Location-based services work on the principle of positioning, a process wherein a control plane finds network signals of the phone service provider based on the radio signal delays of the closest cellphone towers, which in turn executes the detection the location of the mobile phone.
The simplest form of location-based service is Global Positioning System-based or GPS-based. Global Positioning System is a satellite navigation system that can determine precise locations of places, people, and things and provide a very accurate time reference anywhere on the planet. GPS adheres to the method of trilateration, a geometrical, triangle-oriented process that makes use of the known locations of two or more reference points, and the exact distance between the subject and each reference point.
GPS is based on the United States, and to complement to this high technology is European Union’s and European Space Agency’s global navigation satellite system, Galileo. Galileo is made with the aim of coming up with more precise measurements than what GPS can provide, including the measurement of altitude above sea level, and better location bases services in spite of high latitudes. Just like any other technology, Galileo carries with it a political ambition, which is to provide European nations a positioning system independent from the United States, a technology which they can use even in times of political crisis with the most powerful country.
Another form of location-based service is Global System Mobile Communication localization. GSM works through finding the location of a mobile device using the service provider’s cell site as a reference point. Unlike GPS-based LBS, GSM localized LBS employs various techniques in multilateration to detect and measure the signals from cell sites to the mobile phone. The location of the mobile phone is usually mapped out through Time Difference of Arrival or Enhanced Observed Time Difference.