Space Age Navigation

SPACE AGE NAVIGATION
As Prices Come Down to Earth, GPS is More Practical (and Fun!) Than Ever

History books won’t tell you this, but shortly after Ook and Akk invented the first wheeled vehicle (yes, it was a team effort), they took it out for a spin and promptly got lost.

It was an ugly scene: Akk was mad at Ook for not doing a good job navigating; Ook was mad at Akk for not stopping to ask directions. When they finally did stop, the directions they received were vague and unclear. “Go straight to where Guk speared that saber-toothed tiger last year,” they were advised. “Then head toward the wooly mammoth graveyard. You can’t miss it.”

Once maps were invented many years later, things improved considerably. In this, however, the third millennium, the miracle of the Global Positioning System (GPS) has given riders yet another way to find their way from here to there with a minimal amount of stress and bickering.

Just what exactly is this GPS you’ve been hearing so much about? Is it truly a modern technological miracle? Is it hard to use? Does it suck the joy from a journey by making finding your way a cold, lifeless, completely analytical exercise? Or is it the best thing to happen to motorcyc lists since hydraulic rear suspension?

The answer is … it depends. But before you can decide for yourself, it’s important to have a thorough understanding of what GPS is and what it can do to help make you a better, more-informed rider.

UNDERSTANDING THE SYSTEM
Originally intended only for military purposes, the Global Positioning System is a satellite-based navigation system initiated by the U.S. government in 1978. The 24th and “final” satellite was placed into orbit in 1994. Each of these 24 satellites circles the earth in precise orbit, at a height of approximately 12,000 miles, twice a day.

Today, the system is available for civilian (public) use free of charge. It works 24 hours a day, in any weather, anywhere in the world.

Harley-Davidson GPS units are available as embedded or portable units. The portable units are available with fairing or handlebar mounts. Pictured here is a Road Tech™ Conquest™ unit with a handlebar mounting bracket.

For all its complexity, GPS technology ultimately comes down to basic geometry, or “triangulation.” Based on an extremely precise measurement of how long it takes a signal to reach your GPS receiver from different satellites in the system, your receiver calculates how far it is from each satellite. With signals from at least three satellites, it can pinpoint your location to within a few yards (accuracy varies by the type of device being used).

Of course, the technology is not foolproof. GPS signals operate by “line of sight” only. This means, generally speaking, they travel through things you can see through (air, glass, plastic, and even clouds), but bounce off or are blocked by solid objects such as buildings. (Devices usually do not work indoors, underwater, or underground.)

But with 24 satellites orbiting the earth at all times, chances are good your receiver will be able to lock into at least three at any given time.

OPERATING THE SYSTEM
According to Jack Cobb, Controls and Electronics Category Manager for the Motor Company, Harley-Davidson first began looking into motorcycle-mounted GPS units in the early 1990s. But there were three problems: The units available at the time were too big, the data screens were not bright enough to be read outdoors in the sunlight, and they were not waterproof.
In other words, three strikes and you’re out.

But time and technology wait for no one. H-D followed the technology closely as things got smaller, brighter, and more durable. Today, Harley-Davidson offers two types of motorcycle-mounted GPS units – embedded and handlebar-mounted – each with distinct advantages and disadvantages.

And don’t think all a GPS unit does is tell you where you are. Both types of receivers use sophisticated mapping software to let you easily identify your destination and then show you the quickest way to get there.

Embedded GPS
The Harley-Davidson® Advanced Audio Navigation System is the “embedded” version – it’s an integrated option on the Advanced Audio System available on Harley-Davidson Touring family motorcycles. It’s simple to use and comes pre-loaded with maps of the Continental U.S., Hawaii, and Canada.

“The rider who chooses the embedded option likes the convenience of it,” Cobb explains. “It’s built right into the bike’s audio system, so there are no wires or externally mounted components. It’s simple and elegant.”

The mapping software provides precise directions to almost anywhere. Simply enter an address or city, and the directions appear. It also allows riders to quickly locate “Points of Interest” such as gas stations, restaurants, or hotels. It even includes a Harley-Davidson Dealer Locator to help you find a nearby dealership when necessary. The bright display guides riders to their destination with turn-by-turn arrows, while voice guidance prompts provide audible directions through the bike’s audio system, meaning riders never have to take their eyes off the road.

It also displays compass direction, E.T.A. (estimated time of arrival), current street name, and the time and distance to the next turn.

Handlebar-mounted (Portable) GPS
The “portable” units, on the other hand, which can be mounted on a fairing or handlebars, offer most everything the embedded unit does – and a little bit more. For one thing, the portable units can be quickly and easily removed from the motorcycle and programmed with a personal computer. In fact, these units come standard with Map/Source software, which enables users to plan trips and plot routes on their home computer before downloading the data onto the GPS unit.

Harley-Davidson offers two portable units: the Road Tech™ Quest™ Navigation System and the Road Tech Conquest™ Navigation System, introduced in 2006 for the 2007 model year. The primary difference between the two, in addition to the price point, Cobb says, is the amount of memory available.

“The Quest system, which is more inexpensive, has 115 megabytes of memory,” he explains. “It contains all the basic mapping information for the U.S. but has only enough memory to hold maybe four to seven states’ worth of detailed street-level mapping information. So if I was planning a trip from Milwaukee to San Francisco, for example, I could plot a ‘corridor’ along I-80, with information maybe 50 miles to the north and south. But if along the way I decided to take a side trip to Texas, I would need to get back to a computer and load additional detailed information.”

The Conquest, on the other hand, has a full two gigabytes of memory – enough to hold detailed pre-loaded maps of virtually the entire U.S. and Canada. The additional computing power adds speed to the routing functions and provides faster zooming on maps. You may never even need to connect to your home computer, as the Conquest model lets you plot routes directly on the unit.

Like the embedded unit, both Quest and Conquest offer voice prompts, whether through an earpiece or an external connection to your motorcycle’s audio system. However, when connecting through the audio system, there is no “priority” mode like on the embedded unit. So when you set the radio to the Auxiliary mode for the GPS, you will no longer hear the sound system.

The portable units share the advantage of being, well, portable. Equipped with a backup battery that lasts up to 15 hours, these units can easily be transferred to use with your car, boat, or bicycle. A special automobile mounting bracket is also available.

WORKING THE SYSTEM
So we have the technology. The question remains: So what? You may well be thinking, “I’ve been getting along fine without GPS all these years so why should I start using
one now?”

Well, maybe you shouldn’t; GPS is not for everybody, after all. But hold off making that judgment until you have a better understanding of the various ways riders (and riding groups) are putting these systems to use.

One of the most basic ways to use a GPS is simply as a fail-safe navigation backup. Like a cell phone stowed in a saddlebag, a GPS can be a lifesaver: something you only pull out when you desperately need it. You’re hopelessly lost. You’re running out of gas and don’t know where the nearest gas station is. Your motorcycle’s not running quite right and you want to locate a dealership – fast. These are perfect times to switch on the GPS.

There’s also a big convenience factor. Think how much easier a GPS unit would be, for example, at the end of a long day’s ride, to find that hotel in an unfamiliar city: just push a button and get turn-by-turn directions.

Harley-Davidson units even include a “track-back” feature, which automatically records your route. So when you get where you’re going, if you choose, you can turn around and head back the same way you came. Or, you can use that data at the end of a trip to see exactly where you rode – even if you weren’t following the GPS directions along the way.

In other words, feel free to get lost. Then, when you’re ready to head home, turn on the GPS to figure out where you are to find your way.

But beyond the sheer practicality of it all, GPS units can be used in a variety of “entertaining” ways, as well.

“I think riders are just beginning to realize all the fun they can have with a GPS unit,” Cobb says. “Once more people start using them, I think we’re going to see a lot more creative uses for them with the H.O.G.® members.”

For instance, a chapter could plan a poker run where the stops are simply listed as coordinates, latitude and longitude, without giving any other indication of where riders are heading. If necessary, riders could break into teams, with one rider in each group navigating with the GPS.

Even otherwise “routine” chapter rides can take on an added dimension with GPS. Rather than handing out printed maps and directions, organizers can plot the route on the GPS software and share that information electronically with everyone who also has a portable GPS unit.

And who knows what the future holds? As GPS use continues to grow, the capabilities the units offer are growing right along with it. The ability to provide weather information and warnings, satellite radio, traffic and road construction information, for example, is already becoming available.

It’s pretty amazing, really. And it makes you wonder: What would Ook and Akk think if they could see us now?