Satellite navigation device
device that determines its position by analyzing GPS satellite signals
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. It may also display the user's position on a map and offer routing directions (as in turn-by-turn navigation).
There are four global navigation satellite systems (GNSS): the United States' Global Positioning System (GPS), the European Union's Galileo, Russia's GLONASS, and China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System. These systems are often used together to improve positioning accuracy and availability. In addition, regional systems such as India's NavIC and Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), augment the accuracy of a number of GNSS over their respective regions.
A satellite navigation device can retrieve location and time information from one or more GNSS systems in all weather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth's surface. Satnav reception requires an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GNSS satellites, and is subject to poor satellite signal conditions. In exceptionally poor signal conditions, for example in urban areas, satellite signals may exhibit multipath propagation where signals bounce off structures, or are weakened by meteorological conditions. Obstructed lines of sight may arise from a tree canopy or inside a structure, such as in a building, garage or tunnel. Today, most standalone satnav receivers are used in automobiles.
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This entry incorporates text from “Satellite navigation device” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.