A navigation system is a

computing Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computer, computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and the development of both computer hardware, hardware and softw ...

system that aids in

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

. Navigation systems may be entirely on board the vehicle or vessel that the system is controlling (for example, on the ship's

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

) or located elsewhere, making use of radio or other signal transmission to control the vehicle or vessel. In some cases, a combination of these methods is used. Navigation systems may be capable of one or more of: * containing maps, which may be displayed in human-readable format via text or in a graphical format * determining a vehicle or vessel's location via sensors, maps, or information from external sources * providing suggested directions to a human in charge of a vehicle or vessel via text or speech * providing directions directly to an autonomous vehicle such as a robotic probe or guided missile * providing information on nearby vehicles or vessels, or other hazards or obstacles * providing information on traffic conditions and suggesting alternative directions * simultaneous localization and mappingDissanayake, MWM Gamini, et al.
A solution to the simultaneous localization and map building (SLAM) problem
" IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation 17.3 (2001): 229-241. * acoustic positioning for underwater navigation The first in-car navigation system available to consumers in 1985 was called Etak Navigation. The company, Etak, was led by engineer Stan Honey and incubated by Nolan Bushnell's Catalyst Technologies in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

. Etak held a number of patents and produced digitized maps for the navigation system. The maps were streamed to the navigation system from special tape cassettes. The early digitized maps turned out to be more valuable than the navigation system. The car icon used in Etak Navigation display was a vector-based graphic based on Atari, Inc.'s

Asteroids An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

spaceship.

Types of navigation systems

Automotive navigation system An automotive navigation system is part of the automobile controls or a third party add-on used to find direction in an automobile. It typically uses a satellite navigation device to get its position data which is then correlated to a position on ...

* Marine navigation systems using

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

Satellite navigation system A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scientif ...

Global Positioning System The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide ge ...

, a group of satellites and computers that can provide information on any person, vessel, or vehicle's location via a GPS receiver ***

GPS navigation device A satellite navigation (satnav) device or GPS device is a device that uses satellites of the Global Positioning System (GPS) or similar global navigation satellite systems (GNSS). A satnav device can determine the user's geographic coordinat ...

, a device that can receive GPS signals for the purpose of determining the device's location and possibly to suggest or give directions **

GLONASS GLONASS (, ; ) is a Russian satellite navigation system operating as part of a radionavigation-satellite service. It provides an alternative to Global Positioning System (GPS) and is the second navigational system in operation with global cove ...

, satellite navigation system run by Russia **

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...

global navigation satellite system ** IRNSS, regional satellite system run by India. * Surgical navigation system, a system that determines the position of surgical instruments in relation to patient images such as CT or MRI scans. *

Inertial guidance system An inertial navigation system (INS; also inertial guidance system, inertial instrument) is a navigation device that uses motion sensors (accelerometers), rotation sensors ( gyroscopes) and a computer to continuously calculate by dead reckoning ...

, a system which continuously determines the position, orientation, and velocity (direction and speed of movement) of a moving object without the need for external reference *

Robotic mapping Robotic mapping is a discipline related to computer vision and cartography. The goal for an autonomous robot is to be able to construct (or use) a map (outdoor use) or floor plan (indoor use) and to localize itself and its recharging bases or beac ...

, the methods and equipment by which an autonomous robot is able to construct (or use) a map or floor plan and to localize itself within it * XNAV for deep space navigation

References

{{Navigation and positioning systems Navigation Navigational equipment

Types of navigation systems

See also

References