mettatec GNSS X5 PPK Module for Phantom 4 Pro and Advance User Manual

: June 9, 2024
: mettatec

Table of Contents

Description
- Main Advantages
- Trigger Sensor
NEW HIGH PRECISION X5 GNSS RECEIVER
Module Components
METTATEC X5 App
PPK Flight Operation Requirements
Installation on the Drone
Drone Configuration
Topographic Survey Flights
- Before Flight
- After Flight
Post Process – PPK
The UAV PPK App for event interpolation
Antenna Specifications
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Download This Manual (PDF format)

mettatec GNSS X5 PPK Module for Phantom 4 Pro and Advance

mettatec GNSS X5 PPK Module for Phantom 4 Pro and
Advance

Description

The X5 PPK Module for Phantom 4 Pro is a-non intrusive GNSS adapter system to connect to a DJI Phantom 4 Pro v.1/v.2 or Advance Drone (not included).

Main Advantages

Contains its own high quality GNSS Receiver module with state-of-the-art components
No need to open or modify your Drone (keep your Drone’s original warranty)
The X5 PPK Module attaches and disattaches in seconds
No Batteries required
Ultra-fast image triggering detector sensor
Lightweight microelectronics: 80 grams

Trigger Sensor

A sensor installed externally on the P4P drone detects the triggering of each photograph and records a time stamp in the log file of the MULTIBAND X5 GNSS module. Timestamps are extracted from the module after flight and combined with the in-flight imagery as centimeter-accurate position geotags (geotagging) using various specialized software options available on the market. The new X5 GNSS Module is a centimeter-accurate multiband GNSS system for UAV mapping.

NEW HIGH PRECISION X5 GNSS RECEIVER

The X5 GNSS receiver module is a multiband GNSS system, with centimeter precision for UAV mapping.

New High Precision X5 Gnss Receiver

Image: Multiband X5 GNSS receiver.

Specifications:

Mechanical|

Dimensions: 52 x 37 x 13 mm
Weight: 50g
Operation temperature: -40 to 85 °C

Electrical|

nput voltage: 4.75 – 5.5 V
Antenna DC bias: 3.3 V
Peak current consumption: 5V @ 500 mA
Average current consumption: 5V @ 250 mA
Current limit on USB OTG: 1000 mA

Positioning|

Static horizontal 4 mm + 0.5 ppm
Static vertical 8 mm + 1 ppm
Kinematic horizontal 7 mm + 1 ppm
Kinematic vertical 14 mm + 1 ppm

Connectivity|

Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth V4.2 BR/EDR

Data|

Position output NMEA, RXM (for RINEX)
Data logging UBX file with events with update rate up to 20 Hz
External storage up to 32 GB

GNSS|

Concurrent reception of GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou
Receives both L1C/A and L2C bands
Signal tracked GPS/QZSS L1 C/A, L2 GLONASS L1OF, L2 BeiDou B1l, B2l Galileo E1-B/C, E5b
Number of channels 184
Update rates 10 Hz GNSS

|

Time to First Fix: 25s (cold), 2s (hot)
Max Altitude: 50km (31 miles)
Max Velocity: 500m/s (1118mph)

Module Components

GNSS X5 Module unit with Micro-USB cable for power up (plug and play)
Multi-band Aerial Antenna HeliX5 for UAV
Antenna mount, connection cable and high resistance 3M synthetic velcro
Photo Trigger Sensor attached to the module support
16Gb MicroSD memory card for recording GNSS data

METTATEC X5 App

The app is a user-friendly software for configuration and data collection that is available for Android (iOS version currently being developed). Supports several coordinate systems. With METTA X5 App, you can control all the features of X5 GNSS receivers. Our Beta Testers will receive via email a link to download the app that is in beta version.

PPK Flight Operation Requirements

For integration is required:

One GNSS X5 PPK Module for Phantom 4 Pro
Multi-band GNSS UAV Antenna HeliX5
One Drone: DJI Phantom 4 Pro v1/v2 or Phantom 4 Advance (Not included)
One RINEX compatible GPS Base Receiver (Not included)

Installation on the Drone

Attach the Module into the drone’s left side leg
Insert a MicroSD memory card into the GNSS X5 Module
Plug the Micro-USB cable into the USB slot of the P4P
Carefully insert the Trigger Sensor under the motor of the Drone’s left front arm
Install the GNSS Antenna HeliX5 on top of the antenna mount by screwing it to the short connector of the cable provided (unscrew the supplied fixing nut and save it, in case there is one)
Firmly attach the Antenna Mount to the top of the Drone using the 3M Velcro provided. The correct installation position of the antenna mount is just above the location of the Drone camera. Once placed, validate that the propellers of the Drone do not touch the support.
Connect the antenna cable to the X5 GNSS module. Be careful not to block the view of the Drone’s anti-collision system

Drone Configuration

Turn on the Drone Phantom 4 Pro v.1/v.2 or Advance and its remote control.
Enter the DJI GO 4 App and activate the front red lights of the Drone arms: Settings / MC Settings / Advanced Settings / Turn on Aircraft Arm LEDs.

Topographic Survey Flights

Before Flight

Program your flight mission following the instructions of the flight control application you use: DJI GSP, Pix4D, Drone Deploy, Maps Made Easy or others.
The provided MicroSD memory card (Max. 64GB capacity) MUST BE INSERTED in the GNSS X5 PPK Module.
Turn ON the previously installed GNSS X5 PPK Module by connecting the Micro-USB cable to the Drone.
Turn on your Phantom 4 Pro v.1/v.2 or Advance Drone.
Wait for the red LED of the GNSS X5 PPK Module light to be ON. It takes around 30 seconds to automatically start recording the data log file.
Once these verifications and recommendations have been made, you can now proceed to fly the Drone and capture the flight mission photos.

After Flight

By the end of each flight, the GNSS X5 PPK Module will already have recorded one UBX file, so it is ready to be powered OFF without the need of stopping the recording.
All data logs (UBX files) are automatically saved in the MicroSD memory card.
The data logs can be downloaded by extracting the MicroSD memory card or via WiFi in the configuration mode.

As a result of the flight session and in order to perform a correct processing in PPK, you must obtain the following data set:

Photos captured by the Phantom 4 Pro v.1/v.2 or Advance
RAW LOGS UBX of the X5 GNSS module of each flight performed
RAW LOGS (UBX or RINEX) from a ground-based GNSS receiver
List of Ground Control Point coordinates

With this information, you will be ready to process the data through different photogrammetric software options.

Post Process – PPK

The final PPK (Post Processing Kinematic) mapping workflow can be performed using the following software options. Each of them has its own steps to follow at the user choice. This is a list of post-processing programs according to their degree of difficulty and knowledge requirement in topography:

Toposetter 2.0 Pro (Trial Version / Paid Version)
REDtoolbox (Trial Version / Paid Version)
RTKLIB (Free Version)
Emlid Studio (Free Version)

Once the information is processed, you can import the image set into any mapping software, such as Agisoft Met shape, Drone Deploy, Pix4D and others of your choice.

The UAV PPK App for event interpolation

The best online App for UAV PPK Event Interpolation. Corrects the millisecond difference between the DJI drone’s camera trigger, the Drone´s indicator LEDs and the event capture in the GNSS X5 PPK Module for maximum accuracy, so ground control points are no longer needed.

Two post processed files need to be input to the App: the RINEX post- processing file (.POS). and the event file (.POS). And the recalculated delay time in seconds for DJI Drone LEDs: 0.3. The resulting geotagged file can be downloaded in CSV and TXT format, ready to input into any popular photogrammetry software:

Exports a photo geotagging file
Exports a file with the flight path of the drone

Being an online service, you can use the App anywhere without the need for software installations or license activation. Developed by our technological partner Solutions Geografia’s (Geographic Solutions).

Link: www.solucionesgeograficas.com/app-uav- ppk/

The UAV PPK App for event interpolation