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Re: Navigation at Bonneville

To: DrMayf <drmayf@teknett.com>
Subject: Re: Navigation at Bonneville
From: Bryan Savage <b.a.savage@earthlink.net>
Date: Thu, 02 Sep 2004 12:48:10 -0700
mayf,

I don't know what equipment they use, but Formula SAE race cars us a GPS 
system that tracks
the race car within millimeters at up to about 100 mph. It has several 
differential (??) transmitters
set up at the track.

I saw several GPS speedometers this year. I failed to ask questions of 
the users.

Bryan

DrMayf wrote:

>Jim, one of the problems with the non military versions of GPS is the update
>time. For a grain harvester it makes little difference because the distance
>travelled in an update period is probably only a few short feet. However
>with a car travelling at 200 mph (about 300 feet per second) the update time
>of about 1/2 second means that you are going to go half the lengeth of a
>foot ball field before you know yo are offf course. Add the drivers reaction
>time of looking at the information to the update time with some time to reac
>thrown in and you could have travelled a loooonnnnnngggg way before anything
>actually changes. They make a GPS speedometer which needs only voltage to
>work and works well...in a boat up to about 100 mph or so. Then the update
>time becomes important again and the utility goes away. Now the military
>version is fast enough to program inflight air to air anti aircarft missiles
>to sneak up behind enemy aircraft without them knowing...the AWACS aircraft
>can program way points in flight based on radar returns. Us civies don't
>have that speed though...
>
>mayf out in hicksville, Pahrump
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Jim Dincau" <jdincau@qnet.com>
>To: "land Speed List" <land-speed@autox.team.net>
>Sent: Wednesday, September 01, 2004 7:30 PM
>Subject: Navigation at Bonneville
>
>
>  
>
>>Hi all,
>>     I just read an article in the Sept. issue of Racecar engineering
>>    
>>
>about
>  
>
>>the Buckeye bullet electric streamliner. They have a GPS based system
>>designed for use in grain harvesters to keep them running straight  across
>>huge Kansas grain fields. They take the GPS unit to the starting line and
>>program the A coordinate. They then drive to the end of the track and
>>program in the B coordinate. The unit goes back in the car and drives a
>>display that has green LED's for on course and red LED's that tell you
>>    
>>
>which
>  
>
>>way to steer to get back to center. Works kind of like flying a localizer
>>approach, its all in the drivers peripheral vision and they claim it works
>>neat.
>>Jim in Palmdale






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