7/1/2015

BeyondtheBasics(GPSandGIS)Part6

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BeyondtheBasics(GPSandGIS)Part6

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PROJECT7H
{__}Withamapthathasgeographiccoordinatesonit,setuptheGPSreceiverwithanearbywaypoint.
{__}Takethereceiveroutsidesothatitiscalculatingpositions.Walk(or,ifyouhavetheremoteantennaand
wishto,drive)withitandexperimentwiththevariousdisplayformatsandtheinformationpresented.
{__}Navigatetothewaypointyousetup.

OVERVIEW
RealTime,DifferentialGPSPositionFinding
Wediscussedpostprocessingcorrectioninsomedetail.Whileyoucangetmoreaccuratefixesfromsucha
system,itrequiresanumberofadditional,timeconsumingsteps,afterdatacollection.Onceyouknowthe
sourceofthedifferentialcorrectionsfile,youhavetogetit,loaditontoyourcomputer,andexecutesoftwareto
producethefinalcorrectedfile.WouldntitbeniceiftheGPSunitsimplygaveaccuratepositionsatthetime
youtookthedata?
Further,therearesomeapplicationsinwhichtheresimplyisnttimetopostprocessGPSfixesbringingaship
intoanarrowharbor,foroneexample.
Well,actuallythereisawaytoprovideinstantaneous,accuratefixes:RealTimeDifferentialGPS.

GettingCorrectionsforGPSMeasurementsRightNow!
RealTimeDifferentialGPS(RDGPS)maybeapproachedinseveralways:
Theusercansetupabasestationoveraknownpointandarrangefortransmissionofaradiosignalfromthe
basestationtorovingreceivers.

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TheusersGPSsetupcanreceivecorrectionsignalsbroadcastfromanantennaintheareaoperatedbya
corporationoragovernmentagency.Suchinstallationsoperateabasestationcontinuouslyandbroadcastthe
correctiondata,sometimesaspartofanothersignalsuchasastandardFMbroadcast.TheU.S.CoastGuard
maintainssuchaserviceinsomecoastalareas,andcompaniessuchasAccupoint,Inc.andDifferential
Corrections,Inc.sellacorrectionservice.
TheusersGPSsetupcanreceivecorrectionsignalsfromacommunicationssatelliteparkedoverthe
Equator.ThesesignalscomefromdatatakenbybasestationslocatedindisparatepartsoftheUnitedStates.
Thedataareanalyzed,packaged,andsenttoageostationarycommunicationsatelliteforrebroadcasttoEarth.
OnesuchsystemusesthisapproachwithasatellitelocatedonameridianthatpassesthroughLakeMichigan.
Withallthreeofthesemethods,manyoftherequirementsforbasestationsremainthesame.Theymusttake
datafromallsatellitesthattherovermightuse.Theymusttakedatafrequently(everyfewseconds).They
shouldhaveaseparatechannelforeachsatellitesoastotrackitcontinuously.
Withallthemethodsofdoingrealtimedifferentialcorrection,youmightwonderhowthesepiecesof
equipmentmanagetotalktoeachother.Whilethefrequenciesonwhichbroadcaststakeplacemayvary,the
contentofrealtimedifferentialcorrectiondataisstandardized.ThecurrentstandardisRTCMSC104(version
2),promulgatedbytheRadioTechnicalCommissionforMaritimeServices,inWashington,DC.Lookinmore
detailatthethreestepsforrealtimedifferentialcorrection.

AUserOperatedRealTimeBaseStation
Theusermayoperateherorhisownbasestation.Thosewhoneedreallyprecisecoordinatesrelativeto
somenearbyknownpoint(e.g.,landsurveyors)usethismethodfrequently.Thecomplicationsgoupwith
differentialcorrection(realtimeorotherwise),ofcourse.HeretheuserhastohaveatleasttwoGPSreceivers,
plusatransmitterassociatedwithoneofthem(thebasestation)andreceiversforeachrover.Inadditiontothe
rovingGPSreceiverandallofitssettingsandconditionsforgoodpositionfinding,theuserhastoalsobe
concernedaboutthesamefactorsforthebasestation,plusmakingtheradiolinkbetweenthestationsfunction
atsomedistance.Additionalcomplicationsrelatetomountingthebasestationantennaatapreciselyknown
point.

ACentrallyLocatedRealTimeBaseStation
SinceGPSsignalerrorstendtobequitesimilaroverwidegeographicareas,thereareobviousadvantagesto
havingasinglebasestationserveforanyrovingstationsinthatarea.Putanotherway,onecanthinkofvery
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few,ifany,reasonsforeachof28GPSusers,whoareinreasonablycloseproximitytoeachother,tocollect
andrebroadcastidenticalcorrectiondata.Thisobviousfact,plustheentrepreneurialnatureofAmericansociety,
hasproducedGPSdifferentialcorrectionservices,whereinausercontractsforequipmentandtherightto
receivecorrectionstotherawGPSsignal.UserswhoaresufficientlyclosetoaU.S.CoastGuardGPSbeacon
maypickupasignalatnocostbesidesthatofthereceivingequipment.Suchstationsaresometimesreferredto
asContinuallyOperatingReferenceStations,CORS.

A"DifferentialCorrectionsAnywhere"System
Theproblemwith"centrallylocated"basestationsisthattheremaynotbeasignalfromonewhereyouare
tryingtotakedata.Whiletherearemoreandmorebasestationseverymonth,vastgapsexistwheretheirsignals
donotgo.Asolutiontothisproblemisasysteminwhichthebroadcastofthecorrectiondatacomesfroma
communicationssatellite.Thismeansthat,foralargeportionoftheEarthssurface,theusersreceiverisnever
outofrangeintheareacoveredbythesatellite,thoughlocaltopographymayblockthesignal.Thesatelliteof
onesystemthatcurrentlyemploysthismethod(OMNISTAR)mightbeaslowas30abovethehorizonin
northernpartsoftheUnitedStates.Thesatellitebroadcastsastraightlinesignalofabout4000megahertz.The
areacoveredisalloftheUnitedStates(exceptpartsofAlaska)andpartsofCanadaandMexico.Another
systemthatprovidesasimilarserviceisRacalLandstar.Bothsystemsprovidecoverageoverlargepartsofthe
earth.
OMNISTARhasaboutadozenbasestationslocatedontheperipheryoftheUnitedStates.Thesestations
transmitdataregardingtheerrorsintheGPSsignalsintheirareastoacentralnetworkcontrolcenter.These
dataarethenanalyzedandrepackagedfortransmissiontothecommunicationssatellite.
Thebroadcastfromthesatelliteissuchthatthedatafromtheseveralstationscanbetailoredtotheusers
position.HowdoestheOMNISTARsystemknowwheretheuseris?TheusersGPSunittellsitscoordinatesto
theattachedOMNISTARradio,whichthendecodesthesignalfromthecommunicationssatellitetoprovidethe
propercorrectionsforthelocalarea.Sincerealtimedifferentialcorrectioninformationisuselessunlessit
arrivesattheGPSreceiverwithinmomentsofthetimeafixistakenbythereceiver,youcanseethatalothas
tohappeninanextremelyshortamountoftime.(AGPSsignalcodeleavesaGPSsatelliteitisreceivedby
yourreceiverandbytheOMNISTARbasestationsthebasestationstransmitthesignaltoacentrallocation
whereitisprocessedandsenttothecommunicationssatellite,whereitisresenttotheradionexttoyourGPS
receiverthatradiodeterminesthecorrectionyourGPSreceiverneedsandsuppliesit.Whew!)
Thissystemcanprovidemeasurementssuchthat95%ofthefixestakenliewithinhalfameterofthetrue
point,andthemeanvalueofanumberofpointsisaccuratetowithinacentimeter(horizontally),usingatopof
thelinesurveygradereceiver.WithaGeoExplorer,youcanexpect95%ofthefixestoliewithinninemeters,
withmeanswithintwometersofthetruepoint.TopracticeusingrealtimeDGPS,doPROJECT7I.

STEPBYSTEP
RealTime,DifferentialGPSPositionFindingPROJECT7I
RealTimeDifferentialGPSPositionFinding
Thisprojectassumesthatyouhaveaccesstoequipmentthatwillpermitrealtimedifferentialcorrection.
Suchequipmentmightbe:
AsecondGPSreceiver,setupoveraknownpoint,transmittingRTCMformdatathatyourGeoExplorercan
receiveifaseparateradioisattachedtoit.
AradioreceiverconnectedtoyourGeoExplorerthatiswithinrangeofaU.S.CoastGuarddifferentialGPS
beacon.
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AradioreceiverconnectedtoyourGeoExplorerthatiswithinrangeofoneofseveralcommercialDGPS
servicefacilities(e.g.,AccupointorDCI).
Acommunicationssatelliteantenna,receiver,anddemodulator,connectedtoyourGPSreceiver(i.e.,
OMNISTAR,RacalLandstar).
Becauseofthewidevarietyofequipmentconfigurationsthatcanbeusedfordifferentialcorrection,the
followingstepscanonlyserveasindicationsofwhatistobedone.
{__}Beforeleavingyourlaboroffice,makesureyouhaveagoodideaofwhatyouareabouttodo.RDGPSis
wonderful,inthatitprovidesyouwithaccuratefixesinstantaneously.Thedownsideisthatyouhavealotmore
equipmenttocartaround,connect,andsupplyelectricalpowerto.Makesureyouunderstandandcheckoutall
theconnectionspriortotakingtheunitsintothefield.Datapacketsflowbetweentheradio13andtheGPS
receiverthroughthe"download"cableyouusedwhentransferringfilesfromtheGPSreceivertoaPC.
{_}Findasiteatwhichtotakedata.Ifyoucan,findasitewiththefollowingcharacteristics:
Aknownlocation,e.g.,asurveymonumentorbenchmark.
AclearviewoftheskyforreceivinggoodGPSsignals.
WithinrangeofagroundbasedRDGPSsignal,or,ifyouareusingOMNISTARorLandstar,withaclear
viewoftheskytothesouthwherethecommunicationssatelliteisparked.(ThisisovertheEquator,duesouth
ofLakeMichigan,forOMNISTAR.)
Whereasourceofpowerisavailablefortheauxiliaryradioreceiver(possiblyanautomobileauxiliarypower
receptacleoranadditionalbatterypack).
{_}StartacquiringGPSsignalswiththeGPSunit.
{__}Ifyoucan,assurethattheRDGPSradioisreceivingsignalsfromthetransmittingunit,butdonotyet
connectittotheGPSreceiver.
{__}Usingtheparametersfordatacollectionprovidedearlierinthistext,collectafileofabout20fixes,using
atimeintervaloffiveseconds.
{__}Connecttheoutputcablefromtheradiotothe"download"cablefromtheGeoExplorer.
{_}Under"Configuration~RTCM"youwillfindthismenu:
{_}Choose"Mode."Youwillseetheseoptions:
RTCM
"I.ModeGPS
2.PortB
3.Staletime010

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MsgCount0
MsgGaps0

Mode
Autonomous
Differential
AutoGPSGPD

CommPortA
1.ProtocolXMDM
2.Baud9600
3.ParityNone
4.DataBits8
5.StopBits1
6.Precision2
7.SendAt2s
"Autonomous"meansthereceivercalculatesonlyunconnectedGPSpositions.
"Differential"forcesthereceivertocalculate,present,and/orfileonlypositionscorrectedbyRTCMsignals.
"AutoGPSGPD"tellsthereceivertocalculatecorrectedpositionswhentheRTCMsignalisavailable,and
tocalculateuncorrectedpositionsotherwise.(Theuncorrectedpositionscanbecorrectedlaterby
postprocessingifyouwish.)
{_}Choose"Differential."ThisisalsoshownasGPDmodeonsomeGeoExplorerscreens.
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{__}Under"Port"youprobablywant"A,"butthisdependsontherequirementsandcablesrelatedtotheradio.
Onceyouselecttheport,youmustselectthecommunicationparametersthatrelatetothatportbychoosing
optionsonascreenlikethis:
{__}ChangetheProtocol:ThedefaultprotocolisXMDM,whichisusedwhentheGPSunitiscommunicating
withaPC.Youneedtochangethissettingtotheoneappropriateforyourradio.Probablythiswillbeeither
"RTCM"14or"RTCM/NMEA."
TheGeoExplorerhastheabilitytosenditspositionandvelocitydatathroughthedatacableinaformatcalled
"NMEA0183."15Youusethiscapabilitywithadevicethatwantstoknowwhereyourreceiveris,suchasthe
OMNISTARorLandstarradio.
(Withmostmethodsofrealtimedifferentialcorrection,theapproximatelocationofyourreceiverisnota
mystery,becauseithastobewithinrangeofasignalgeneratedlocallyandtransmittedfromanantennaon
Earth.ButtheOMNISTARorLandstarsignalcomesfromasatellite22,000milesawayandcanbeusedalmost
allovertheUnitedStates[andinpartsofCanadaandMexico].Sincedifferentialcorrectionsvaryfromplaceto
place,itisimportantthatyoureceivethesignalstailoredforyourarea.Thusyourreceivermusttellthe
OMNISTARorLandstarradiowhereitis.)
SeetheRDGPSreceiveroperationmanualforspecificsontheprotocolsforsendingdatafromtheGPSunitto
theradio.
{__}Setthebaud,parity,databits,andstopbitsasrequiredbyyourradio.
{__}IfyouareusingtheRTCM/NMEAprotocol(asyouwouldifyouwereusingOMNISTARorLandstar)
youmustsettheNMEAprecision,whichindicatesthenumberofdecimalplacesinthelatitudeandlongitude
output.Avalueof"2"issuggested.(Thisprovidesforaprecisiontothenearest0.01degree.Thatincrementof
latitudeamountstoabout0.7milescertainlycloseenoughtochooseadifferentialcorrectionarea.Theruleof
thumbisthateach60milesonthegroundgeneratesabouta1metererrorinthereading.)
{__}Settheoutputrate("SendAt")oftheNMEAsignal.(Twosecondsisadequate.)
{__}Backunder"Configuration~RTCM"youwillfind"StaleTime."ThisisthedurationthattheGPS
receiverwilltoleratebeforegivinguponreceivingaRTCMsignalwithwhichtocorrectfixes.InGPDmode,
datapresentationandcollectionwillstopifnoRTCMmessageisreceivedduringthistime.(InGPS/GPD
mode,afterthestaletimehaselapsed,thereceiverwillcontinuetocalculatefixes,buttheywillnotbe
corrected.)
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{_}Observethe"MsgCount"and"MsgGaps"indicatorsonthissamescreen.Asyouwatch,youshouldseethe
messagecountincreasebyatleastseveralperminute.Thenumberofmessagesreceivedastimepassesisa
goodindicationthatyouarereceivingRTCMdatafromtheradio.Ifthisnumberdoesnotincrease,orresetsto
zerofrequently,youprobablyarenotgettingsatisfactoryinformationfromtheradio.Theproblemcouldbein
anynumberofplaces.Amongthem:
thebasestationnottransmitting,
yourRDGPSradionotreceiving,
badcableconnections,or
communicationparameterssetwrong.
Ifthingsdontseemtobeworking,recheckyoursetup.Ifthisdoesntwork,askyourinstructor.
{_}CheckthatyourGPSreceiverisstillcomputingfixes.Lookatthesatellitetrackingscreen(under"GPS
Status")andalsobecertainthatthe"Position"screendoesnotindicate"OLD."
{_}Assumingthateverythingisinorder,collect180fixesinafile.
{_}ChangetheRTCMmodebackto"Autonomous"andcollectanotherfileofabout20fixes.
{__}ChangetheRTCMmodebacktoitsdefault:"GPS/GPD."
{_}Changetheprotocolfortheportyouwereusingbackto"XMDM"andthecommunicationparametersback
tothosenecessarytocommunicatewithyourPC.
{_}Backatyourlaboroffice,transferthethreefilesyoutooktoaPC.Examinethem.Thefirstandthirdfiles
shouldshowconsiderablevariation,whilethesecondfileshouldshowatightgroupofpoints.
TheGeo3canalsodorealtimecorrections.TheprocessbearsresemblancetothatfortheGeoExplorers.
Differencesincludethewaytheinterfacewiththecablefromthecorrectionsreceiverissetup(thereisan
attachmentthatgoesonthebackoftheGeo3)andwhereyoufindthevariousoptionstosetup(underCOMMS
andOther).Bythistime,ifyouhavebeenworkingwiththeGeo3,youhaveaprettygoodfeelforthe
philosophybehinditandthekindsofactionsyouhavetotaketogetittodowhatyouwantUsingitinrealtime
modewillnotbeasnap,butyoushouldbeabletodoPROJECT7Iabovewithouttoomuchdifficulty.
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BasicConcepts(GPSandGIS)Part5

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