Hardware Hooku
To get started communicating with the Copernicus II, you will need to
connect four pins on the module: VCC, GND, TX-B, and RX-B.
For our example, we will be connecting the module to a terminal window on
the computer using an 3.3V FTDI Basic Board, and will be using the GPS
Antenna Embedded SMA.
Connections:
Copernicus II → FTDI Basic
•VCC → 3.3V
• GND → GND
•TX-B → RXI
• RX-B → TXO
Take a look at the Fritzing diagram below showing the connections
between the Copernicus II and the FTDI Basic.
Talking to the Module
Once you have your boards connected, open up your favorite serial
terminal program and connect to the appropriate COM port for your FTDI
Basic. The connection settings should be 4800 bps, 8 data bits, no parity, 1
stop bit, and no flow control.
If your module is hooked up properly and has a lock, you should see a
scrolling output like this.
Copernicus II output in CoolTerm terminal window
As you can see in the GPGGA output, the module is reading the position to
be 4003.89135 N and 10512.58816 W, which happens to be SparkFun’s
headquarters. The module is also currently only seeing 2 satellites, and the
location data being output is from the last value stored in the flash (shown
by the GPS Quality Indicator of 7). The lack of additional data is due to
testing this inside a large building like SparkFun where the signal fades in
and out, so you should actually be getting more data from your module if
testing near a window or outside with a clear view.
Talking to a Microcontroller
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