SparkFun Electronics unveils surveying receiver

SparkFun Electronics has launched the SparkPNT RTK Facet mosaic L-Band, a high-precision geolocation and surveying receiver. Equipped with Septentrio’s multi-band mosaic-X5, it delivers centimeter-level accuracy, achieving 6 mm RTK fixes in under a minute, according to SparkFun.

The receiver connects to phones or tablets via Bluetooth and outputs NMEA data, ensuring compatibility with most geographic information system (GIS) software. It leverages u-blox’s PointPerfect service for real-time corrections, transmitted via a geosynchronous Inmarsat satellite.

Built around an ESP32 WROOM and the mosaic-X5 GNSS multi-band receiver, the RTK Facet mosaic L-Band includes peripheral hardware and a surveyor-grade L1/L2/L5-band antenna designed for GNSS signal reception and PointPerfect correction.

The device supports multiple operational modes, including GNSS positioning, GNSS positioning with RTK L-Band, GNSS positioning with RTK, GNSS base station, and GNSS base station NTRIP server. In rover mode, it achieves horizontal positional accuracy between 6 mm and 60 mm.

As an open-source hardware product, users can access and modify its electrical and mechanical design files. The kit includes the enclosed device, a thread adapter, charger, data cables, and a carrying case.