Hardware Bigredbee
brb_units.jpg

The Big Red Bee Units are an integrated GPS/RF transmitter device. "The typical usage model will be to capture and decode packets as the rocket descends under 'chute. Once your rocket hits the ground (or goes behind that ridge), it's likely that you will lose the ability to receive and decode packets. (But you can still track the transmitter as if it were a standard RF beacon)." (http://www.bigredbee.com/BeeLineGPS.htm)

Homepage: http://www.bigredbee.com/BeeLineGPS.htm
Manual: http://www.bigredbee.com/docs/BLGPS/beelineGPS_07.pdf

Features

  • Completely integrated: RF transmitter, GPS Module, GPS and RF antennas, and battery all in one small package.
  • Transmits on ANY frequency in the 70cm band (in 125 hz steps)
  • 1.25" x 3", weighs about 2 ounces, and fits in a 38mm body tube (or a 54mm nose cone)
  • Lithium-Poly battery lasts for more than 8 hours.
  • Range: 25 miles line of site. (This figure is quite suspicious given that the output signal is only 15mW)
  • Flight data stored in non-volatile memory
  • Transmits latitude, longitude, altitude, course and speed.

Accessories

Amplifier

Battery Charger

Charger.jpg

The charger has two buttons: a ‘test’ button and a ‘polarity’ button. The button that ‘clicks’ when pushed is the polarity
button.

  • DO NOT PLUG INTO THE WALL YET!
  1. Connect the battery to the charger. (use short wires to connect into the battery plug)
  2. Push the test button, the green light should glow.
  3. If the light doesn’t come on, push the polarity button, and repeat step 2.
  4. Plug into the wall. The light will blink until the battery is charged.

Serial/Programming Adapter

Setup/Configure

Adapter.jpg
  1. Apply power to the BeeLine GPS. (Power Cycle the unit if your having problems connecting)
  2. Start the windows application. (BeeLineGPS.exe)
  3. Connect the serial interface to the BeeLine GPS. (If using a USB to Serial adapter cable, you must connect it to the computer first!)
  4. Click on “READ”

Software

Page tags: aprs firmware flight gps hardware nmea radio