Smartphone app tracks battlefield objects

A new software relying on smartphones' global positioning system (GPS) and imaging abilities can fix the exact location of distant objects as well as monitor the speed and direction of moving objects, says a study. The software could eventually allow smartphone-armed soldiers to target the location of their enemies. On the home front, the software could be used by everyone, including golfers judging distance to the green and biologists documenting the location of a rare animal without disturbing it. "The great advantage of a smartphone is that it provides so many tools in a single, readily available, relatively inexpensive package," said Qia Wang, doctoral student at the University Of Missouri College Of Engineering, who led the development of the software, the journal Proceedings of the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers reported. "For example, on the battlefield, a soldier needs a range-finder, compass, GPS and other tools to do reconnaissance before calling in an air strike. With our software, the soldier can have all those instruments in one device that can be purchased off the shelf," added Wang, according to a Missouri statement. "When that soldier returns from war, he can use the same software to protect his family by clocking a speeder near her children's school and catching the culprit on video," said Wang.Smartphone App tracks battlefield objects (image credit: 123RF)Click here for full story