Step 2.1: Prepare the GPS
Update Firmware and configure the GPS board
Info
There is a tutorial video available for this step of the process! <br/>
Check my YouTube video here: Video (time 16:21 - 17:15)
Prerequisites
- An Ardusimple F9P GPS board
- A Micro USB Cable
- A Windows PC
- Latest v1 version of the u-center software:
๐ย https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-center
Don’t get u-center V2, you will need u-center v1 for the F9P. - The GPS configuration file
๐ย robot-fw-1_51.txt
This will open in a new browser tab. Use Ctrl+S to download the file.
Step 2.1.0: Update Firmware
Warning
<p>The F9P now exists in multiple variants. The firmware below is for the L1 + L2 version. Make sure that on the u-blox chip, it says one of the following: <strong>ZED-F9P-02B, ZED-F9P-04B or ZED-F9P-05B!</strong>.</p>
If it’s a different board, don’t use the linked firmware, get it from u-blox.com directly.
Update the firmware of your Ardusimple board to version ZED-F9P HPG 1.51 - link here. There’s a guide on the Ardusimple Website.
Step 2.1.1: Open u-center and connect to your GPS
After installing u-center, connect your Ardusimple board using the “Power+GPS” USB socket to your Windows computer. You should see the blue LEDs of the board come on and Windows should recognize the device as a COM port. With the module connected to your PC, open the u-center software.
In u-center, first connect to your board by selecting the appropriate COM port in the Receiver -> Connection menu.
Step 2.1.2: Transfer the configuration to the GPS

After successfully connecting to the board, you can transfer
the previously downloaded configuration file robot-fw-1_51.txt by opening the window Tools -> Receiver Configuration .... In this window you open the robot-fw-1_51.txt using the ... button and then transfer the configuration to the GPS by clicking the Transfer File -> GNSS button.
Step 2.1.3: Save configuration to Flash

In order to keep the GPS configured even after powering it down, you need to save the current configuration to Flash memory. In order to do this, select View -> Configuration View. In the new window you need to select CFG (Configuration) in the list on the left side and then enable Save current configuration. Make sure that 0 - BBR and 1 - FLASH are both selected on the right side of the window. Once that’s done, click the Send button in the lower toolbar of the window.
Once successful, there will be a timer showing on the upper right side of the window. This is the timer since the last message was sent to your GPS board. It should be 0s directly after clicking Send.
Step 2.1.4: Done ๐
Your GPS is now configured for use with the Open Mower software. You can disconnect it from your Windows PC.
Connect your UM9xx to your PC using the supplied USB-C cable
Open a serial terminal (minicom, miniterm, CuteCom, etc.) at 115200 baud
Send
CONFIGโ Enter to verify the connection. You should see readable key/value style output. If not, check cable, port, and permissions.Reset and switch the baud rate to 921600 by entering the following commands, line by line:
FRESETโ Enter
CONFIG COM1 921600โ Enter(After
FRESETthe module may take a few seconds to respond.)Re-check connection with the simple
CONFIGcommand. If you don’t get similar results than before, change your serial terminal speed to 921600 baud (re-open if necessary) and runCONFIGagain, till your get a reasonable responseApply the rover configuration by entering the following commands, line by line:
MODE ROVER UAVโ Enter
GPGSV COM1 2โ Enter
GPRMC COM1 1โ Enter
GPGSA COM1 1โ Enter
GPVTG COM1 1โ Enter
GPGST COM1 1โ Enter
GPGGA COM1 0.2โ Enter
SAVECONFIGโ EnterTake attention to the
SAVECONFIGcommand, which stores settings so they survive power cycles.Unplug the USB cable from the UM9x module and mount it to the CarrierBoard (solder required headers first if required).
Alternative Instruction
Continue with Step 2.2: Prepare the SD Card