Multisensor GPS-Based Recreational Trail Mapping

James Wolper, Shamim Mohamed, Stoney Burt, and Ron Young

Abstract:	Recreational users - mountain bikers, runners, cross-country skiers, equestrians, and the like - need accurate trail guides. The most common source for trail maps is USGS Topographic Maps, but these do not provide enough detail for many such uses, even when presented in digital form. For example, the contour interval on many such maps is 40 feet (12m). Thus, a series of 35’ (1Om) hills on a trail would not be evident, even though a runner might find them very significant. Similarly, USGS maps do not list some features of interest (eg, “turn right at the abandoned water trough”). The Silent Sports Federation, Inc., a volunteer group of recreational users in the Pocatello, ID area, is investigating the use of handheld GPS re- ceivers in a trail mapping project. The goal is to provide acceptable accuracy for this application at minimum cost and with minimum effort. The final product will be a series of inexpensive digi- tal maps incorporating a trail plan view, vertical profile, and verbal description. Data presented in IC] indicates that Standard Positioning Service GPS provides adequate hor- izontal data but inadequate vertical data: The 95% confidence interval for elevation dat,a is ap- proximately f50m, a significant error when one considers that most rock climbers use ropes of ap- proximately that length. GPS horizontal position is determined using a Trimble Flightmate handheld GPS receiver on a bicycle. Altitude data at GPS positions is ob- tained using an aircraft altimeter. While such an altimeter may fail to be accurate in the long term, it can provide sufficiently accurate relative read- ings for our purpose. The use of a second sensor is inspired by the success of mixing LORAN and GPS in a mountainous environment as reported in WI.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 7th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1994) September 20 - 23, 1994 Salt Palace Convention Center Salt Lake City, UT
Pages:	237 - 244
Cite this article:	Wolper, James, Mohamed, Shamim, Burt, Stoney, Young, Ron, "Multisensor GPS-Based Recreational Trail Mapping," Proceedings of the 7th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1994), Salt Lake City, UT, September 1994, pp. 237-244.
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