I’d like to extend the range and strength of the radio connection at my GPS base station for RTK surveying.
Holybro has this radio in its Telemetry Radio series: SiK Telemetry Radio - Long Range – Holybro Store
If I provide independent power to this radio, can I set it up the same way as the 100mW radios that I currently use ( SiK Telemetry Radio V3 - 915MHz, 100mW - SparkFun Electronics ), with just the larger radio connected to the base?
In theory, yes.
I did purchase these radios, along with an external battery as a separate power source (12V NiMH Nested Battery (3000mAh, MH-FC XT30 Connector) - goBILDA®).
With the Long Range Holybro radio (1000mW) connected to my base and the short range (100mW) on the rover, they connected with no additional calibration required, providing a fixed solution.
I have not experimented yet to determine how much additional range this radio at the base will provide.
Normally the 100mW Telemetry Radios are powered by the Facet GPS Receiever (or RTK Express, etc).
By providing an external power source to the 1W radio via its XT30 connection, does this also provide power to the GPS Receiver?
I have noticed that when I plug in the power to the radio while it is plugged into the receiver, with the receiver OFF, the display does flash the Sparfun logo momentarily.
I guess I could test this by running the battery dead, and then plugging in the radio.
Yes, the power circuit for that connector ties into the main power so that’s a bit expected; the good news is it looks like its serial interface is 3.3v (which is what the GPS units output). As long as there isn’t significant mis-match, or if the radios use a diode of some sort it shouldn’t really ever be an issue - I’d just mostly make sure I have the GPS units charged up for each use, and maybe even power them with a portable power pack (usb-c) to help prevent power sags
