Carleton University - School of Computer Science Honours Project
Winter 2018
Simulated Measurement Error in GPS Distance Calculation
Nolan Hodge
SCS Honours Project Image
ABSTRACT
With the advent of the modern Global Positioning System and all its use cases, there still exists today an overwhelming issue with the overall size of distances calculated by the space-based radio navigation system. The miscalculated distances are a result of measurement and interpolation error, this error directly affects movement data. I have created an interactive simulation to demonstrate valid distance calculation as well as demonstrate all outlined factors contributing to error within positional calculation. The simulation will focus on the detailed errors claimed by Ranacher, Brunauer, Trutschnig, Van der Spek, and Siegfried in "Why GPS Makes Distances Bigger Than They Are". The article in question claims several influencing factors affect GPS measurement error. The goal of this paper is to show a face-value approach to how overestimation occurs, as described by the authors of the original paper. Distance errors can be resolved in many different ways, with new developments currently being researched and published every year. The simulation will not show how errors are corrected, only how they happen, and the result of such calculation flaws.