SparkFun Tx2 connectivity

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1

Hi!

I’m interested on getting one SparkFun Tx2 for one small project and have some doubts that would like to clarify.

My idea is to receive NTRIP corrections over WiFi and send Real Time corrected RTK Position data over Bluetooth to an ANDROID device where I can log/save the current position for small mapping project.

My question is about this 2 connection methods, checking the manuals I think my idea is feasible but would like to confirm before purchasing that.

  • NTRIP corrections can be received over WiFi from external client device
  • NMEA traces can be sent at the same real time over Bluetooth in open / standard format to be received by a home made Android application

Thanks in advance for your replies!!!

2

Welcome to the forum @ROBER7O !

Yes, to both of your questions.
Here’s a link to the doc that explains it:

The TX2 runs RTK Everywhere Firmware, which includes a built-in NTRIP Client for a WiFi connection.

For your custom Android app, you can disable all NMEA output from the TX2, and only send the RMC message at whatever rate you need (1 per second, 10 per second, etc). The RMC sentence bundles position, velocity, course over ground, time, etc into a single message.

You can send other NMEA messages at a lower rate, just for displaying metrics in your App (if you want) - like SIV, Fix Quality, Age of Corrections, PDOP, etc.

IE: You don’t want to send things like the GSV sentence too often, because it can flood the Bluetooth link, with no real benefit.

3

Hei!!

Thanks a lot for your quick reply!

And of course for confirming my hypothesis :slight_smile:

I see that I have another 2 alternatives:

  • Option B / get Tx2 connected over WiFi to an external router for Internet access and configure the embedded Tx2 NTRIP client to get Real Time corrections, and the send the corrected position data over Bluetooth to the Android device like in Option A
  • Option C / connect the Android device to internet, run a Client NTRIP App to get Real Time corrections and send the NTRIP corrections over Bluetooth to the Tx2, at the same time the Tx” will respond with the NMEA position data over Bluetooth
  • Option D / Tx2 receiving the corrections over Bluetooth/serial from external NTRIP client device and sending the corrected NMEA position data over WiFi.. (not sure at all about this but worthy to check)

I think these are all the possibilities .. am I correct?

Thanks in advance for your support!

4

Yes to all (mostly), except I’ve never heard of anyone doing Option D. I’m not saying it wont work, I’ve never tried it.

The most common use is your Option “C” with a smartphone.

Note: I’m not a SparkFun employee, so it wont hurt to get an official answer :slight_smile:

2 Likes
5

You have a good handle on the lay-of-the-land :slight_smile: Let us know if you have more questions!

6

Thanks Both for your comments!!

Following up on suggestion, is there any SparkFun employee from Technical Support Team who can confirm or reject our Tx2 connectivity hypothesis?

Thanks you all in advance, I’m getting really comfortable in this new Community!