|
Auburn, Indiana | The iPAQ is an affordable way for GPS mapping. It is not rugged and won't hold up in the rain and dust will shorten it's life. However it stands up pretty well to bouncing around. To hook it up to GPS, you can get a GPS cable that hooks to the bottom. However, most people go with either a RAM or Otterbox mounting system. Both mounts have power supplies and a serial port (for GPS). The Otterbox will actually seal the unit up and give it more protection. Take a look at the following website for more information:
http://www.farmworks.com/products/field/hardware/mountinghardware/i...
Another option is to use a Compact Flash GPS receiver versus your Starfire GPS. These GPS receivers are lower cost (around $150 to $200) and are very small and actually plug into the card slot of your iPAQ. They will not be as accurate as your Starfire (2 to 5 meter repeatability). However, they are good enough for soil sampling, scouting and even boundary mapping. Here's an example:
http://www.farmworks.com/products/field/hardware/gpsreceivers/fwcfg...
Finally, there are other options to the iPAQ that are more rugged. We work with the Trimble Nomad. The Nomad is nice because it has a fast processor, built in GPS and is very rugged. These units are a little more expensive. The Nomad retails for $2,200 (a complete solution with mount and power supplies). Whereas an iPAQ, Mount and CF GPS retail for $800 to $900. However, the built in GPS is handy and the Nomad is designed to hold up in the dust and rain. The Nomad also comes with a serial port that your Starfire GPS can plug into. More information at:
http://www.farmworks.com/products/field/hardware/mobilecomputing/no...
Feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions. Or call 800-225-2848.
Edited by farmwork 6/18/2009 07:51
| |
|
Elevation with RTK
