DIY Smart GCP (think of Propeller Aeropoints)

Hi,

I really like the idea behind the Propeller Aeropoints. Those are basically GCP targets with integrated PPK GPS. They are quite expensive, about $6.000 USD for 10 pieces, but that's still cheaper than a professional surveyor-grade RTK system, and probably more convenient for UAV mapping purposes.

However, I was wondering if a DIY version is possible and pays off?

In the end it's just a PPK receiver with power supply sitting in a rugged plastic plate... can't be that expensive...?

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  • Hi,

    Not far from the solution described by Tom, I build my own logger with a Raspberry Pi zero running RTKLib.

    The GPS is a Ublox M8T.

    Recently I added an oled screen.

    Beside the survey with this "rover", I record GPS raw datas with the RTKBase, with another GPS, Raspberry Pi and RTKlib.

    3702348971?profile=original3702349187?profile=original3702348988?profile=original

  • Hey Phil,

    the cheapest solution would be to get a m8n gps from ebay or china and add a serial logger (openlog). This is known and used. Read up on this.

    BOM:

    ublox M8N or M8T

    serial logger

    power source (i used a "18650 cell" with a cheap charger from ebay "TP 4056")

    2 switches (1 to turn on gps and get a good signal and 1 for the logger to start recording)

    waterproof housing for e.g. electro installation

    totals less than 100,--

    another source for good information is rtklibexplorer wished this blag was available when i started with this...

    i recently tried to a a esp8266 module and use it as serial bridge to check if the link quality is working fine.

  • Hey Philipp,

    I'm also interested in finding an inexpensive way to increase the quality of our drone data. To that end... I found this link for an open source RTK system which looks promising. I'd be curious to find out if anyone else has found a cheap open source solution for RTK or PPK tools?

    Link to open source RTK using a Raspberry Pi: https://github.com/Francklin2/RTKLIB_Touchscreen_GUI

    Regards.

    Francklin2/RTKLIB_Touchscreen_GUI
    RTKLIB GUI for Raspberry Pi with touchscreen made with Qt by the ENSG students - Francklin2/RTKLIB_Touchscreen_GUI
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