Collecting GPS Tracks for Under $200
By: Steven Peltier As we all witness the mainstream emergence of GPS and personal navigation systems, I'm struck by the unnecessary complexity that still permeates the technologies, especially with regard to saving and exchanging files. At SMR, we focus on providing mechanisms to upload and download GPS files and to easily explore those files using our interactive Mapper; however, our site is only as good as its content. For the latter, we rely on all of you to capture your rides and to geospatially mark-up those rides with points-of-interest, media, etc. Piece of cake, right? Well not exactly. You've seen the buzz about the hottest new motorcycle GPS systems from Garmin (Zumo 550) and TomTom (Rider). These devices are designed specifically for the rigors of moto-touring, and out of the box they surely can get you from point A to point B. Better still, they can guide you in real-time to every Starbucks within riding distance of your triangulated location. However, like in-car navigation systems, these sophisticated units, in my opinion, are optimized for real-time navigation (i.e., just get up and go). While they can indeed import and store a history all of your favorite route, track, and waypoint information, the ability to organize, manage, edit and share this information (in a standardized file format) is a bit complex and requires you to master off-line tools such as Garmin's MapSource and TomTom's Home. Routes vs. TracksPart of the challenge lies in the distinction between routes and tracks. In GPS parlance, a route is simply a sequential list of waypoints that mark the major segments of your intended path. Routes are very powerful for real-time navigation, because it is very easy for users to input simple routes that define a trip itinerary (e.g., A. San Diego, B. Los Angeles, C. Santa Barbara or A. Home, B. Gas Station, C. Work). The GPS unit then calculates the ideal path between these points and directs you to follow its recommended course. The GPS unit will even recalculate the directions if you deviate from its recommendations. Unfortunately, this level of sophistication is not quite ideal for folks who only want to follow one exact path (e.g., that crazy winding ride specifically composed of obscure back-roads pieced together by adventurous riders looking to maximize their fun and not simply get from point A to point C). Routes also breakdown for off-road navigation, where there are no stored maps upon which the GPS can calculate an ideal path. For collecting or following "rides", tracks are often the way to go (and the obvious focus of SMR). Tracks (or Track Logs) are simply breadcrumb trails consisting of points along a path, defined by time and position. In upcoming articles we will provide tutorials on how to most efficiently extract, store, download, edit, and upload tracks with the popular and more sophisticated motorcycle GPS units and their off-line software mapping systems. With the remainder of this article, however, I'll give you a simple alternative for collecting tracks and waypoints using an entry level, portable GPS unit originally developed for Hiking (the Garmin Foretrex 101). At a sub $200 price point, this solution obviously won't deliver rich color maps, Bluetooth communications, or MP3 support, but it will collect perfect ride tracks without a fuss, allow you to store waypoints on the fly (as you wizz by points of interest), and it provides an appropriately sized GPS solution for bikes that can't accommodate the larger sized full screen systems (e.g., like my Ducati Monster). For many, once you get past all of the fancy bells and whistles, this is all you really need. Collecting Tracks and Waypoints with the Foretrex 101The following, assumes the user has acquired the following:
The beauty of the Foretrex is that it collects tracks automatically (basically upon startup and uplink w/ the satellites to establish a location). To capture a ride I recommend the following protocol: 1. Ride to your preferred starting location (we call these "trailheads" at SMR).2. Clear the Foretrex track log:
The Foretrex only stores a limited amount of track data before it starts overwriting points, so by clearing the log at the start of the ride you maximize the amount of space available on the device to record the full ride track log. I personally have never ridden far enough to overwrite a track (even on rides from San Diego to Monterey), but this may be an issue for some of the endurance tourers. Upon starting the ride (assuming I'm collecting a new ride track and not following a saved ride track), I typically set up the Foretrex to make it easier to collect waypoints on the fly. Disclaimer: Collecting waypoints while riding a motorcycle is inherently dangerous. If you choose to stop to store a location, stop only in designated turnouts where it is safe to do so. Step 3 describes actions that are particularly dangerous, namely physically interacting with a GPS unit while in motion. If you choose to follow Step 3, you do so at your own risk. The use of this or any information herein is bound by the Sunday Morning Rides Terms of Service 3. Storing Waypoints on the Fly:
That's it! Your track is now ready to be downloaded to your PC and uploaded to SMR. Next, well show you how to Create GPX files from Garmin's Mapsource Other Resources: Published: Feb 6, 2007 Leave Comments |
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