OK, you should know by now, that I am a gadget freak. One of the companies I work for, these days (May 2002), is dealing with Automatic Vehicle Location systems etc.. It was therefore very logical for me, to start dealing with the technologies used in this field, and to start thinking of how these technologies could help me when off-roading. Soon, I discovered some nice things.

First, let's define what I wanted to achieve. I wanted a system which will be able to show me the exact position I am at. The GPS is ideal for this application, as there are GPS receivers costing less than 100 US$ and it costs nothing to use the system. The GPS provides the coordinations, with enough accuracy for off-road usage. That alone, can be a big help, as a friend of mine found out, when he was trapped in a snow storm while off-roading, in the suburbs of Athens, last January.

However, I wanted more. I wanted a system which could show me where I am, on a map, with the position on the map changing, as I drive along. There are such solutions available commercially. Several car audio manufacturers offer integrated solutions, which include the GPS and the display of the map, but I didn't want to spend the money those systems cost. Again, there are other solutions, which allow you to connect the GPS receiver to a notebook PC, which runs a specific application (usually called Moving Map application). However, I do not have a personal notebook computer, and even if I had, I wouldn't like it being carried along in my Musso, when climbing the mountains. Then I remembered my old Psion palmtop computer. Maybe that could be used. Finally, one more component is required for such applications. A map! And of course, when we say a map, it has to be a digital map, stored either in the notebook, or whatever device you would use for that purpose, in my case the Psion.

After the initial idea was established, it was time to search for the components to implement the system. The first item I looked for, was the GPS. Internet provided the first search results. Names such as Garmin and Magellan are well-known in this field, so I checked their web sites.

Garmin has an excellent model, called Garmin GPS V, which is great, since it includes build-in maps. If you live in USA, you would love this little gadget, even if the price is significant (compared to other units in the market). However, since I was going to use an external device for the map viewing, I didn't need such an expensive GPS, all I needed was a GPS with a PC interface (serial), to transfer the data to the computer. In that respect, there are several units capable of doing just that. Even one of the least expensive units, which do not even have a display, can be used. These tend to cost less than 100 US$, and are very convenient.

However, I wanted something more elaborate, something which could prove useful, even if the computer fails. After some research of the local market, I ended up selecting the Magellan GPS 315, which fit the bill perfectly, both capability-wise and price-wise.

Then the big problem had to be attacked. Which "moving map" application to use and most importantly, with what maps? From my past experience there are no decent digital maps of Greece available. The GPS's have only elementary detailed maps. Even the PC-based "moving map" applications, do not have decent maps of Greece. Most of them have excellent maps for USA, and some other parts of the world, but not for Greece. And as I said, I wanted to use the Psion (which is a solid-state device with no hard disks etc. to get damaged, as you move up and down the rocks), in that role, which made the problem even more difficult. After some Internet searching, I found a very interesting application, called RealMaps. Now, this application runs on the Psion, and -guess what?- it allows you to use scanned maps (as opposed to vector maps, which most GIS applications use). In other words, if you have a good paper map, with the scale you like and the details you want, you can scan it and use it. The time has come to start collecting the various bits and pieces.

The GPS was purchased from a local marine store, Filippakis Electronic Systems Ltd., which represents Magellan in Greece and which is owned by a very friendly and helpful person. Together with the GPS, I also got the original Magellan car bracket for it. This is a clever piece of hardware, which sticks to your windshield with three high quality suction caps and provides you with a special base, in which you fit the GPS. The unit, is so well made, that you can tilt and swivel it to your liking, so that you put your GPS in the most convenient position. If you so want, you can even remove the suction caps and use some screws to attach it permanently to the car. However, the caps are so good, that my bracket hasn't move at all, since the day I install it (one week ago). Make sure that wherever you place the GPS, the unit has a clear view of the sky (this is essential for proper signal reception) and that it does not interfere with your driving.

I also purchased the "Data and power supply cable", which allows you to power the GPS from the cigarette lighter (or directly from your car electrical circuit) and to connect the GPS to a PC. The cable can be connected permanently on the car bracket of the GPS, so that when you insert the GPS in the base, it is powered from your car electrical system. Alternatively the cable can be attached at the back of the GPS, where it is secured by a thumb screw.

The cost for all the goodies was about 300 US$. Installation in the car can be either permanent or temporary, as you like. I would suggest that you install the bits and pieces in a temporary manner initially, until you are perfectly satisfied of the position you put it. Then you can make the installation more permanent. Remember one thing, since you would probably want to use your home PC to manage the information stored in the GPS, you might want to purchase two power/data cables, one for in-the-car use and one for home. Since I do not have an electrical cigarette lighter at home, I got the simpler "data cable", for this role, which costs much less than the data/power cable I have for the car.

After some fiddling around, I decided that the best possible position for the GPS, was right next to the car front pillar. In addition to the bracket, a couple of pieces of double-sided sticky rubber tape are used to keep the bracket secured next to the pillar, and to protect the top of the dashboard from scratches. Have a look at the pictures below, to see where I positioned the GPS.

As you can see the cables are still laid around, so that I can change the position of the GPS, if I decide I do not like its present one. With the GPS in a suitable position, it was time to find the proper place and mounting hardware for the Psion. This was proven to be more difficult, but luckily I found the perfect solution, during a second visit to Mr. Filippakis's store. He showed me the Magellan bracket for the Magellan Companion (a GPS unit designed to work together with the Palm Pilot). I got that bracket, and after some work with the Dremel tool and some files, I made the ideal resting place, for the Psion. See the Psion bracket, below:

A piece of industrial-strength Velcro, was put on the base of the bracket, with the corresponding hooks-piece on the underside of the Psion. The lower edge of the bracket is spring-loaded and movable, so when you flip the Psion open, it secures the keyboard, in the bracket, as shown below.

I had to trim the edges of the bracket a bit, so that they do not press the Psion keys, when this last one is in the open position. In that way, the Psion is held securely in place. Just as an added precaution, an elastic band (which was initially found in my new Nokia telephone, as a belt attachment), is also used to keep the Psion in the bracket, when off-roading. I call that the "Garter Belt".

Below, you can see how the two devices are arranged in the car's cockpit.

The RealMaps application is installed in the Psion, and I did some tests with a scanned map of my home area. The whole system works like a champ. I also did some trials with another application, called Route Planner. Unfortunatelly, this application uses a proprietary map, which has almost no details for Athens or for the roads of Greece I am interested in (dirt roads). This application has been build to assist drivers who arrive at a foreign country to find their way between major cities. For in-car navigation, do not try it, the maps are useless.

Finally, I did some testing of another application, called OziExplorer. This is a magnificent application, which unfortunatelly runs in a Windows 95/98 environment. It works wonders with the Magellan, and offers more than you can think of. Some of its functionalities are listed below:

• support of scanned maps
  
• support of vector maps
  
• management of waypoints/routes/tracks
  
• Moving Map
  
• Download/Upload from/to the GPS
  
• etc.

The author offers a special version of the Moving Map application, which runs on Windows CE devices, which compliments the PC based one, for an additional 25 US$. Unfortunatelly, I do not own a CE device, nor do I plan to buy another gadget, so I am limited to my Psion and whatever programs are available for it.

Here, you can find the exact project cost for my in-car navigation system:

- Magellam GPS 315 : 220 Euros
- Magellan GPS bracket : 60 Euros
- Magellan GPS Power/Data cable : 60 Euros
- Magellan GPS bracket for Psion : 60 Euros
- Magellan GPS Data cable for home : 30 Euros

As a conclusion, with a total cost of 430 US$, I have a working positioning and navigation system in my car!

More details about the wiring etc. will be added soon.

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