gps News - Page 13 of 23 - CNX Software

January 6, 2019April 13, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Sony Spresense Board Review with NuttX based Spresense SDK

Sony Spresense Arduino compatible board with audio and global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) support and its extension board launched in Japan this summer. The company has now expanded markets, and is offering the boards in the United States and Europe as well. They also tasked an agency to send samples to various reviewers, and I got selected to receive one as well. I’ll start the review by checking out the hardware, shortly discuss software development options, and report my experience with Spresense SDK. Sony Spresense Unboxing I received two packages… … one the main board, and the other for the extension board. The main board package only comes with CXD5602PWBMAIN1 board and an information sheet. The top of the board includes a reset button, four user LEDs, a power LED, a boot recovery button, the camera interface, Sony CXD5247 power management and audio analog interface chip (Black on the photo below, […]

December 20, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Qualcomm 9205 NB-IoT & Cat M1 LTE Modem Lowers Costs, Power Consumption

Qualcomm has introduced a new LTE IoT chipset with Qualcomm 9205 LTE modem that supports Cat M1 (eMTC), NB2 (NB-IoT), 2G/E-GPRS fallback, as well as GNSS. Qualcomm 9205 comes at a lower price, smaller footprint, and up to 70% lower power consumption in standby mode compared to its predecessor (MDM9206). Qualcomm 9205 LTE modem key features and specifications: Processor / OS – Arm Cortex A7 up to 800MHz with support for ThreadX and AliOS Things real-time operating systems Connectivity Standards 3GPP release 14 Category M1 and NB2; 2G/E-GPRS fallback where Cat M1 / NB2 is not available. Category M1 mode supports voice for applications such as monitored security panels, and mobility for applications such as asset trackers. RF transceiver Bandwidth support from 450 MHz to 2100 MHz Built-in RF front-end, a first in the cellular IoT space Geolocation Integrated GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) support for GPS, Beidou, Glonass, and […]

August 23, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Samsung Introduces Exynos i S111 NB-IoT Modem + GNSS Chip

Samsung has just announced their first NB-IoT solution with Exynos i S111 chipset with a single chip integrating an NB-IoT capable LTE modem, RF IC, an on-chip security sub-system, and a PUF (Physical Unclonable Function) security solution along with various components such as CPU, and SRAM. The chip apparently also integrates GNSS hardware with support for GPS, Galileo, etc… Exynos i S111 specifications: CPU – Arm Cortex-M7 @ 200MHz On-chip Memory – 512KB SRAM Modem – LTE Release 14 NB-IoT GNSS – GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou Interfaces / Peripherals – USI, UART, I2C, GPIO, eSIM I/F, SDIO (Host), QSPI(Single/Dual/Quad IO mode), SMC Security – eFuse, AES, SHA-2, PKA, Secure Storage, Security Sub-System, PUF The chip is also said to features Samsung’s “advanced algorithms for wider coverage”. Many NB-IoT GPS trackers currently implement a two modules solution, so the latest Exynos chip should enable more compact designs. Samsung did not publish […]

July 31, 2018July 31, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

RAK8213 mini PCIe Card Comes with GNSS, NB-IoT & eMTC Connectivity

After launching their first wireless communication mini PCIe card with RAK833 LoRaWAN gateway card last month, RAK Wireless is back with another mPCIe card that supports GNSS (GPS, GLONASS), as well as cellular IoT connectivity thanks to Quectel BG96 NB-IoT + LTE Cat M1 module. RAK8213 mini PCIe card specifications: Wireless Connectivity Module – Quectel BG96 with LTE Cat. M1 (eMTC), LTE Cat. NB1 (NB-IoT), EGPRS, and GNSS Global bands support FDD-LTE – B1/ B2/ B3/ B4/ B5/ B8/ B12/ B13/ B18/ B19/ B20/ B26/ B28 TDD-LTE – B39 (for Cat M1 only) EGPRS – 850/900/1800/1900Mhz Max Data Rate – Cat M1: 375 kbps (UL/DL); Cat NB1: 32 kbps DK, 70 kbps (UL) micro SIM slot u.FL connectors for cellular and GNSS mPCIe connector with USB 2.0, I2C, UART, and PCM Misc – LEDs for network and power status Dimensions – 51 x 30.1 mm The card can be added […]

July 26, 2018July 27, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

AS923 LoRa GPS Tracking with MatchX MatchBox Gateway and RAK811 LoRa GPS Tracker Board

Earlier this month, I installed Match MatchBox LoRa outdoor gateway close to the roof, and showed how easy it was easies to setup with MatchX Cloud. Basically, you just register to the cloud, enter the serial number, and the gateway is automatically based on your location. I’m in South East Asia, so the gateway was configured with AS923. I’ve now had time to play with the gateway using Rak Wireless RAK811 LoRa tracker board, and eventually managed to get the tracker location to show up on a map. It was my first experience with LoRaWAN, and I had to learn a lot, and overcome many issues from outdated software development tools, different data formats, and some interoperability issues between all components involved. I’ll document all that in this review, and hopefully it will help others. RAK811 LoRa GPS Tracker Unboxing Before going into LoRa configuration, I’ll show what I got […]

July 6, 2018July 6, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

Design ESP32 LoRa GPS Tracker Applications with TTGO T-Beam Board

TTGO introduced a small ESP32 LoRa board with OLED display last year that is still selling for around $14 shipped. But the company is now back with a similar board called TTGO T-Beam that does without the display, but adds GPS support, and a 18650 battery holder, so it should be ideally suited for all sorts of LoRa GPS tracking applications. TTGO T-Beam board specifications: SoC – Espressif ESP32 dual core Xtensa LX6 processor with WiFi and Bluetooth Memory – PSRAM Storage – 4MB SPI flash Connectivity 802.11 b/g/n WiFi up to 150 Mbps + Bluetooth 4.2 Classic and LE with “3D antenna” soldered on PCB LoRa 433, 868, and 915 MHz versions with SMA antenna Transmit current – 120 mA @ +20dBm; 90 mA @ +17dBm; 29mA @ +13dBm Receive sensitivity -139dBm with LoRa & 62.5Khz & SF=12 & 146bps -136dBm with LoRa & 125Khz & SF=12 & 293bps […]

June 23, 2018June 23, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Tail it is a Family of WiFi & Cellular GPS Trackers for Things, Pets, and Bicycles (Crowdfunding)

We’ve previously written about Ping, a tiny Cellular GPS tracker that promised to last 3 months on a charge. The raising money part of the crowdfunding campaign itself was successfully with over one million dollars raised, but as with many such campaigns there have been delays, and some people still have to receive theirs, not to mention people complaining about poor battery life and other issues. But there seems to be another option now with Tail It Technologies now offering four different “Tail it” cellular GPS trackers (with WiFi too) for things, pets, and even one designed specifically for bicycles. The company has already sold their devices to thousands of customers in Norway, so they should be working, and on-time delivery should hopefully not be an issue. All four GPS trackers come with 2G, 3G, 4G, and WiFi connectivity, a 5-meter accuracy, and share the same electronics and firmware. Here’s […]

June 13, 2018June 18, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Wio LTE GPS Tracker Board Gets a Cat M1/NB1 Version for $59

Seeed Studio launched a family of GPS tracker boards staring with Wio GPS with 2G cellular connectivity, followed by Wio LTE board offering 4G connectivity several months later. The company is taking pre-order for an LTE Cat M1/NB1 version with NB-IoT / eMTC connectivity, and going for $59 plus shipping. The board is expected to start shipping on July 25th. Wio LTE Cat M1/NB1 board specifications: MCU – STMicro STM32F405RG Arm Cortex-M4 @ 168MHZ with 1M Flash, 192+4KB RAM Connectivity LTE uBlox SARA-R410M module LTE CAT M1 and NB-IoT Cat M1 Half-duplex (375 kb/s DL and UL) Cat NB1 Half-duplex (27.2 kb/s DL, 62.5 UL) Nano SIM and micro SD card 2-in-1 socket GNSS uBlox MAX-M8Q module PS, BeiDou, GLONASS, and Galileo 2.5m CEP(GPS), 4.0m CEP(GLONASS) USB – 1x micro USB port for power supply and DFU Expansions – Grove headers: 2x digital, 2x analog, 1x UART, 1x I2C Misc […]