GEODNET Revolutionizes the Global Positioning Industry with Real-world web3 Reference Network
2022 was the year the world simultaneously realized that while most crypto projects had no fundamental usefulness, there was also a new class of crypto projects rising up that actually did something with a blockchain in the real world.
GEODNET is one of those real-world-meets-blockchain projects. GEODNET is an acronym for Global Earth Observation Decentralized Network, and the project is run by veterans in the GPS industry. GEODNET is using token incentives to build a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) reference station network that is an order of magnitude larger than anything ever before seen.
Here’s how it works: Most of the time, your position on the ground as determined by GPS relies on a satellite that is more than 10,000 miles above you. Only after your phone, car, or whatever device receives these faint and distant signals can the GPS estimate where you are. It all works surprisingly well given the distances involved, but the estimated location can still be anywhere from a few to a few dozen meters off. We’ve all seen this happen in our car or on our phone. “You have arrived at your destination” just means you’re pretty close. In order to improve that accuracy, you need a reference station.
That’s where blockchain and cryptocurrency come in. In order to build the largest reference station network, GEODNET designed a system where individuals can install a small geodetic-grade GNSS antenna on their roof to provide a node on this network — all over the world. As a reward for providing these reference points, individuals are rewarded in GEOD tokens.
The reference station network listens for satellite positioning signals, and using sophisticated models, calculates the difference between how long the signal should take to arrive from the satellite to its fixed and known location, and how long it actually did take. These time differences might be due to a signal going through miles of storms, or solar flares disturbing the atmosphere, or other effects perturbing the satellites' orbit and clock.
Whatever those differences are, the reference station network issues what’s known as a “correction stream,” and all the devices within about 20 km of a given reference station that are subscribed to receive this correction data can achieve instant centimeter accuracy! This is exactly how Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) works, but without the costs normally associated with this service. Other GNSS signal processing techniques such as Precise Point Positioning (PPP) and PPP-RTK can extend the effective range of the reference station at the tradeoff of reduced convergence speed and some accuracy.
Devices that can take advantage of this accuracy could be your phone in the city (where accuracy is typically strained), or a tractor in a field, or a high-tech land surveying device where a centimeter makes a difference.
High-precision location enables enterprises increased automation and efficiency in established industries such as Agriculture, Construction, and Transportation. Autonomous vehicles, including drones and self-driving automobiles, depend on high-integrity centimeter accuracy localization to safely operate. Consumer-facing mobile apps will benefit from more reliable and convenient maps. Scientists will use GEODNET stations to study the Earth itself. Early warning of tsunamis, the motion of tectonic plates, and atmospheric changes are all better understood with measurements provided by a dense network of GNSS receivers.
GEODNET is already generating data stream revenues and providing operational benefits to leaders in the GNSS industry, such as for Hemisphere’s Atlas Correction network.
The GEODNET network is growing rapidly and has over 1700 reference stations online. Anyone with a clear sky view can set up a station and #MineTheSky to earn GEOD tokens. Join us as we revolutionize the GNSS industry.
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