# Presentation: 944765

## GPS - The Big Picture

**GPS - The Big Picture**

- 2004

**Notes:**
Opening Talk

GPS for Ologists – Opening Talk
March 30, May 20, 2004
NPS / USFWS

## Overview

- Introduction - Show GPS Movie
- GPS and the Big Picture
- Accuracy
- Review of GPS Receiver Types
- Why the Garmin GPSMap76 Receiver

- Show GPS Movie
- Movie is found on your CD
- <_[Presentations/](file:///Shortcut%20to%20Autorun.exe.lnk)__[GPSMovie](file:///Shortcut%20to%20Autorun.exe.lnk)_
- Requires Acrobat Version 4 – on CD

## Why do “Ologists” Need GPS?

**Why do “Ologists” Need GPS?**

- Spatial location is a critical component in all field work

## Why do Ologists Need GPS?

**Why do Ologists Need GPS?**

- Field work is done outside in remote locations where map information could be out of date, too large of spatial scale
- Ologists are retiring and locations of stuff are not being archived

## What Can You Do With GPS? 

- Accurately and precisely record sites within 4 meters
- 1m or better with other GPS
- Navigate to locations pre-determined by others
- Record the path you took and play it back later (make a map in                    the GIS)

## GPS Myths 

- GPS does not work in the far north
- Selective Availability will be turned back on
- I Just turn my GPS on and never check settings - it just works!!
- GPS is only a “Field” thing

## Overview

- Introduction - Show GPS Movie
- GPS and the Big Picture
- GPS Accuracy
- Review of GPS Receiver Types
- Why the Garmin GPSMap76 Receiver

## GPS - The Big Picture

- Glacier Moraines

- Streams

- Trails

## GPS - The Big Picture

** ****GPS Data for Maps**
- Original Mapping
- What’s out there?
- Updating
- Databases

**Notes:**
GPS is about Making Maps for the Parks

## You Are The Big Picture

**You**** Are The Big Picture**

-  Archive of Park Stuff!

- Create/Obtain
- New Data

- Distribute Data
- To Parks

- Distribute To
- W W W

**Notes:**
GPS is about archiving high quality data for current and future users of the park

The National Park Service has done a deplorable job in brain dumping from long-term employees with what is out there?

## How Accurate is GPS

- Today...
- GPS manufacturers quote about 50 ft (17m)
- ...but were getting 26 ft (8m) fairly reliably with good sky

- Even Better!

## Accuracy Comparisons – Open*

**4 m**

**Map76**

**3 m**

**Garmin V**

**95% - XY**

**Garmins**

**4 m**

**III Plus**

*****Test sites used on this slide: Garmin V(NPS Bakerville); Garmin III+/Map76 (MTDC)

**Notes:**
What the government says we should be getting in accuracy and what is being  “Reported for  Horizontal Accuracy’s is seen here.
This graph depicts typical modern consumer-grade GPS after a 48 hour occupation on a stationary point.

## Accuracy Comparisons – Open*

**0.6 m**

**Pro XR**

**2 m**

**Geo 3**

**95% - XY**

**Trimble**

**0.9 – 1.6 m**

**Geo XT**

*****Test sites used on this slide: Geo3 / GeoXT (1.6mMTDC); ProXR (Estacada).  NOTE:  GeoXT accuracy of 0.9 reported by NPS – Bakersville RT

**Notes:**
What the government says we should be getting in accuracy and what is being  “Reported for  Horizontal Accuracy’s is seen here.
This graph depicts typical modern consumer-grade GPS after a 48 hour occupation on a stationary point.

## Garmin Accuracy

## GPS Under Canopy

**GPS Under Canopy**

- Watch Out

- Garmins           17 – 20 meters
- Trimble             3 – 8 meters

## Putting It Another Way

- Which One?

## Which Tool for the Job

- Jobs for the Garmin
- Jobs for the Trimble

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Garmin Jobs

**Garmin Jobs**

- Bering Land Bridge - Drum Recovery and Disposal

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Garmin Jobs

**Garmin Jobs**

- Aerial Mapping
- Fire Perimeters
- Airstrips
- Animal locations

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Garmin Jobs

- Camp Sites
- Using Photos to record site Conditions
- Linking photos with location in GIS

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Which Tool for the Job

- Jobs for the Garmin
- Jobs for the Trimble

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Trimble Jobs

**Trimble Jobs**

- Utility Mapping

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Trimble Jobs

**Trimble Jobs**

** ****Multi-Feature Mapping**
- Soil sample sites
- Tree Core Locations

**Notes:**
GPS is about providing spatial data for analysis

## Trimble Jobs

**Trimble Jobs**

-  **Trail Mapping / Condition**

**Notes:**
GPS is about providing spatial data for analysis

## Which Tool For the Job

- Summary
- Garmin Jobs are for open country, “site locating”, simple maps
- Trimble Jobs for GIS base mapping, feature rich environments and areas with difficult GPS conditions

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Unique Aspects of Ologist Mapping

**Notes:**
Reviewing What  is Unique about Fire Mapping will help us decide on the right GPS tool..

Scale:  Fires are big -  measured in acres and perimeter miles.  Other features mapped as points can be quite large (Dozers or Helicopter Landing Zones (LZ's)).

The mode of collection is often from a moving platform.

Mapping environments are of course variable, but often can be in the open and as a factor of mapping style may be even hundreds of feet above the ground.  This is great GPS satellite country!

Along with aerial mapping exercises, the GPS sky environment can often be quite user-friendly.  Collecting data from 1000 AGL is great conditions for GPS

Often need to deploy multiple units around a fire and risks of losing equipment is high.  Unit costs of GPS must be low.

Hey, you have to keep things simple for you fire-fighters!.  A simple, easy-to-use unit for navigation and mapping is critical.

## Quick Review of GPS Types

- Recreational Grade
- Mapping / GIS Grade

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Review of GPS Receiver Types

**Notes:**

Survey Grade: Designed for applications that require extremely high accuracy’s, like boundary determination, precisely controlled Networks and vertical control.

## Quick Review of GPS Types

- Recreational Grade
- Navigation, Basic Mapping,        Fun
- Designed to Download into       TOPO mapping programs –        lightweight GIS

**Notes:**
Consumer Grade GPS- Designed for the mass market of consumers who boat, hike, travel by automobile and want a GPS that allows for great navigation, basic mapping.

## Quick Review of GPS Types

- Mapping/GIS Grade
- GIS Features and Attributes

**Notes:**

Mapping / GIS Grade Recievers - Designed for use in GIS applications that store mappable features and tag them with attributes.  These systems include GPS processing software for export to a GIS.  

The sad case of the Columbia space shuttle disaster is one Incident where this type of equipment and software can be utilized to bring both high accuracy mapping in various terrain, and cataloging debirs amonst 100’s of teams spread across 6 states. 

## PLGR’s

- Retired PLGRS  in _April 2003_
- Only 3 left in Alaska Parks
- Software                                        Improvements                                  make PLGRs                                    obsolete

## Differential GPS (DGPS)

**Differential GPS (DGPS)**

- Differential GPS
- A method of improving accuracy by adding a local reference station to augment information available from satellites
- Provided by
- Coast Guard Beacons (Realtime)
- WAAS

## DGPS - Coast Guard Beacons

- Sounds great but...
- Limited coverage
- KEFJ, LACL, KATM, SE AK

- Coast Guard DGPS Beacons

## DGPS - Satellite Based - Realtime

- WAAS
- 2 Equatorial satellites
- Broadcast corrected signals
- Designed for aircraft
- Limited coverage in Alaska
- poor under trees

- Theoretical WAAS Coverage

## DGPS Review -  Is it worth it?

- For higher accuracy and precision - a must
- Expect WAAS to increase broadcast area
- Purchase WAAS in your next receiver and hope...

## Decision Factors for the Ranger GPS Tool

- Accuracy
- Cost (hardware)
- Nerd Factor Scale

**Notes:**
Here are the Decision Factors for the Fire GPS Tool.

Accuracy:  Often the first and last question asked of a receiver
Cost:   Cost of the hardware (receiver).  
Nerds:  How many nerds are required for using the tool in both the field and back in the office.
Miscellaneous Factors such as Storage capacity in data and the Field collection strategy behind the receiver.

## Recreational Grade

- Accuracy: 3meter - 7meter
- Costs: $1500 - $150
- Nerd Factor:
- Storage: hours worth of data
- Strategy: waypoints, simple lines, polys

**Notes:**
Other names:  Recreational Grade Receivers
Accuracy’s are in the 3 to 7 meter range.  The 3 meter range is with coupling of the autonomous GPS receiver with DGPS (radio or WAAS)
Costs are lowest in this category with prices ranging from $200 - $1500 for systems
Nerds:  Low nerd factor here.  
Data Storage capacity is on the order of hours.
Strategy:  Unlike the Mapping/GIS systems, the collection strategy targets waypoints, tracks (breadcrumb points) and routes (sets of linked waypoints).  IE: this is a navigation strategy. In order to implement GIS features like areas and lines, a third-party software/Hardware link like ArcPad is required.
Equipment needs here are on the order of a shirt pocket or wrist!  
These systems usually are nicely coupled with moving map displays.

## Mapping/GIS Grade

**Mapping/GIS Grade**

- Accuracy: 1meter - 5meter
- Costs: $10,000 - $3,000
- Nerd Factor:
- Storage: days worth of data
- Strategy: GIS update

**Notes:**
Other names:  Mapping/GIS Receivers or Resource Grade Receivers.
Accuracy’s are in the 1 to 5 meter range
Costs for equipment and the software run on the order of 10 - 3K
Nerds:  The nerd requirement is 3.  These nerds are a reflection in the training and skill sets required to keep the GPS and GIS systems in tune with each other
Data Storage capacity is on the order of days
Strategy:  Designed to collect new information and update existing records in a GIS database.  This is feature and attribute driven.  These receiver generally are designed to produce better results in less GPS friendly environments.
Equipment needs here are on the order of backpacks and handheld dataloggers.  
These systems are coupled with post-processing software designed for export into GIS formats.

## Recreational Grade GPS Wins!

- Reasonable accuracy for mapping large things
- Low receiver cost
- Low nerd scale
- Strategy set to enhance navigation capabilities
- Low attribution requirements

**Notes:**
For the following reasons then, we have decided on the Consumer Grade GPS receiver type for Fire mapping.

Reasonable accuracy
Low receiver costs
Low nerd scale
Enhanced navigation capabilities like moving maps
Requirements on fires generally tend to be specific to mapping things quickly with minimal attribute requirements.

## Overview

- Introduction - Show GPS Movie
- GPS and the Big Picture
- GPS Accuracy
- Review of GPS Receiver Types
- Why the Garmin GPSMap76 Receiver

## Recreational Grade GPS

- Consumer Grade Manufacturers
- Garmin
- Recognized World Leader
- High Support

- Garmin

- Magellan

- Lowrance

## Garmin GPSMap 76

- $400
- 12 Channel GPS WAAS enabled
- 8 MB of Map memory*
- 10,000 track points
- 10 hours of battery life

- *Purchase of MapSource TOPO CD + $99

- 4 meters (open)

**Notes:**
A Garmin bestseller since its introduction in 1999, the GPs receiver 
Costs  $299
1.4 MB of internal Map storage capacity
20-30 hours of battery life

## Garmin GPSMap 76

- Integrates well with GIS
- DNR Garmin to ArcView is Fast and Efficient

**Notes:**
Features specific to the Garmin III+ include:
A quadrifilar helix type of antenna.  This is probably the most important part of a GPS receiver.  This type of antenna allows swiveling for best access to the sky, and can detect satellites close to the horizon.  Options with this receiver also allow external antenna options making this model more versatile in aircraft and under canopy.
A readily used form factor that allows unit to be placed on flat surfaces for better visibility
Allows user to average waypoints for increased accuracy.

Other models in the Garmin line like the eTrex are not preferred.  Here are some examples why:
Patch antenna.
No time and date are passed down to the PC
No averaging capabilities
No external antennas

## Garmin GPSMap 76

- Unique Aspects
- Antenna (Quadrifilar Helix)
- It Floats
- Averages waypoints
- External Antenna capabilities

**Notes:**
Features specific to the Garmin III+ include:
A quadrifilar helix type of antenna.  This is probably the most important part of a GPS receiver.  This type of antenna allows swiveling for best access to the sky, and can detect satellites close to the horizon.  Options with this receiver also allow external antenna options making this model more versatile in aircraft and under canopy.
A readily used form factor that allows unit to be placed on flat surfaces for better visibility
Allows user to average waypoints for increased accuracy.

Other models in the Garmin line like the eTrex are not preferred.  Here are some examples why:
Patch antenna.
No time and date are passed down to the PC
No averaging capabilities
No external antennas

## Limitations - Garmin GPSMap 76

- Weak Connection to External Antenna
- Must hold UPRIGHT for best reception
- Laying down on back produces poor data
- Purchase a bracket if using in vehicles
- Missing other features (Available in “S” Model:
- Digital Compass
- Altimeter

**Notes:**
There are limitations to this receiver:
more modern units like the Garmin V, 76 and others can be more accurate due to WAAS capabilities.
The III+ also has less map memory (1.4mb) and track storage than the more modern units available today. 

## NPS Intranet:
Cheatsheets and Guidelines
http://web/rgr/gps/tips.htm
Internet:
http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/
GPS Toolkits
Your CD or 
http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/

- Cheatsheets and Guidelines
- http://web/rgr/gps/tips.htm
- Internet:
- _[http://](http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/)__[www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps](http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/)__[/](http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/)_
- GPS Toolkits
- Your CD or
- http://www.nps.gov/gis/gps/aksogps/

**Where to Go For More INFO**

**Notes:**
In Summary, 
We have seen how well GPS can assist in  Fire related mapping efforts in terms of collecting field data for use in the fire Plan cycle.
Of all the receiver types out there the Consumer Grade GPS receiver satisfies the mapping qualities often found on fires - this includes the mapping of fire perimeters and other large features.  Costs for the hardware are low, enabling purchase of many units.
Then I hope we showed that of the Consumer GPS units available, the Garmin III Plus is the preferred model of choice due to functions such as moving map capability, enhanced navigation and the ability to average waypoints.

Every GPS receiver has its good and poor qualities.  We hope during this course you will become familiar with these aspects of the Garmin III Plus receiver and in doing so, collect the highest quality data possible for fire mapping scenarios.  

## GPS Toolkits

**Where to Go For More INFO**

**Notes:**
In Summary, 
We have seen how well GPS can assist in  Fire related mapping efforts in terms of collecting field data for use in the fire Plan cycle.
Of all the receiver types out there the Consumer Grade GPS receiver satisfies the mapping qualities often found on fires - this includes the mapping of fire perimeters and other large features.  Costs for the hardware are low, enabling purchase of many units.
Then I hope we showed that of the Consumer GPS units available, the Garmin III Plus is the preferred model of choice due to functions such as moving map capability, enhanced navigation and the ability to average waypoints.

Every GPS receiver has its good and poor qualities.  We hope during this course you will become familiar with these aspects of the Garmin III Plus receiver and in doing so, collect the highest quality data possible for fire mapping scenarios.  

## GPS allows precise positioning anywhere in Alaska 
Recreational grade GPS satisfies...
Moderate accuracy's
Low costs in hardware, training
A Garmin allows for navigation and simple site marking jobs for many “Ologists” 

- Recreational grade GPS satisfies...
- Moderate accuracy's
- Low costs in hardware, training
- A Garmin allows for navigation and simple site marking jobs for many “Ologists”

**Summary**

**Notes:**
In Summary, 
We have seen how well GPS can assist in  Fire related mapping efforts in terms of collecting field data for use in the fire Plan cycle.
Of all the receiver types out there the Consumer Grade GPS receiver satisfies the mapping qualities often found on fires - this includes the mapping of fire perimeters and other large features.  Costs for the hardware are low, enabling purchase of many units.
Then I hope we showed that of the Consumer GPS units available, the Garmin III Plus is the preferred model of choice due to functions such as moving map capability, enhanced navigation and the ability to average waypoints.

Every GPS receiver has its good and poor qualities.  We hope during this course you will become familiar with these aspects of the Garmin III Plus receiver and in doing so, collect the highest quality data possible for fire mapping scenarios.  

## Coming Up
GPS Sky
Garmin Setup 
Get Outside!

- _[GPS Sky](file:///02_GPSSky_Today.ppt)_
- Garmin Setup
- Get Outside!

**Break**

**Notes:**
In Summary, 
We have seen how well GPS can assist in  Fire related mapping efforts in terms of collecting field data for use in the fire Plan cycle.
Of all the receiver types out there the Consumer Grade GPS receiver satisfies the mapping qualities often found on fires - this includes the mapping of fire perimeters and other large features.  Costs for the hardware are low, enabling purchase of many units.
Then I hope we showed that of the Consumer GPS units available, the Garmin III Plus is the preferred model of choice due to functions such as moving map capability, enhanced navigation and the ability to average waypoints.

Every GPS receiver has its good and poor qualities.  We hope during this course you will become familiar with these aspects of the Garmin III Plus receiver and in doing so, collect the highest quality data possible for fire mapping scenarios.