Underwater GPS

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

I work for a very large manufacturer of GPS products. As said by many of the replies, the density of the water does not allow for GPS to be recieved under water, the same goes for on land underneath trees and up against tall buildings in the city. Submarine technology is far different than civilian availability. Their GPS signals are recieved differently than civilian. So as nice as a thought that it is , we are S.O.L for now.
 
Chris,

Desert Star has a tracking device called "Dive Scout" that helps you find the boat. I purchased one this year and for once I was able to get back to the boat everytime.

Here's how it works: There are two parts: Transmitter and Receiver. You hang the transmitter over the side of your boat or the anchor line. You hook the receiver to your BC. When you want to find the boat, you slowly turn around and watch the LED lights on the receiver. When you are in line with the transmitter, the LED lights go crazy!!!

Not exactly a GPS but it can help you find your way back to the boat.

Here is their link: http://www.desertstar.com/newsite/sport/sportscout.html

Terri
 
runvus4:
I figure the Navy has to have developed somehing to assist with undewater navigation. I was thinking along the lines of of ULF wave triangulation. The problem with that is that those waves travel at different speeds through waters with differing salt content which would make the system fairly inaccurate without a very large number of reference points. Also ULF waves have been linked in a corrolary (not causal) fashion with disruption to marine life.


Subs use INS (Inertial Navigation System). This is the same thing used on aircraft and spacecraft.you have three gyros. when you move a gryo even the smallest amout it apllys a force in the oppostie direction, by measureing the amount of time the force is applied and the amount you can determine where you have went. You do need to know wher you start from when you first set it up though.
 
For GPS technology to perform, it must have an open pathway to the sky. When I fly, my aircraft GPS searches the sky for at least three satellites to link to for accurate triangulation. Unfortunately, GPS is just like DISH television. When there's dense material (water or rain) between the receiver and sky, it just won't work.

There are underwater systems for naviagation, but to date they are too bulky and expensive to work for divers.
 
Talking with an instructor at the LDS today - he and a buddy once put their GPS in a pelican case and used it during the dive - he said they were at about 15 ft (shallow dive) ... interesting if nothing else :wink:

Aloha, Tim
 
tkring:
....a tracking device called "Dive Scout" that helps you find the boat. I purchased one this year and for once I was able to get back to the boat everytime.

A spool of maybe 150 feet of kite string would prolly be cheaper than any of these fancy gizmos. :crafty:
 
Here's an alternative thought for you. There is a line of sight underwater tracking system. http://www.desertstar.com Desert star scout diving system. Cost is $298. You attach the transmitter to the object you want to return to as a boat anchor line, wreck, safety stop line,etc. Divekraz member
 
GPS utilizes radio signals transmitted from satellites. Radio signals do not travel through water, except for a few feet. There are a few dive computer manufacturers who make air integrated computers which are hoseless and transmit air pressure information from the first stage of your regulator to your wrist mounted console...just a few feet. Interestingly, it has been a MAJOR challenge for those manufacturers to transmit that information just 2 or 3 feet to the wrist mounted console. Submarines do not transmit or receive information unless they can stick an antenna out of the water. Simply put, radio signals (RF) does not penetrate or travel through water. In fact, water attenuates radio signals more than concrete does. As another respondent wrote, there are devices which help you find your boat. These devices utilize sonar (sound waves transmitted through the water). They work very well and are quite affordable.
G'day mate!
 

Back
Top Bottom