipse decreases. The process of combining multiple observations to compute a position fix is equivalent to solving a system of linear equations. Navigation systems use regression algorithms such as least squares in order to compute a position fix in 3D space. This is most commonly done by combining distance measurements to 4 or more
GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite sy ...
satellites, which orbit the earth along known paths. The result of position fixing is called a position fix (PF), or simply a fix, a position derived from measuring in relation to external reference points. In nautical
navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
, the term is generally used with manual or visual techniques, such as the use of intersecting visual or radio
position line A position line or line of position (LOP) is a line (or, on the surface of the earth, a curve) that can be both identified on a chart (nautical chart or aeronautical chart) and translated to the surface of the earth. The intersection of a minimum ...
s, rather than the use of more automated and accurate electronic methods like
GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite sy ...
; in aviation, use of electronic navigation aids is more common. A visual fix can be made by using any sighting device with a bearing indicator. Two or more objects of known position are sighted, and the bearings recorded. Bearing lines are then plotted on a chart through the locations of the sighted items. The intersection of these lines is the current position of the vessel. Usually, a fix is where two or more position lines intersect at any given time. If three position lines can be obtained, the resulting "cocked hat", where the three lines do not intersect at the same point, but create a triangle, gives the navigator an indication of the accuracy. The most accurate fixes occur when the position lines are perpendicular to each other. Fixes are a necessary aspect of navigation by
dead reckoning In navigation, dead reckoning is the process of calculating current position of some moving object by using a previously determined position, or fix, and then incorporating estimates of speed, heading direction, and course over elapsed time. ...
, which relies on estimates of
speed In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude Magnitude may refer to: Mathematics *Euclidean vector, a quantity defined by both its magnitude and its direction *Magnitude (ma ...
and course. The fix confirms the actual position during a journey. A fix can introduce inaccuracies if the reference point is not correctly identified or is inaccurately measured.


Usage

WhatsApp WhatsApp (also called WhatsApp Messenger) is an internationally available freeware, cross-platform, centralized instant messaging (IM) and voice-over-IP (VoIP) service owned by American company Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook). It allows use ...
provides a free user location tool which can be used to see the location of a loved one among other uses. Food delivery apps use this. During the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. ...
, the Ukrainian army called airstrikes on locations from videos that have geolocation data. Geopositioning is also used in the collection of meteorological and phytopathological data to forecast
crop pathogen Plant pathology (also phytopathology) is the scientific study of diseases in plants caused by pathogens (infectious organisms) and environmental conditions (physiological factors). Organisms that cause infectious disease include fungi, oomy ...
s.


See also

*
Dynamic positioning Dynamic positioning (DP) is a computer-controlled system to automatically maintain a vessel's position and heading by using its own propellers and thrusters. Position reference sensors, combined with wind sensors, motion sensors and gyrocompass ...
*
Geo-blocking Geo-blocking or geoblocking is technology that restricts access to Internet content based upon the user's geographical location. In a geo-blocking scheme, the user's location is determined using Internet geolocation techniques, such as checking t ...
*
Geocoding Address geocoding, or simply geocoding, is the process of taking a text-based description of a location, such as an address or the name of a place, and returning geographic coordinates, frequently latitude/longitude pair, to identify a locatio ...
* Geodesy *
Geoid The geoid () is the shape that the ocean surface would take under the influence of the gravity of Earth, including gravitational attraction and Earth's rotation, if other influences such as winds and tides were absent. This surface is extended ...
*
GPS tracking unit A GPS tracking unit, geotracking unit, satellite tracking unit, or simply tracker is a navigation device normally on a vehicle, asset, person or animal that uses satellite navigation to determine its movement and determine its WGS84 UTM g ...
*
Geomarketing In marketing, geomarketing (also called marketing geography) is a discipline that uses geolocation (geographic information) in the process of planning and implementation of marketing activities.
*
Geotagging Geotagging, or GeoTagging, is the process of adding geographical identification metadata to various media such as a geotagged photograph or video, websites, SMS messages, QR Codes or RSS feeds and is a form of geospatial metadata. This data u ...
** Geotagged photo *
Geotargeting In geomarketing and internet marketing, geotargeting is the method of delivering different content to visitors based on their geolocation. This includes country, region/state, city, metro code/ zip code, organization, IP address, ISP, or other cri ...
* Indoor positioning *
Location-based service A location-based service (LBS) is a general term denoting software services which use geographic data and information to provide services or information to users. LBS can be used in a variety of contexts, such as health, indoor object search, en ...
* Map–territory relation (in philosophy of geography) * Positional astronomy * Satellite navigation solution * Satellite navigation software * Surveying * Triangulation *
Web analytics Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis, and reporting of web data to understand and optimize web usage. Web analytics is not just a process for measuring web traffic but can be used as a tool for business and market research and ...
*
W3C Geolocation API The W3C Geolocation API is an effort by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to standardize an interface to retrieve the geographical location information for a client-side device. It defines a set of objects, ECMAScript standard compliant, that ...


References


Further reading

* * {{Authority control * Broad-concept articles