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  • Auto nav GPS and now Marine GPS arrives in Jamaica

    GPS systems available locally
    Published: Sunday | March 8, 2009



    Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
    Executive director of Mona GeoInformatics Institute, Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee (left), and colleague Keisha Josephs (right) show off the features of the GPS system to (from second left) Robert Pickersgill, Professor E. Nigel Harris and Dr Elizabeth Ward, at the launch of Jamaica's first GPS navigation system. The event was held at the Senior Common Room, University of the West Indies, Mona campus, last Thursday.
    Brian Bonitto, Editor - Overseas Publications

    ARE YOU unsure of your destination but need to get there on time? Forget the cumbersome road maps or the need to ask directions: just plug in your coordinates and drive.

    That's how easy it is, courtesy of the Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) navigation system.

    The technology was introduced to Jamaica at a function held on the grounds of the Senior Common Room at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona campus, last Thursday.

    Head of the project, Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee, was very upbeat about the practicality and purpose of the device.

    "It's user-friendly and for anyone who can get lost," he said. "Housewives can use it ... expatriates and diplomats, tourists, taxi men and auto dealers ... "

    Safety aspects

    Lyew-Ayee, who is the executive director of Mona GeoInformatics Institute, highlighted the safety aspects of the gadget as well.

    "We have preprogrammed the system to avoid crime hot spots," he said. "Let's say you're in Kingston and want to reach Ocho Rios ... while going through Spanish Town would be the shortest route ... the system would give the Spanish Town bypass as the option."

    GPS system was developed by the United States Department of Defense and was intended for military use. It, however, went worldwide in the 1980s. The technology enables GPS receivers to determine their current location, the time, and their velocity.

    According to a UWI press release, the system features 10,000 Jamaican roadways and 69 categories, including police stations, attractions, banks, post offices, gas stations and restaurants.

    "It also features cemeteries, churches and dental offices," he added.

    The executive director said that the multimillion-dollar project took two and a half years.

    Outside work

    "The project was funded from money we generated by doing work outside," he said. "We then reinvested it into the research and development of this project."

    But will this technology take off locally?

    "The possibilities are endless," the executive director said. "Business cards will have your GPS coordinates, so too party promotions will have coordinates ... there will also be opportunities for importers of the device."

    How do you go about getting this thing?

    "If you possess the device (GPS), all you need to get from us is the chip ... and this costs US$115," he said. "One cost, no set-up fee, no monthly fee."

    Lyew-Ayee said that the device can give directions in various languages, which includes French, Chinese and Portuguese.

    "The Jamaican accent is coming," he said.

    Distributed by JAA

    The Jamaica Automobile Association (JAA) is now distributing the devices on which the map of Jamaica will be loaded in a partnership arrangement. Fidelity Motors, distributors of Nissan, will provide the system as well as a tracking device free with any purchase of a vehicle before the end of this month.

    If there are no major potholes for Lyew-Ayee's project, questions such as 'Are we there yet?' may be a thing of the past.

    More Articles from Auto


    www.monagis.com

  • #2
    Garmin only compatible though.... no TomTom/Magellan/Navigon or NavNgo!

    Jamaican navigation system to map marine points - Lyew-Ayee predicts bigger sales for JAMNAV in 2010
    Avia Collinder, Business Reporter

    Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee, director of the Mona GeoInformatics Institute.

    Mona GeoInformatics Institute (MGI), creators of the JAMNAV GPS navigation system, tailored for inland Jamaica, is to launch a version of the product for offshore use, covering shipping lanes, reefs, cays and other navigational points.

    The offshore version will be targeted at operators of pleasure craft, jet skis, fishing boats and similar users, said Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee, director of MGI, an institute of the University of the West Indies.

    At the same time, MGI will soon be offering businesses the ability to add logos, phone numbers, opening hours and slogans on Garmin - the device on which the JAMNAV map data is available.

    "This would be akin to the type of service you get with a premium Yellow Pages listing," said Lyew-Ayee.

    JAMNAV provides directions in a 10-mile radius to users and 15,000 points of interest in 69 categories.

    Sales are "pushing 700" since its March 2009 debut, "which isn't bad considering we hadn't really aggressively pushed this thing out there until recently", said Lyew-Ayee.

    "I also suspect people were trying to wait and see if this was a flash in the pan, which it isn't. Sales have steadily increased since March, as has the product itself, which is far more mature now, with almost 30 per cent more detail than March. We've also been putting out steady updates and upgrades to clients."

    The market for the device, he said, has grown beyond the initial target segments, which included diplomats, expatriates and rental car clientéle to companies and agencies.

    Businesses will soon be allowed to customise their subscriptions to suit internal uses.

    Customised versions

    "The Water Resources Authority is already using a prototype of this when doing well monitoring across the island, where they have all their wells loaded on to the system and can systematically go to each," said the institute director.

    "This isn't something we'd put into a general release product but is very useful, especially when a normal driver isn't available to go to a particular location. Any driver using the system can head to any well anywhere."

    JAMNAV is marketed chiefly by Jamaica Automobile Association (JAA), a subsidiary of Jamaica National Building Society.

    "They're the unit dealers, we're the data developers," said Lyew-Ayee, though he acknowledged that MGI has gotten involved with sales at some level.

    "People have come to us directly, though we're not optimally equipped to be a sales shop," said the institute director.

    "AVIS is a star. There is no formal relationship, but I would consider AVIS to be our only development 'sponsor' if only because they offered us a car free of cost for a six-month window that allowed us to accelerate the development and finalisation of the product. In return, we've given them preferred access to our data at at-cost rates and unlimited free updates and inclusion in our corporate data packages."

    The Garmin unit is priced at US$115 for the standard data set, with MGI offering bulk discounts as well, depending on volume requested.

    At Avis, clients can rent it at US$11 plus tax.

    Demand unexpected

    Demand for the device, said Lyew-Ayee, has come in "an unexpectedly high response" from returning residents or second- and third-generation diaspora visitors who are already familiar with the system overseas, mission staff from the United States and United Kingdom, and gadget-savvy Jamaicans.

    "Ordinary people who would rent the devices when they travel have bought units since they can use the same JAMNAV-loaded units overseas as well as they can be used here," said the developer.

    "Avis is a star with respect to the rental car/tourism sector, while Fidelity Motors has been the biggest customer from the car sales sector," he said.

    Part of the device's success, he noted, was linked to its functionality.

    "It really is a general-purpose product for those who get lost or don't know where things are, as well as those who need to have the latest gadgets and gimmicks. Some units have Bluetooth, MP3 players, as well as satellite radio, etc, and also offer automatic re-routing, pre-set avoidances for perennially violent regions."

    JAMNAV may also be loaded to laptops and specific smartphones.

    While Lyew-Ayee was unwilling to disclose the development cost, JAMNAV was, he said, a multimillion-dollar project spread out over three years.

    "We had to pretty much do everything from scratch to capture the detail required for such a product."

    MGI expects that sales, which were far more than expected in 2009, will grow next year as the product is refined, markets are expanded under the offshore and other plans, and a marketing programme is developed around it.

    "All trends are that 2010 will be better as we solidify the product itself, and move towards marketing it more," said Lyew-Ayee.

    "We didn't really market the product heavily in 2009, relying more on word of mouth."

    avia.collinder@gleanerjm.com

    Garmin nuvi, the portable navigation device on which the JAMNAV service is delivered. - File PHOTOS

    Comment


    • #3
      Even so...good going!
      "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

      Comment


      • #4
        Agreed.

        Garmin is the top global brand.

        However, it would be nice to see a multi-platform version.

        Comment


        • #5
          Mosiah better get one for Mobay. Met this girl in Ja. talking about it (worked on it) said she "didn't want to talk over our heads". Couldn't believe my ears. Yu tink it easy?

          Comment


          • #6
            Yuh mean wi cyaan show off dat is di first of its kind in di English-speking Caribbean?


            BLACK LIVES MATTER

            Comment


            • #7
              Ha...ha...late as usual..we have that long time..but who needs it? I have built in GPS in my brain plus I trust my instincts..I know when to do a 360 in the middle of the road...or draw fi reverse....

              Comment


              • #8
                Can't see it taking off here. I probably need one for Mobay and it's good to see that problem spots have been taken into consideration when it plots directions. I guess that means it just takes you around Mobay and Spanish Town! In which case, I don't need one for Mobay again.


                BLACK LIVES MATTER

                Comment


                • #9
                  a mussi tourist a go buy it
                  • Don't let negative things break you, instead let it be your strength, your reason for growth. Life is for living and I won't spend my life feeling cheated and downtrodden.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    GPS no help when road block off and borderline a run. Dash whe dat and get a 9.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      softer and gentler for the new year, huh! heh heh!


                      BLACK LIVES MATTER

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Yu ketch mi...is the genes...we are doomed. Yu nevva read Darwin? How yu expect to survive under such harsh conditions. Galapagos was paradise. We should get some evolutionists theorists to map out the survival behavours necessary for Jamaica....ok..there's a PhD thesis up for grabs....

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          shortest thesis in the Guinness Book - "get a 9!" Confirming what you said!


                          BLACK LIVES MATTER

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Sad really...but the book I going to start this morning - "Jamaica and the 9 factor" - haffi link Oprah book club and also get on her show within the 2 years she seh she have on TV again - will deal with the different sides of the 9 in contemporary Jamaica. The 9mm, the 9", the historical background with the cat-o-nine (bullpistle) etc....
                            The book will explore the behavioural modalities from uptown to downtown, Mobay to Kingston - from politicians to conmen to so-called good men, businesspeople, scared engineers, lawyers. Also, look at the rationalizations for the 9 - 'eat a food', 'defend dis', 'original badman', protection, etc....

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Great stuff! Hurry up and write dah book deh before mi beat yuh to it!


                              BLACK LIVES MATTER

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