We're pleased to announce our GPS Expander Module V3 for our eLogger V3 and Seagull Telemetry systems.



The GPS V3 supports 5Hz update rate, which is five times faster than our prior GPS unit, giving very high resolution position information for aerobatic pilots and other model vehicles with rapidly changing position.

The GPS V3 is also much smaller, and has improved sensitivity for fast and reliable fixes, often even indoors! The V3 supports WAAS and EGNOS enhanced resolution protocols for the best position accuracy.

GPS Expander V3 Specifications:

* Update Rate: 5Hz
* Antenna: Built-In patch, with port for optional External Antenna
* WAAS and EGNOS support
* Built-in battery backup for fast fix reacquisition
* Time to Fix: 1 second hot, 41 second cold (typ)
* Low current draw (approx. 33 mA steady state)
* Tiny: dimensions approx 1.4ā€¯ x 1.7ā€¯ x 0.5ā€¯ (36x43x13mm)
* Weighs approx 0.8 oz (23g)
* Position accuracy approx 11ft (3.3m) CEP
* Sensitivity: approx -158dBm

When coupled with our Seagull, Data Recorder, or eLogger V3 systems, these GPS features are available:

* Lat/Lon, GPS Speed, GPS Altitude, Course, Distance to Operator, and UTC timestamp display/graphing
* Live and recorded Google Earthā„¢ Support
* Logging of position throughout the session
* Last known position displayed with our Seagull Dashboard for easy location of a lost plane (with a separate handheld GPS to guide you to the location)
* 2D and 3D position graphing in the Virtual Dashboard PC software, with support for overlaid images of the field or track

See your Eagle Tree Dealer or [link=http://eagletreesystems.com/press/GPS-5HZ.pdf]click here[/link] for more information.

Bill,

How does GPS work indoors when an automotive GPS goes blank in a tunnel. As well as satellite radio. Is GPS line of site or RF radio to penetrate buildings and walls? I can't figure this one out at all and confused that the newer Garmins do better indoors than my Garmin V does. What specs am I mising here ???

Bill, how is the accuracy of the position and speed data in vertical manuevers?

Note that he says "often even indoors"

Compair the sensitivity spec to your Garmin GPS. Your older GPS may be less sensitive.
All GPS's work off of an RF signal from the satilites, solid objects reduce that signal.
If you get your sensitivity good enough you MAY still be able to get a fix from the wimpy signals that are making it thru the roof.

My very old GPS could not lock in if I even got near my house or even walking through the woods in the winter with no leaves on the trees. My newer unit (8 years old) can still get a lock in the thickest of woods during the summer with the leaves so thick that there is no sky visible. It will work in my house as long as I am within 5 feet of a window.
I'm sure that the newer ones are even better yet.

I also would like to know it this unit can display vertical speed or just the horizontal component of your speed. In other words will it show my terminal velocity in a vertical dive, or my actual speed in a 45 degree dive?

Hi All,

Thanks for the questions - here are some answers:

1) Re indoor GPS acquisition, we have been unsuccessful in finding an indoor location where the new 5Hz GPS will NOT acquire. I am sitting here now on the bottom floor of a 2 story house, surrounded by trees, and am getting 8 sats in view and a 3D fix. Hot fix in this location takes 1-3 seconds. We've had similar experiences in our offices and in the homes of our beta testers. The reason is the GPS module's enhanced "real-world" sensitivity coupled with its ability to sort out true satellite signals from multipath, RF noise, etc. Even sitting next to two operating cellphones, a cordless phone, and our 900 MHz telemetry transmitter (in high power mode) in the same indoor spot, performance is not degraded. My Garmin and other GPS units we've tried have not come close to this.

2) Re vertical speed measurement, this depends on a variety of factors. All GPS units measure X and Y coordinates best, and the Z coordinate, i.e., altitude (which is the hardest to compute) second best. But, all our data systems have either built-in or optional high-sensitivity airspeed sensors and altimeters, which can be used, in conjunction with the change of X/Y position, to much more accurately compute dive speed. Our Pro system has 1 foot altitude resolution (and also supports retrieving Jet ECU data) so they are perfect for this. It will be very easy for us to add a "computed speed" based on latitude/longitude and altitude change, which can be compared directly to the airspeed, and/or the speed computed by GPS.