GPS Module NEO-6M Receiver w/ Integrated Ceramic Antenna

The Ubox NEO-6M gps engine on this board is a quite good one, with high precision binary output. It has also high sensitivity for indoor applications. The gps module have a battery for power backup and EEprom for storing configuration settings.

The antenna is connected to module through ufl cable which allow for flexibility in mounting the gps such that the antenna will always see the sky for best performance. This make it powerful to use with cars and other mobile applications.

The gps module has serial TTL output, it has four pins:TX, RX, VCC and GND.

Features

• Cold start time of 38s; Hot start time of 1s
• Rechargeable battery for Backup
• SuperSense ® Indoor GPS: -162 dBm tracking sensitivity
• Long service life due to the reliable quality
• High accuracy to respond to your demands
• Clear marks for easy recognize and applying
• Compact size for easy installation
• Light weight to avoid adding extra burden to your device
• UART protocol communication

Specifications

• Supply voltage: 3.3V - 5V DC
• Configurable from 4800 Baud to 115200 Baud rates. (default 9600)
• 5Hz position update rate
• UART TTL socket
• EEprom to save configuration settings
• Operating temperature range: -40 to +85°C
• Separated 18 X 18mm GPS antenna
• Dimension: 22 X 30 X 13mm
• Weight: 19g

Connect to an Arduino

#include <SoftwareSerial.h>

SoftwareSerial gps(4,3);

char data=' ';

void setup(){
 Serial.begin(115200); //115200 baud speed         
 gps.begin(9600); //9600 baud speed
}


void loop(){
  if(gps.available())
  {
    data=gps.read();
    Serial.print(data);
  }
}

Result example in serial monitor:

$ GPRMC, 044235.000, A, 4322.0289, N, 00824.5210, W, 0.39,65.46,020615 ,,, A * 44

Where if we analyze the plot of this example and based on the NMEA protocol, we could determine the following variables:

- 044235.000 represents GMT (4:42:35)
- "A" is the indication that the position data is fixed and is correct. "V" would be invalid
- 4322.0289 represents the length (43º 22.0289')
- N represents the North
- 00824.5210 represents the latitude (8th 24.5210')
- W represents the West
- 0.39 represents the speed in knots
- 65.46 represents the orientation in degrees
- 020,615 represents the date (June 2, 2015)

As we saw, the data frame sent by our GPS module can get several variables, being important for projects positioning latitude and longitude. To do this, we will make use of the TinyGPS library that can be downloaded from here:

https://github.com/mikalhart/TinyGPS

Remember that once downloaded the library, we have to import it by copying the "Libraries" folder where you installed our Arduino IDE and then restart the program to be loaded correctly. The TinyGPS library will facilitate the identification of both latitude and longitude, as well as the other variables described above without having to resort to complex algorithms to achieve obtain. To do this we run a simple example that provides us the library, to which we go to File / examples / TinyGPS / simple_test in our Arduino IDE.