In-car navigation system

The first in-car navigation system was developed by Rockwell (driver information systems) in 1995-6 at their Troy, Michigan, facility. It was completed by 54 experts hand picked for their particular skills and had a working prototype within 6 months. Called the Pathmaster system, it was priced at $3,500 with one database. To present it to the public, it was installed in 7,500 Hertz rental cars in 17 major cities and called the NeverLost, at a cost to renters of around $7.00 per day. The installer, Radio Repair Center, had to work hard to have them in place in time for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. The installation was complex as the vehicle speed sensor and reverse lights had to be accessed. The GPS signal at the time was restricted so developers had to add map matching and dead reckoning as part of the triangle. Mapping software was provided by Simmons ? and was very limited. The entire project was sold to Magellan soon after completion.

VDO instruments also had a similar unit.