EVDL Administrator via EV wrote:
If only there were some other way to plot a route to my
destination, something that can't be altered wirelessly.
Hey, I have an idea... "a map" and "a highlighter."
There is a long and fascinating history of auto navigational aids.
1909: The Jones "Live Map" was perhaps the first auto navigation system.
Directions for your route were printed on a map disk. The disk was
placed in a turntable that was rotated by the car's odometer. A pointer
showed where you were, and directions to the next waypoint.
1916: George Boyden's "Travel Companion" recorded the map on a
phonograph record. The odometer caused it to play a track of the record,
to provide verbal directions for getting to the next stop. (Versions of
this system have been sold for decades, with directions on cassette
tapes and CDs.)
1930: The Iter Avto had its maps printed on a long roll of paper (like
AAA's old "trip-tic" travel maps). Again, the map was advanced by the
car's odometer.
Ships and airplanes need to navigate, too. Radio navigation systems were
established to guide them. VOR was established in 1940, LORAN-C in 1970,
and OMEGA in 1971. These signals were also received in cars, and used in
a slew of auto navigation systems. The receivers typically gave you
longitude and latitude information, which positioned a printed map in a
viewer.
1981: The Honda "Gyrocator" used special maps, a gyrocompass, and wheel
sensors to move the map mechanically to show your position. It was the
first inertial guidance system for cars.
1985: The Etak "Navigator" was the first computer-based auto navigation
system. Maps were stored on cassette tapes.
1987: The Toyota Crown Royale had an optional Nav system with color
display and CD-ROM storage for its maps.
1990: Mazda introduced the first GPS-based Navigation system.
--
In software development, there are two kinds of error: Conceptual
errors, implementation errors, and off-by-one errors. (anonymous)
--
Lee Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377, www.sunrise-ev.com
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