The SparkFun RTK Express is Shipping!
Earlier this month we released the new RTK Express; now it's shipping and we have a guide!
Great news, everyone: the SparkFun RTK Express is now shipping! That means if you ordered one between Tuesday, June 1st, and Friday, June 18th, you should (hopefully) be receiving it in the next few days! We do still have some extras built up but we expect them to sell out soon. So, if you haven't picked up your own RTK Express, now might be a good time.
WIth the official release of the SparkFun RTK Express, we wanted to make sure you were also aware of the new guide we wrote for it! The RTK Express is your one-stop shop for high precision geolocation and surveying needs. For basic users, it’s incredibly easy to get up and running and for advanced users, the RTK Express is a flexible and powerful tool. The RTK Express is a fully enclosed, preprogrammed device. There are very few things to worry about or configure but we cover all of the basics in the tutorial below.
SparkFun RTK Express Hookup Guide
June 21, 2021
Learn how to use the enclosed RTK Express product to achieve millimeter level geospatial coordinates.
By connecting your phone to the RTK Express over Bluetooth, your phone can act as the radio link to provide correction data as well as receive the NMEA output from the device. It’s how $10,000 surveying devices have been operating for the past decade - we just made it easier, smaller, and a lot less expensive.
GNSS RTK is an incredible feat of engineering that has been made easy to use by powerful GNSS receivers such as the ZED-F9P by u-blox (the receiver inside RTK Express). The process of setting up an RTK system will be covered in this tutorial, but if you want to know more about RTK here are some good tutorials to brush up on:
What is GPS RTK?
Learn about the latest generation of GPS and GNSS receivers to get 14mm positional accuracy!
Getting Started with U-Center for u-blox
Learn the tips and tricks to use the u-blox software tool to configure your GPS receiver.
Setting up a Rover Base RTK System
Getting GNSS RTCM correction data from a base to a rover is easy with a serial telemetry radio! We'll show you how to get your high precision RTK GNSS system setup and running.
How to Build a DIY GNSS Reference Station
Learn how to affix a GNSS antenna, use PPP to get its ECEF coordinates and then broadcast your own RTCM data over the internet and cellular using NTRIP to increase rover reception to 10km!
Let us know in the comments below what you plan on using your new RTK Express for. Is there a project or idea you want to implement it is? Let us know, we are excited to hear from you!
Ready to get hands-on with GNSS?
We've got a page just for you! We'll walk you through the basics of how GPS/GNSS works, the hardware needed, and project tutorials to get you started.
Our plan is to use RTK GPS (and accompanying sensors) for accurate velocity/distance measurements during athletics performance. The RTK express seems to have the features we have prioritize. However, I still have to research and make sure I’m capable of to getting it to work.