Summary
We are a student team at the University of Oklahoma, USA and are supported by NASA-ARMD in launching a crowd supply campaign for our education! We are developing a low-cost RTK module and kit that uses UBLOX-ZED-F9P and unique software to support “networked” RTK. This allows expanding the current RTK coverage to much further distance, while further enhancing the localization accuracy and quality of GNSS services.
Our campaign is also an educational program for students in the university to learn about entrepreneurship. Our business goal is learning experience instead of making profit. With your contribution, we can build and demonstrate the first prototype of AM-RTK (Affordable and Mobile RTK) modules, which will for the first time have the capability to use a larger scale, hybrid network to enhance the GNSS precision.
Normal RTK can be considered a service providing location enhancement or correction data to RTK compatible GPS receivers. Our modules will be able to support RTK and other enhancement services of this type.
Our campaign is at "concept" stage at the moment but we are expecting the module prototype to be available in Fall 2020, and production to become available in Feb-March 2021. We have finished the initial designs and now are working on finishing PCB (Printed-Circuit-Board) Design and initial software design.
What We Need & What You Get
Our team is mainly supported by NASA and our university. We have committed to raise funding from crowd sourcing. We need the crowd-source funding to enhance our PCB board prototypes and hardware product development. For each one thousand dollars we raise, we can build one complete AM-RTK module set – which includes one base-station, and one rover receiver. We currently set a goal of up to $5000 for building the initial prototypes.
Based on your amount of support, you can obtain a free or discounted expansion board or RTK-GPS module as a perk.
The Impact
UBLOX-ZED-F9P is an excellent new GNSS receiver chip product. It supports both reference station and rover functions of RTK – which is a GNSS accuracy augmentation solution that has existed for decades. There are multiple products on the market already using ZED-F9P, some of them are low-cost, but they mainly depend on the commercial software system provided by U-Blox. Our team is a US student development team trying to develop a new software will implement networking RTK to achieve the goals. The software will run on the onboard micro-processor, as well as an embedded Linux machine, both can be customized since it is open, and can also be used with other open-source GNSS receivers.
Risks & Challenges
AM-RTK module and kit are fully scalable! In the minimal configuration, it is a simple RTK-receiver that can be used together with existing GNSS services, and can work as a single node or multiple nodes, until achieving a massive scale network that we set as long term goal. Therefore, the technology risk is under control.
After carefully considering the COVID-19 pandemic, our team will do best we can to maintain our supply chain, fabrication chain and the facility operations for timely deliveries. We will keep close contact with each backer/sponsor on updates if there are any delays with these situations.
Other Ways You Can Help
Please help to spread the word! We like to reach a broad range of audience for our campaign!