+GOT GPS? Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 My 96' Escort Wagon, according to my GPS goes up to 4 to 5 miles per hour faster than what the speedometer says. I was traveling exactly 70mph(Michigan speed limit), and a motorcycle cop put on his siren, and telling me to knock down my speed, so it makes me wonder if the gps should be used while driving?? Question: - What does your GPS say, when you are driving 40mph or 60mph. What make or model vehicle are you driving and how does the GPS compare with your Speedometer??[/b] Convert kilometers/hr to mph by multiplying by 0.62137 1 mile = 1.609344 kilometers http://www.google.com/help/features.html#calculator ---------------------------------------------------------- Pictures of the insides of my Old GPS V My Home Page about what is GPS Strange Quote Link to comment
+JamesJM Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 My GPSr's have always been right on the money, at least according to various speedometers. I don't know...I would have "guessed" a GPSr to be more accurate than a speedometer. - JamesJM Quote Link to comment
+jollybgood Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 quote:Originally posted by GOT GPS?:My 96' Escort Wagon, according to my GPS goes up to 4 to 5 miles per hour faster than what the speedometer says. I was traveling exactly 70mph(Michigan speed limit), and a motorcycle cop put on his siren, and telling me to knock down my speed, so it makes me wonder if the gps should be used while driving?? _Question:_ - What does your GPS say, when you are driving 40mph or 60mph. What make or model vehicle are you driving and how does the GPS compare with your Speedometer??[/b] One of the local police departments puts out one of those roadside Radar units quite often (the ones which tell you to "Watch Your Speed" and flash the speed of approaching vehicles. I've found the radar speed and the speed indicated by my GPSV rarely match -- usually differing + or - 5 mph. So personally I would never rely on my GPSr as a speedometer. I wouldn't expect it to be totally accurate anyway. If I'm standing still and average a waypoint the difference in accuracy can range anywhere from 12 to 28 feet in just a few seconds. I can't imagine what the variance in accuracy would be moment to moment while traveling at 60 mph. I would think that would affect the GPSr's speedometer. Jolly R. Blackburn http://kenzerco.com "I'd like to buy the world a coke, but I only have fifty cents" Quote Link to comment
+wickedsprint Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 GPS ground speed is accurate to within a tenth, we use it in the aircraft all the time and it jives with the radar azimuth speed check as well as DME (crude) checks within a couple MPH, but that is a couple mph at over 400 knots..lol, but the reason you may see innacuracy is tree cover can delay the speed update and it is poor for measureing acceleration, only a perfect constant speed, which it does very well. Quote Link to comment
+mrcpu Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 Automobile speedometers tend to be off a bit, especially in older vehicles. It's been my personal observation that my old car was 10 km/h fast and my newer car is about 8 km/h fast. This means that when I think I'm doing 100 km/h by the speedometer, I'm really doing 92. I have used my GPS and observation of other traffic to confirm this. I would have to say that I trust my GPS as a speedometer more then the mechanical, speedometer that can also be off if your tires are not exactly the right size too. Rob Mobile Cache Command Quote Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 In following other people etc. I had figured out that my speedometer was off by about 10% in one vehicle and dead on in another. When I got a GPS it confirmed what I had figured out over time. The GPS does pretty good as a speedometer. Quote Link to comment
Kerry. Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 Range rate error (that will affect speed type calcs) even in the days of Selective Availability was really very stable at approx 1km per hour. Basically a "non moving" GPS would on average move 24km in 24 hours. Without SA range rate errors are really very stable and big jumps in subsequent positions doesn't really occur unless there's specific interference or obstruction issues. Without SA range rate error is in the centimetres per second bracket and of little impact on GPS speed. Cheers, Kerry. I never get lost everybody keeps telling me where to go Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Jolly B Good:I wouldn't expect it to be totally accurate anyway. In this case, your expectations would be incorrect. The speed indicated by the GPS should be much more accurate than the speed indicated by your car's speedometer. Your comments about the position moving around don't apply, since the GPS unit does not determine speed from successive positions. Quote Link to comment
+Gliderguy Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I find the GPS speed to be very accurate. I would absolutely believe it to be accurate within 0.1 mph presuming no signifigant interference (overpasses, trees, skyscrapers) I find that my Dodge truck speedo indicates about 1 mph faster than GPS at any speed above 20, and my BMW motorcycle reads 60 when the GPS shows 55. The BMW bikes are known for having "optimistic" speedometers, and in fact the specification from the factory allow up to a 10% error on the "optimistic" side, plus a static error of a few mph! Quote Link to comment
+Pharisee Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I checked the speedo on my wifes 1.8 litre 'Family Saloon' against the reading on my Legend. At a speedo reading of 30mph the Legend was showing 25mph. The difference gradually decreased as the speed increased until they were reading exactly the same at 90mph. The trend continued and at a speedo reading of 110mph, the Legend was showing 114mph. John And should you ask, am I at ease there? I'd answer "Yes. Oh yes indeed". For my heart it dwells in lonely places, where springs leap down, where ravens feed. Quote Link to comment
+Rubberhead Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 GOT GPS?, Based on your story, your GPS and the cop both agreed and that your speedometer is the odd man out. Trust the GPS, but only after you get a good lock. ________________________________________________ Garmin eTrex Vista, Legend, and GPSmap 162 with Bluecharts/Fishing Hotspots/POI/Road & Rec Ducks - flying geocaches of meat Quote Link to comment
+embra Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 There's a little experiment you can do to verify the best measure: drive along on the interstate at 60 mph, first by car speedometer and then by GPSr. Time the interval by the mile markers that are typically posted along the way. Whichever one sets your speed such that you are closest to 60 seconds to cover the mile is the best measure. My 94 Summit is really bad on this, overreporting speed and distance covered by about 5%. I have found the GPSr to be pretty good, accurately predicting the next milemarker even after 10-15 miles of pacing. Max Often wrong but seldom in doubt Quote Link to comment
Neo_Geo Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 Since I reported an error of "Standing Still At 1,000 M.P.H.", I can never fully trust the speed displayed by my GPSr! Quote Link to comment
+ScottJ Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 My GPSV is always on the dash, and when I'm not headed for a cache, it stays in the "big 2 fields" mode with speed displayed. The GPS is far, far more accurate than most car speedometers, even under poor signal conditions, and I have found my car speedometer reports 65 MPH when I'm really doing 62 or so. -- Scott Johnson (ScottJ) Quote Link to comment
ChiefPig Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I think I have noticed only a difference of 1-2 kph between my GPS V and my 1999 Jeep's speedometer. I think my speedometer gives the slower speed, for example 100 kph shows 101-102 kph on the GPS V. Quote Link to comment
+Cave Troll and Eeyore Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I drive a Citroen AX and my Legend seems to show my speed as 4mph slower than the car speedometer between 20-70 mph Quote Link to comment
+jollybgood Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I googled this... <<When we design vehicle instrumentation, there is a deliberate intent to ensure that the spedometer reads more than it should. EEC and Federal legislation forces this because of an accuracy requirement (as distinct from tolerance) of V(act) +0/-10%. We therefore ensure that we meet this by aiming for 5-7.5% over actual speed with a tolerance of +/-3% as the fines / litigation costs for going outside homolated standards in a production vehicle are too great. [TwoSheds] Speedometers must by law indicate the max velocity that the vehicle is capable of achieving.>> Jolly R. Blackburn http://kenzerco.com "I'd like to buy the world a coke, but I only have fifty cents" Quote Link to comment
+jollybgood Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 This is a fairly good explanation of why a GPSr's speed reading may not always be accurate... <<The later GPS receivers have algorithms that "cheat" to compensate for losses of signal. The "cheating" usually means that the GPS will assume that during the period when the signal disappears, the receiver is travelling at the last known speed and direction. The more sophisticated assume the receiver is travelling at the last known *accelleration*. Some receivers average the speed over a period of several seconds (maybe as much as 30 seconds), so will not respond instantly to changes in speed. This is not a system limitation, but a deliberate feature in the software of the receiver. Thus different people may have completely different experiences based upon the particular model of GPS they have used. A GPS receiver in a car will typically lose satellite lock fairly frequently, as you travel under bridges, trees, power lines etc. The accuracy of the GPS also depends upon the geometary of the satellites. If the satellites are all clumped in a small segment of sky, the accuracy decreases. A hand-held in a car typically can "see" only a small section of sky so this condition is quite usual. As the car negotiates bends in the road, different sets of satellites are "seen", which can cause a sudden jump in the GPS reading. Even a permanent in-car GPS with rooftop aerial can easily fail to track enough satellites when operating within streets surrounded by high-rise buildings. The so-called "city canyon" effect. So whilst the speed readout on a GPS is accurate to within 0.1MPH or so, it may frequently display an erroneous figure for any of the reasons above, plus a few others. To use it to check a speedo, drive at a constant speed, preferably in a constant direction so the satellite constellation stays the same, and wait till the readout has stabalised to a constant reading.>> Jolly R. Blackburn http://kenzerco.com "I'd like to buy the world a coke, but I only have fifty cents" Quote Link to comment
+Oneyedjack Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 This is a very interesting subject at a very unique time. Just last weekend I was traveling a streach of highway that was straight, flat and no overhead obstructions. My cruse control was set at 69 mph, when a County Shereff Deputy stopped me. My first reaction to myself and to him, was where did the speed limit change to 55 mph? He said "it didnt the speed limit is 65 mph" I said then whats the problem, his clame is that I was doing 80 mph. At the time I had been traveling for 2.5 hours, the first leg of my jurny was on 70 mph interstate and then the road I was on that was a 65 mph highway. I had been watching my GPS for some time and it consistantly was reading 67.4 mph, and showed a Max speed for the duration of my trip at 74.6 mph. He of course did not want to hear that and wrote me a ticket any way. My delema is wheather to challange him and his radar unit in court or not. I understand all of the legal implications of going to court, I am just looking for some good documintation on which to base my defence, in referance to GPS techonolegy and it's accuracy. Quote Link to comment
smithcon Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Here's a bunch of useless ramblings on the subject: A well-written article in either Car and Driver or Autoweek within the last five years explained why speedometers are almost always calibrated to read slightly over the true speed, with european-produced cars the worst offenders. I don't remember it all that well, but I do recall that in Europe, or at least parts of Europe, manufacturers pay a fine for producing a car whose speedometer reads too low under any circumstance. Manufacturers also had concerns about liability and are concerned that if all of the tolerances and conditions end up the wrong way (oversized or over-inflated tire, under-sensitive servo on the needle in analog speedos or long lag time on early digital speedos, tire speed differential on long curves, etc) that they will turn a car out the door with a sometimes under-reporting speedo, causing the customer to speed unwittingly. Thus, they design in a "cushion", most aggressive (5MPH over at 60MPH in some cases studied) in many euro-cars because of the laws and fines, to make sure the "worst" case is an accurate speedometer. I remember Japan and America were different, but I can't remember which produced the 2nd-biggest cushion on average. I think it was Japan, but I am not sure. My American-built Japanese sedan seems to underreport pretty substantially, 4-5MPH at 60MPH, based on my GPS reading on long, open, straight roads. Now, for some really useless ramblings, remember the Heisenberg uncertainty principal; you cannot determine both the precise location and precise velocity of any object. The more precisely you measure the location, the less you know about the velocity, and visa-versa. A GPS measures your location at a certain instance in time. A single GPS location fix knows nothing of your velocity. Multiple fixes over time are averaged for a velocity calculation, but of course that is merely an average speed between two or more points. But which points? When and where were they taken? Where, in fact, were you really going exactly that speed? See? If you know the velocity, you don't know the location! :^} Seriously, a GPS speed with a strong fix series should be very accurate with decent satellite geometry (which should yield a high accuracy reading on your receiver), no blockage, and a straight level road at a constant speed. Speed variation turns a GPS into the world's slowest-refreshing digital speedometer, yielding random intermediate results. Turns are just as bad, especially when you are turning more than 15 degrees between average-basis fixes, as they introduce geometry changes between your point fix lines which are likely not smoothed well by the speed averaging algorithm, so toss out those speed readings too. Since roads are generally not steep enough to make a significant mathematical difference in the speed calc most of the time, small grade changes are a lesser factor. So you are left deciding between a cable counting the rotations of an uncertain-diameter wheel over time, or averaging location fixes over time. Good fix GPS in straight, unblocked territory with constant speeds is your best bet (even intermittant blockage is okay if your speed is constant and reflected signals are not a problem) . Choose the speedo for other moments. Challenging a radar gun in court is not impossible, but a lawyer does it best. Unfortunately, the court is unlikely to put more faith in your gadget than the officer's. Most radar tickets are won on the picking apart of technicalities of the procedure used to determine the speed with the radar gun (Were all procedures in the radar gun manual followed by the officer? Imagine answering questions in court about the operating methods from one of your electronic gadgets. Again, lawyers experienced with this can do this well, according to what I've read, but I know I couldn't pull it off.) It is probably much cheaper to go to court and hope the officer is a no-show. If you don't want to try that, you might get a big reduction in fines simply for showing at the hearing date on your ticket and offering a "my bad! I'm sorry, I didn't speed intentionally; I was just keeping my eyes on the road and forgot to check the speedo. When I first saw the officer flashing to stop me, I glanced down and saw only 69 on the speedo." sort of speech. Good luck. Quote Link to comment
smithcon Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Sorry, my last post was from a failed post attempt from last night, and I realize it is somewhat redundant considering the new posts on the topic since I first started drafting it. So feel free to use it for an insomnia cure; I'm sure you will find it effective. Regards, -Greg Quote Link to comment
+phantom4099 Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 I am pretty sure GPS measure speed using doppler shift, not (just?) the distance between two readings. The speed of your GPS is more accurate than your speedometer, or a radar gun that is out of tune. Wyatt W. The probability of someone watching you is directly proportional to the stupidity of your actions. Quote Link to comment
martmann Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 My SP III shows 1/2 mile an hour faster than my 02 CR-V Speedometer, fairly consistantly. ___________________________________________________________ If trees could scream, would we still cut them down? Well, maybe if they screamed all the time, for no reason. Click here for my Geocaching pictures and Here (newest) Quote Link to comment
The Cuthberts Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Pharisee:were reading exactly the same at 90mph. The trend continued and at a speedo reading of 110mph, the Legend was showing 114mph. John And then the flashing blue lights appeared in the rear-view mirror I wonder whether 'speedo calibrating' has ever been used as an excuse ? Andy Quote Link to comment
smithcon Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Doppler shift would make sense for a speed reading, and I would be impressed if these little handheld units did it. It is too late in my head to ponder the algorithms, but if you consider the rotation of the Earth, the movement of the satellites and the curvature of their orbits, etc, I know I wouldn't want to do it with my slide rule. I guess it would be possible. If it is true I will give regard my GPS V with even more respect than I do already. Quote Link to comment
+strikeforce1 Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Embra is right on. Do NOTE: If you change the profile of your car tires ie. from "78" series to "70" series, this changes the calibration of gearing, ex. measure the circumfrence of two different series tires - different circumfrence length, from OEM. The speedometer gear in the transmission needs to be changed. Go to a speed shop and have them recalibrate your gearing. Quote Link to comment
jondru Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 I read _somewhere_ (maybe the Garmin site? maybe gpsinformation.net?) that most GPSRs are accurate to ~ 0.5 mi/hr. FWTW. BTW, the Uncertainty Principle has *nothing* to do with bits of matter bigger than, say, a photon. vv J.O. Quote Link to comment
+StarshipTrooper Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 More useless information... You can debate whether or not the GPS is more accurate at highway speeds, but I can tell you that at extremely low speeds the GPS is definitely more accurate. It has been my experience - to the degree that I now rely on GPS in my work at times - that at speeds below 5mph, the speed reading of the GPS is far more accurate and useable than that of any cable driven speedometer that I am likely to have. How this applies to anyone else is a matter of speculation, I guess. But it has been very useful for me. "...clear as mud?" Quote Link to comment
+mtnmunch Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 I've found my GPS to be right on target with my Honda CRV. Sometimes it's off between 1/2 to 1 mph, and that's usually when I don't have a good amount of satellites connected. Older cars, I believe your speedometer can lose it's calibration. Another factor could be if you ever changed the size of your tires, this could alter the accuracy of your speedometer. Quote Link to comment
+st_richardson Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 I trust my GPS over my spedometer for speed anyday. Milage on the other hand... I trust my odometer much more. Quote Link to comment
Kerry. Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 One could probably imagine there will be some comparison differences comparing cable drive speedo to GPS speeds. However with GPS speeds the error is relatively constant (for the same point in time) at most speeds but the % error can be considerably different. At 5mph the the % error could be as much as 20%, where as if doing 60mph the % error could be 1 or 2% (generally less), which isn't a big drama if all things are considered. Cheers, Kerry. I never get lost everybody keeps telling me where to go Quote Link to comment
McKenna Family Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Glad to see that someone posted about tire size. Not counting the manufacturer induced speedometer error, tire size is the likely culprit. Also, I have heard that tire sizes are not always what are posted. A 235-85R16 made by one tire company may actually measure different from another manufacturer. So if you have ever changed tire designs, brands or sizes, this could throw your reading off. Tire inflation pressure can throw it off also. I have the same size, make and tread pattern on my truck as it did when I first purchased it. I have found from every speed display I have ever passed the speedo on my Ford pick up is right on or give or take 1 mph. My wifes Honda is off by as much as 5 MPH at highway speeds. Most police/highway patrol cars have calibrated speedometers, or at least a specific conversion chart somewhere in the car for that vehicle that shows actual vs. indicated speed at several different points. Patti and Matthew McKenna, Watsonville California Garmin 72 Quote Link to comment
Taxman003 Posted October 21, 2003 Share Posted October 21, 2003 Here's my experiences thus far: 93 Pontiac Sunbird - bang on. 02 Chevy Venture - bang on. 98 Honda Accord - goes slower than spedometer by two or three kilometres per hour. Hardly scientific, but maybe Garmin has shares in GM? Even though you enter the wrong waypoint....you're still in the right spot! Quote Link to comment
+GOT GPS? Posted October 21, 2003 Author Share Posted October 21, 2003 One of the problems is that I can hear the speedometer cable rubbing in it's housing. Ive had this problem befor, and my car travels faster than indicated speed. ---------------------------------------------------------- Pictures of the insides of my Old GPS V My Home Page about what is GPS Strange Quote Link to comment
+Arizonakober Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Magellan claims 0.1 MPH Accuracy. Even if they're off by a factor of 10 it's a heck of a lot more accurate than any speedometer in any vehicle. Quote Link to comment
Henny Pa Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Ok folks, I was reading this thread and thought I’d check things out. I went to work and picked up a radar set that wasn’t in use. The radar set I used was a Genesis GHS model radar which is a approved by the DOT of Pennsylvania as a approved speed timing device. This radar was within the proper dates for calibration and was calibrated by an approved speed timing device testing station. I also performed the tuning fork and internal tests for the radar to ensure its accuracy. The GPS I used was my Magellan Platinum with v5.12 software. The short answer is, the GPS was right on with the radar. The only difference was the radar was faster in detecting acceleration and deceleration. When speed remained constant the radar and GPS agreed. Something that I found that was interesting was when I first started testing the EPE with my Meriplat was fluctuating between 90 and 30 feet. Of course after more locks with satellites the EPE was down to its usual 7-12 feet. Even during the larger EPE the speed was right on. One thing that should be noted is the radar rounds all speeds down. IE if my actual speed is 55.9 the radar will show 55. Hope this helps! Quote Link to comment
Henny Pa Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Oh, by the way I tested the speed from 20 mph to somewhere around or above 65. The accuracy remained constant. Quote Link to comment
+Lone Duck Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Jolly B. Good pointed out in his post that the GPS unit tends to have a lag time with speed readings, which I have found to be true with my GPSr. It can even take a moment to hit zero after coming to a full stop, especially stopping from higher speeds. That being said, the actual speed reading at the moment that the GPS unit gives is very accurate, more accurate than a mechanical speedometer(which is what most vehicles have). The trouble is when the speed is changing, the GPSr lags in reporting the changes compared to the speedometer. I do use the speed indicator on the GPSr when driving on freeways. Keeps my eyes on the road better because it is closer to a "heads up" display with it on top of the dash. That Quack Cacher: Lone Duck When you don't know where you're going, every road will take you there. Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 quote:Originally posted by smithcon:A GPS measures your location at a certain instance in time. A single GPS location fix knows nothing of your velocity. Multiple fixes over time are averaged for a velocity calculation. Completely and absolutely incorrect. As I wrote above, the velocity is not calculated from multiple fixes. Quote Link to comment
Bender Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 In a car with both of my receivers going, they both show the same speed. So does my friends' receiver of a different brand. Car companies build in a certain error in their speedometers. Tires size affect speedometer accuracy also. when it come to speed- "In GPS I trust". As far as radar goes, Those folks are in the business of making money. Power corrupts. 'nuff said. Bender Searching, for the lost Xanadu Quote Link to comment
+T10X Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 I've had my Mer. Plat. in three different cars plus my 13 ton service truck and the Plat. always read the same or 1mph less on the open road. As for tire size or speedo gears changing the reading, I got a ticket for doing 66 in a 55 but I knew I was doing 60. Took car to speedo shop and sure enough, it was off 10%. The judge let me off with court costs. Quote Link to comment
gm100guy Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 I have tried my gps in numerous cars and trucks and it always seems to match the speed I am doing. Except my car which is about 10 km out. But thats ok the car is going 10 km slower then the speedo indicates. gm100guy http://members.rogers.com/gm100guy/cachepage.htm Ontario geocachers http://groups.msn.com/GeocachinginOntario/homepage Quote Link to comment
Kerry. Posted October 23, 2003 Share Posted October 23, 2003 quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:Completely and absolutely incorrect. As I wrote above, the velocity is _not_ calculated from multiple fixes. no I wouldn't call it completely and absolutely incorrect as this method is exactly what some (many) recreational units use. There's certainly other things using GPS and Doppler shift in the carrier signals but I wouldn't think that this principle is used in ALL recreational units for velocity calcs. Cheers, Kerry. I never get lost everybody keeps telling me where to go Quote Link to comment
+jblewis Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 OK, I couldn't help but throw my two cents into this ring... Here's my setup: 98 Subaru 2.5 RS TerraTrip 303Plus Rally Odometer Etrex Vista The rally computer takes the VSS (Vehicle Speed Signal) from the transmission. (The same source as the factory Speedometer) The Teratrip uses a factor I supply/calculate to to calc the distance the vehicle has traveled. A factor of 4100 for example means that that 4100 pulses the TT gets, it racks up one mile. Subuaru quotes that there should be 4104 pulses per mile. (one pulse for every 1.2865 feet traveled.) After some experimentation and frustration, I determined that the odometer on my car is very accurate, however, the Speedo is a consistent 5mph slow. That is when I set the cruise control for "60" the GPS and the rally computer agree that I am in fact covering 65 miles per hour. * The factor was determined after multiple runs along a 37 mile baseline of nearly straight road in Northern Minnesota in varying weather conditions. According to the GPS receiver's odometer, the mile markers at each end of the baseline are accurate to within .02 miles of each other. JB Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Kerry: quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:Completely and absolutely incorrect. As I wrote above, the velocity is _not_ calculated from multiple fixes. no I wouldn't call it completely and absolutely incorrect as this method is exactly what some (many) recreational units use. Could you give me an example of s recreational unit that uses successive position fixes to calculate velocity? I know that none of the current crop of Garmin or Magellan units do so. Quote Link to comment
+Brer Rabbit Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 I have extensive experience here. I drive a 4x4 with larger tires and know for a fact the speedometer is not calibrated. Assuming that you have good satelite reception, your gps is mounted properly, the gpsr is not in a battery saver mode or similar, I have found the Gps to be much more accurate than the vehicle. I have checked this constantly over the last 3 years of driving several vehicles, including boats, and have never found the GPSr to be wrong. I have even done the math on routes I knew my exact distance in mileage and compared that to the GPSr odometer and then to the vehicle odometer (which will also be wrong if the mph gauge is wrong). It even works well on commercial airlines (satelite reception is tricky here) though you have to take into account head winds, tail winds, etc. Quote Link to comment
+ThisWayOut Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 Yep. I just drove down to Illinoize and back. Odometer read 154.1 miles and the GPSr read 155.8. If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there. Quote Link to comment
Bender Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 One more thing: One of the boating shows on the speed channel uses GPS exclusively for their performance tests. Acceleration, top speed, time to plane, all that stuff is measured with a GPS receiver. Bender Searching, for the lost Xanadu Quote Link to comment
+Brian - Team A.I. Posted October 24, 2003 Share Posted October 24, 2003 I find myself relying more on the GPS speedometer over my truck one, because it's accurate to an easy .1 mph, and it's a geek thing. Overall, the truck speedo is about 1.8mph high. Brian Team A.I. [edit]I read the post again...The above is in a 95 Nissan 4x2 pickup Quote Link to comment
sheepdog43 Posted October 25, 2003 Share Posted October 25, 2003 GPS is going to be more accurate. Tires wear, air pressure changes sizes, temperature effects them too (GPS compensates fro temp). Not to mention speedometer gear ratios can be only adjusted so much. Not every ratio is possible without having multiple gear pitch (tech term for numer of teeth per inch). Then you get into parts wear.. Speedo's drift over time, gears wear out, tires wear out... Basically all this has to mesh for a speedo to be accurate. Frankly, when its dead on, consider yourself lucky. Thas a lot to adjust for, and there is nothing being adjusted. I am pretty sure American speedo's are required to be within 5% accuracy, when they leave the factory. Key part being when they leave. Police speedo's are to be within 3%. With GPS, a good lock, is really all you need for it to triangulate your possition, and determine your speed. Now a question on odometer... Since it was brought up... If you travel straight over a mountain, your actual position may only change by 1 mile. Howeve, due to going up and over, you may have actually had to travel 2 miles. What distance will a gps read? I would imagine better models will register 2 miles, but what about cheaper models? Has anyone tested this? It would certainly have an effect on the odometer over time. Quote Link to comment
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