Ublox GPS Modules

[Gaza07]

Anyone using the current range of ublox gps modules mightbe interested in the Ublox Ucentre programme you can get it from here http://www.u-blox.com/en/evaluation-tools-a-software/u-center/u-center.html

Here's a picture of how i have mine set up

[teslahed]

Are you using yours with your rabbit? Have you used it with a MultiWii flight controller at all?

At the moment I'm trying to find the right driver for the usb interface device that came with the GPS, can't seem to get the thing to detect in windows.

[Gaza07]

The default windows driver doesnt work right with these silabs ttl interfaces try here
http://www.silabs.com/Support%20Documents/Software/CP210x_VCP_Win_XP_S2K3_Vista_7.exe

I have used the ublox gps with multi wii but only through the serial connection up to now and not the I2c bus, the flight controller I connected it to is a mega and has extra serial ports 
It would be interesting to try through the I2c bus but you also need the compass and my smaller wii boards dont have a compass yet  ::)

[teslahed]

Is there anything you need to click on to get the software to respond apart from the 'connect' icon in the top right? I think i've got the drivers installed properly but I'm not getting anything from U-Centre.

[Gaza07]

Click receiver in the ucenter and select the com port your using then set the baud for 9600 and select cold start, if your connected you should see the little connection icon at the bottom of the screen flashing green, you should also have one of the leds on the usb interface flashing to signify data is passing through, if you dont have this then swap the rx / tx wires over it cant hurt naything swaping these as long as you dont mix the others up vcc and ground 

[teslahed]

Hm - still no response.

I wonder if i fried it when i was trying to connect the i2c connections up to my multiwii board?

I spoke to soon - I'm getting satellites as we speak 

[Gaza07]

Does the led light up ? when you connected to your I2c did you make sure to use the low voltage side and not 5v, as far as I know and Im not sure but looking at the connections on the gps it only connects to 3.3v I2c, If its not working contact the seller and return it 

[teslahed]

I'm not 100% sure - i seemed to get some activity in the u-centre program but i haven't got lots of satellites showing like you have. Does it take a while to find them all when it's indoors?

[Gaza07]

If your seeing some activity you need to wait as its the Gps cold start it takes a while for every thing to work the first time, If it was faulty you wouldn't get any thing, stick it near the window and wait 

[teslahed]

Well i haven't got a long enough usb cable to get near the window so I'll just leave it running in the background and if it doesn't look better in half an hour or so I'll try my laptop outside tomorrow.

O yeah i did have to reverse my RX and TX leads for some reason, so thanks for that.

[Gaza07]

Did you end up getting a GPS fix ? 

[teslahed]

That reminds me; i need to get the program installed on my laptop so i can try it in the garden.

I didn't manage to get a fix indoors. I got activity that looked like it was seeing 3 or 4 satellites at various points but nothing that resulted in GPS data. I live in a terraced house with thick walls so i need to try outdoors before i can assume it's broken.

[teslahed]

Hm - well i'm getting more response than i was before but i'm still seeing a lot of red where you have green and it's not returning latitude or longitude.

I've had it running on my laptop out in the garden the last 10 mins.

[Gaza07]

Try leaving it longer the first cold fix can take some time it did on mine, The fact that your seeing the red sats seems to me its working as there wouldnt even be red sats if it were dead, I like how you have google earth set up on yours 

[teslahed]

Google earth view is in the view settings at the top - i had to install google earth first though.

It would be quite a cool feature if i had the thing working!

[teslahed]

I've managed to get my GPS to return latitude and longitude so i guess that means it's working.

I left my laptop outside in the sun for 10 mins to pick the satellites up which seems to have made the difference.

Does the GPS device remember the satellites it spots for future reference? Is that why it has the battery included? I can't imagine the thing will be much use to me if it takes that long to start working every time.

[Gaza07]

The first time you use it is a cold start and it has to learn where it is, after that it should be able to warm start which still can take a few mins, if you battery is charged as in you have been using it recently it should be able to hot start which should be a few seconds,
Mine seems to do the hot start if I have already had it on, and normally does a warm start if its been a day or two, the rctimer one doesnt seem quite so good and seems to need a cold start every time and it is quite frustrating waiting ages for it at each use  :-\

[teslahed]

the rctimer one doesnt seem quite so good and seems to need a cold start every time and it is quite frustrating waiting ages for it at each use  :-\

If you are lucky that might be down to a dud battery. Try replacing it and see what happens.

[Gaza07]

Good idea I will give it a test with the multi meter 

[teslahed]

I managed to find this instruction manual for MultiWii GPS stuff on the internet somewhere;

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=10&ved=0CGgQFjAJ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fi2c-gps-nav.googlecode.com%2Ffiles%2Fr33-documentation.pdf&ei=1836T8LlKMmA8wPY5oSVBw&usg=AFQjCNEkeoELQ3jmPWaq1sbPxXPnh-hEnw&sig2=o-tcZqyxNu9JhQSuoBPCzw

[Gaza07]

Nice find not sure which of the I2c versions it will match though just try em all 

[Gaza07]

If you need to find your magnetic declination there is a good website here http://magnetic-declination.com/
Heres mine

[teslahed]

I can't get my GPS to respond in the MultiWii WinGUI. I just get lots of I2C errors.

There are only 2 I2C GPS devices to choose from though;

Code Select Expand

* I2C GPS device made with an independant arduino + GPS device
       including some navigation functions
       contribution from EOSBandi   http://code.google.com/p/i2c-gps-nav/ */
    //#define I2C_GPS

    /* I2C GPS device made with an indeedent ATTiny[24]313 + GPS device and
       optional sonar device.    https://github.com/wertarbyte/tiny-gps/ */
    /* get GPS data from Tiny-GPS */
    //#define TINY_GPS
    /* get sonar data from Tiny-GPS */
    //#define TINY_GPS_SONAR

I've tried both of these and neither seemed to work, although the 'TINY_GPS' option seemed to result in more blinking lights.

[Gaza07]

I wonder if the Rctimer I2c interface would work with it but connect the normal serial side of your Gps to the I2c converter as the Rctimer Gps is a normal serial Gps the same, maybe its some thing to do with the I2c address  :-\

[teslahed]

I might have to give that a try.

Interestingly when i enabled the GPS i had to disable the LCD screen because i ran out of memory on the arduino.

In the long run I'm not too worried as I'm not intending to put GPS on this quadcopter permanently. I'm saving the GPS for the larger quads I've already got built which will be less for stunt flying and more for camera work. I've got one of the rabbit flight controllers on order for that as I've heard they are particularly stable (which will help with FPV flying).

[Gaza07]

oh your going to love the rabbit I have 2 of them and they are very good but closed source, the gps module you have deff works fine with the rabbit I have actually used this combo, have you ordered the new version of the rabbit with the ms5611 baro ?

[teslahed]

Yeah i got the new version with the precision barometer - ordered it about a week ago now so should arrive any day now.

[Gaza07]

The altitude hold on the rabbit is very good and if you get the soanr to its very very accurate 
have a look through the rabbit section at some of the video's