Apple knows its past attempts at creating a solid GPS experience for its users have fallen short, but a new acquisition could help the company's Maps software catch up to rivals such as Google Maps.

Apple confirmed on Sunday that it would be acquiring the San Francisco Bay Area-based global positioning company Coherent Navigation. The company, founded in 2008, specializes in precise navigation systems.

News of the purchase was first leaked by MacRumors, who also pointed out that several Coherent members have already joined the Apple team, including CEO Paul Lego and co-founders William Bencze and Brent Ledvina. All three have admitted they are now working on navigational aspects for Apple. Coherent's website has been down since April 30, although a LinkedIn page reveals that the firm has between one and 10 employees.

"Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans," Apple later confirmed in an email to the New York Times.

As per Apple's response, there is little information on what Apple plans to do with Coherent. Coherent Navigation utilizes a system known as High-Integrity GPS that "combines signals from the traditional mid-earth orbit GPS satellites with those from the low-earth satellites of voice and data provider Iridium to offer greater accuracy and precision, higher signal integrity, and greater jam resistance," as MacRumors explains.

What this means is incredible accuracy. While most consumer-level global positioning systems will give a reading accurate to within three and five meters, Iridium claims that systems based off its satellites can find a location to within centimeters.

Such accuracy will surely give Apple Maps a boost. Apple released its own Maps software in 2012, partly to strengthen its own in-house service offerings and partly to cut the reliance on Google softwares such as Google Maps (Apple also dropped YouTube as the default video app in iOS devices. The launch of Apple Maps, however, proceeded to make Apple a laughing stock, with the app misguiding travelers and misplacing major landmarks like the Washington Monument. The entire release was so embarrassing for Apple that CEO Tim Cook eventually apologized to the public for the fiasco.

Apple has not disclosed how much it will be buying Coherent for, nor when the purchase will be finalized.

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