Step 2.1: Prepare the GPS
Info
There is a tutorial video available for this step of the process!Check my YouTube video here: Video (time 16:21 - 17:15)
Configure the GPS board
This assumes that you are using the Ardusimple F9P GPS board.
Other GPS receivers are also supported, but need different steps:
- WitMotion Unicore UM9XX: wiki, optional adapter, set-up guide
Prerequisites
- An Ardusimple F9P GPS board
- A Micro USB Cable
- A Windows PC
- Latest v1 version of the u-center software:
🔗 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
🔗 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
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: ZED-F9P-02B, ZED-F9P-04B or ZED-F9P-05B!.
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 🎉
Your GPS is now configured for use with the Open Mower software. You can disconnect it from your Windows PC.
Continue with Step 2.2: Prepare the SD Card