Rocket Track - Open Source GPS Tracker for Smartphones

May have to do a little de-soldering, but here's another option...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/like/170979281074

-- john.

Derek said:

Hi John,

I'm not sure I understand what questions you are asking in a couple of your points so I'll try to answer the more obvious ones first.

<snip>

Please let me know if I missed any of you questions.

Have fun!

Derek

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Oh, you did fine - and thanks for responding (there's been other discussion here, so I just sat back and let that play out, but did want to let you know I got your response.)

Thanks again for this nifty little project.

-- john.

jcato said:

Oh, you did fine - and thanks for responding (there's been other discussion here, so I just sat back and let that play out, but did want to let you know I got your response.)

Thanks again for this nifty little project.

-- john.

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Great! Let me know if you have any others.

Derek

Had some extra parts laying around, so I thought I'd try a MINI
Much to my chagrin, it was NOTHING (ok most of it is doable, but some pads are VERY close together) like the original! :sigh:
This thing is SMALL! I was wondering if anyone else (beside derek) has made one of these?

Anyway, after 4 hours of cussing and swearing, I finally finished. :clap:
Although it has yet to be tested....stay tuned for updates..... please oh please oh please work! (update....it works! :y: )
Now I need to test it in a rocket.

that looks great! nice job!

Derek

6x6 said:

Had some extra parts laying around, so I thought I'd try a MINI
Much to my chagrin, it was NOTHING like the original! :sigh:
This thing is SMALL! I was wondering if anyone else (beside derek) has made one of these?

Anyway, after 4 hours of cussing and swearing, I finally finished. :clap:
Although it has yet to be tested....stay tuned for updates..... please oh please oh please work!

View attachment 185149

Click to expand...

just ordered three of the boards. going to be a fun project! also do all the parts from the regular tx board correspond to the parts on this board?

I have built one and it was very similar to the full sized version and wasn't that much more difficult.
Just like the original it works perfectly.
The key to all of this is patience and flux.

There are a very few parts that are different but 90% of them are the same.

Eyeguy41 said:

I have built one and it was very similar to the full sized version and wasn't that much more difficult.
Just like the original it works perfectly.
The key to all of this is patience and flux.

There are a very few parts that are different but 90% of them are the same.

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ok thanks.

just to clarify if I want to just use my pc all I need is a usb to xbee adapter correct? then I can just plug it into my computer and track?

conman13 said:

ok thanks.

just to clarify if I want to just use my pc all I need is a usb to xbee adapter correct? then I can just plug it into my computer and track?

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yep. your xbee to usb adapter will still work like the with regular tx.

as far as the parts difference between the regular tx and the mini tx, the gps is different. the mini also has an additional led and resistor to indicate gps lock. I used an orange led but you can use whatever color you like. everything else is the same.

Derek said:

yep. your xbee to usb adapter will still work like the with regular tx.

as far as the parts difference between the regular tx and the mini tx, the gps is different. the mini also has an additional led and resistor to indicate gps lock. I used an orange led but you can use whatever color you like. everything else is the same.

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Cool. Can't wait to start building a couple of these.

Eyeguy41 said:

I have built one and it was very similar to the full sized version and wasn't that much more difficult.

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the difficulty (at least for me) was there are some parts SO close together that keeping solder and parts where they belong takes VERY steady hands and a LOT of patience.
C1&C2, C5&C6, U1&U2, these 3 locations requires "special" attention to detail (and pre-soldering helps too)

Maybe it was my inexperience at soldering small parts VERY close to each other, but this felt a lot like brain surgery at times.
"steady, don't touch that piece micrometers away or.....crap! Just destroyed that PCB!"
At least I'm only out $2.50 - and I don't have to have malpractice insurance! yay for that.

BTW, if two solder pads become joined with solder (that aren't supposed to), can it be fixed by scratching the solder off between them?
It looks like the metal underneath is exposed and might touch the pads together still?
Even solder wick doesn't clean it completely off. Grrr

how big is the tip on the soldering iron that you used? if it is too big I could see this problem occurring.

my technique is first I use a flux paste and coat the pads of the part I want to solder. next I put a little bit of solder on one pad, hold the part in place with some tweezers and touch the iron to the pad with solder on it. that should tack the part in place wile you solder the other pad(s). then you can go back and touch up the first pad if necessary.

the best way to remove excess solder is solder wick (or braid).

https://www.digikey.com/product-sea...dering-braid-wick-pumps/1311239?k=solder wick

edit:

if solder wick isn't removing the solder, then there is probably copper underneath and there is supposed to be a connection. where is this occurring in the pic?

This is such an awesome project! thanks for sharing all your work. I got the mini tx and rx board in from OSHPark last week and all the components came in this week. The soldering was small but definitely doable with some patients. A couple things that should be noted(maybe they already are and i just missed it) though is that the adafruit GPS Module has a default baud rate of 9600 so you have to flash the firmware to get to to work with the XBee tx/rx and Blue tooth module. I found the flash tool on this page, but there might be a more official like somewhere else. I also had to set the XBee TX's AP setting to transparent mode and the RX's AP to API without escapes in order to get them to transmit to each other.

something doesn't sound right with your setup. you should not need to touch the configuration of the gps or the tx xbee because the defaults will work. you only need to set the baud rate of the rx xbee to match that of the bt module. the default mode setting should be correct.

the baud rates on the xbees do not need to match each other.

Derek said:

how big is the tip on the soldering iron that you used? if it is too big I could see this problem occurring.

my technique is first I use a flux paste and coat the pads of the part I want to solder. next I put a little bit of solder on one pad, hold the part in place with some tweezers and touch the iron to the pad with solder on it. that should tack the part in place wile you solder the other pad(s). then you can go back and touch up the first pad if necessary.

the best way to remove excess solder is solder wick (or braid).

https://www.digikey.com/product-sea...dering-braid-wick-pumps/1311239?k=solder wick

edit:

if solder wick isn't removing the solder, then there is probably copper underneath and there is supposed to be a connection. where is this occurring in the pic?

Click to expand...

the issue was with the first "close" pads I was working with, C2&C1 (first pic of new PCB board)
put too much flux on C2 pad and also too much solder on my tip, (which the smallest amount I could get, seemed too much for a single pad), the flux moved on to C1 pad and solder followed (or my unsteady hand moved the solder iron onto C1 pad)
the connection between C2 and C1 (close pads) was made and nothing I could do would "un-connect" them (second pic)
third pic is the tip I'm using. (weller PT08, .031" tip) update...just ordered a PTS8 which is .015" - wish I had that tip before starting this project!

My second try with a new PCB went better.
My question is, can I salvage the first PCB board? I cut the solder with a small Xacto knife between C2&C1 (see pic 2)

Thanks

that is ok though. those two pads are supposed to be connected. it might not look pretty, but there is nothing wrong with a little extra solder between those two pads. the solder mask probably flaked off and the solder just followed the copper from c2 to c1.

if you still have a virgin board, you should be able to see the etch between the two pads. you can verify this with an ohmmeter.

Sweet! Now I have another board for future use.

thanks Derek

wow so I got the parts today and they are TINY!!

Derek said:

Here is the face plate in black. I think this is the best color yet:

View attachment 172538

Would anyone actually be interested in purchasing these?

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Hi Derek ,

Are you still have those Plate , Please let me know . Thanks

Enrique

echoes said:

Hi Derek ,

Are you still have those Plate , Please let me know . Thanks

Enrique

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yep. pm me if interested.

Rocket Test 1 of the new mini today.
F24 - 900ft, tracked the whole flight.
Next test, I224

What software did you use to collect the flight data and graph it onto the map?

yeah, please share!

I saved the data from Rocket Track. (saves as a txt file) I do a "dummy" save just before launch to get a good data set.
After saving the launch and recovery, I transfer the file to my PC and then use a online KML creator to generate a KML file.
https://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=googleearth
I change units to US. Most critical is "altitude mode", change to absolute (for flights). You can mess around with colorize, but I'm just interested in Track (one color)

I found it easiest to upload my file, instead of pasting data. (then I don't have to mess with the data file, but it needs to be a clean txt file, no weird headers or data it doesn't recognize)
If the data file works right, clicking the "create KML file" creates a link to download the KML file. I then open the file in google earth and mess around with the view and take a screen shot.

Good luck and happy flying
(I love how this GPS opens up all sorts of rockets I can fly now! And the "mini" tracker opens up even more! I hate loosing rockets! Now I don't need to worry (as much)

here is what my data txt file looks like before I upload to KML creator.

I have a Derek receiver and transmitter board , and also Faxtrack 501 , the casing for the receiver and all the parts to build the 2 modules, so no need to order at DigiKey or Moser I will just keep the Xbee for other project. I ask $ 80 shipped

I add them to my sale

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?70214-Lot-of-motors-Altimeters-Trackers-and-others

Eyeguy41 said:

What software did you use to collect the flight data and graph it onto the map?

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I think the Ublox U-center software will play back the NMEA data strings from any GPS module, be it Ublox or not, using Google Earth as a plug in. If you're lucky enough to have Google Earth access at your launch you can track the points in 3D, real-time. It also allows you to import a map of your field and calibrate it, if you don't have internet/Google earth access at your launch. If your GPS module is other than Ublox you won't be able to send automated commands though. See sample in post 379.

Ok I got all the surface mount parts on the mini boards except for the LEDs. Are they polarized and if so how do I know which way to mount them on the board?

Derek said:

yeah, please share!

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Move to Silicon Valley and become a CEO. What you and your friends have done may seem small to you, but plenty of us would gladly pay a premium for a fully functioning model needing no more than an app.:surprised:

conman13 said:

Ok I got all the surface mount parts on the mini boards except for the LEDs. Are they polarized and if so how do I know which way to mount them on the board?

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Yes they are polarized. Search through this thread. Someone did a great job of identifying the polarity. If I wasn't on a phone I'd try to find it for you. Sorry!