The Eggfinder - A Low-Cost GPS/RF Tracking System

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First you'll need the Mac driver for the cable, you can get it at

https://www.prolific.com.tw/us/showproduct.aspx?p_id=229&pcid=41

Then you'll need a terminal program. "Terminal" is built into MacOS, but you can also download third-party software like iTerm2. Whichever terminal program you use, the settings need to be 9600 baud, 8 bits, no parity, no flow control (handshaking), and the emulation should be VT100/ANSI.
 
I understand all of that and have the driver downloaded but just dint understand what to do after the terminal is open. what do i type in/do?
 
Ok so I got a mac last week and am now starting to use it for my eggfinder and eggtimers. What i can't seem do is get to the serial ports to change the settings and get everything connected. Can someone please help me out on how to configure the port settings on Mac OS X. I can't find anything about it on the web. Any help appreciated.:):)

Get yourself a copy of Putty from a reputable source -- it's a free terminal emulator and will do serial communications.

-Kevin
 
i have putty and that is what I'm using. Just don't know what to do after i open the terminal program. on my windows laptop i was able to got to device manager select the prolific usb and change setting and then go into map sphere and connect to that usb port. On this mac i have absolutely no idea what to do because there isn't a device manager where you can go to to change the port settings.
 
I understand all of that and have the driver downloaded but just dint understand what to do after the terminal is open. what do i type in/do?

Connect the terminal program to the serial port that the OS assigns to the device, connect the cable to the Eggtimer, then turn on the Eggtimer. You should see the Flight Settings screen. If you do, then just hit the ENTER key once or twice to halt the beeping. (That's part of the startup sequence, if it sees something on the serial port then it knows that you're not sitting on the pad waiting to be launched.) If you do NOT see the screen, then you need to look at your driver, port assignment, software settings, etc.

If this is the first time that you've connected, be sure to do a Master Reset on it to initialize the memory and set the initial settings... CTRL-Y from the Flight Settings screen.
 
If you're using the cable with an EGGFINDER (I assume you have the RX "dongle" receiver), then you'll need some kind of NMEA-aware software for your Mac. Can't help you there... I don't have a Mac so I haven't tried any. The procedure is going to be the same as a Windows PC, though... install the driver, plug in your Eggfinder RX, and start the software. Most of them will pick up the feed from the port automatically, worst case is that you have to tell it which port it's on.
 
If you're using the cable with an EGGFINDER (I assume you have the RX "dongle" receiver), then you'll need some kind of NMEA-aware software for your Mac. Can't help you there... I don't have a Mac so I haven't tried any. The procedure is going to be the same as a Windows PC, though... install the driver, plug in your Eggfinder RX, and start the software. Most of them will pick up the feed from the port automatically, worst case is that you have to tell it which port it's on.

ok thanks. i wish the macs would make this easier to do...
 
ok thanks. i wish the macs would make this easier to do...

Connor, Pick through the instructions on the ET as the details are there in getting it to work with a serial communication program.
As far as a tracking program you can use on a Mac or any computer for that manner, MapSphere, a Windows, program is the only one
that can show the position on a map of the EggFinder easily. It's not too terribly helpful for tracking as it only keeps track of one NMEA datastream. One can't connect a GPS at the computer to monitor one's position in relation to the rocket in realtime.

Xastir, a ham radio tracking program, will run on a Mac but one almost has to have a handle on Linux to understand it. https://www.kevinblanchard.com/projects/installing-xastir-on-mac-os-x/

Again, the problem here is the raw NMEA words coming off the EggFinder will only be read as the local station so one can't really use it to track easily. In that regard it's like MapSphere. There is a perl script called gps2aprs.pl, https://www.ece.uah.edu/~jdw/rockets/gps2aprs.txt that will take the incoming NMEA steam from the EggFinder convert it to APRS and then present it to Xastir and one can track both spots. It's a real pain. A laptop is not so portable when one has to retrieve the rocket and they are not easy to read in the sunlight.

The Ham Radio programs are geared towards the APRS format positions so trying to use them with a device that outputs NMEA is going to be a kluge.
The EF gets the job done.

Essentially, it's simplier to input the lat/long into a handheld GPS and carry the EggFinder LCD along for position updates. Alternatively, use the Android app
GPS Rocket Locator and it will give one the two positions and a datum line to follow. If one has network access via a cell phone, will pull down a google aerial photo.
Kurt
 
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Connor, Pick through the instructions on the ET as the details are there in getting it to work with a serial communication program.
As far as a tracking program you can use on a Mac or any computer for that manner, MapSphere, a Windows, program is the only one
that can show the position on a map of the EggFinder easily. It's not too terribly helpful for tracking as it only keeps track of one NMEA datastream. One can't connect a GPS at the computer to monitor one's position in relation to the rocket in realtime.

Xastir, a ham radio tracking program, will run on a Mac but one almost has to have a handle on Linux to understand it. https://www.kevinblanchard.com/projects/installing-xastir-on-mac-os-x/

Again, the problem here is the raw NMEA words coming off the EggFinder will only be read as the local station so one can't really use it to track easily. In that regard it's like MapSphere. There is a perl script called gps2aprs.pl, https://www.ece.uah.edu/~jdw/rockets/gps2aprs.txt that will take the incoming NMEA steam from the EggFinder convert it to APRS and then present it to Xastir and one can track both spots. It's a real pain. A laptop is not so portable when one has to retrieve the rocket and they are not easy to read in the sunlight.

The Ham Radio programs are geared towards the APRS format positions so trying to use them with a device that outputs NMEA is going to be a kluge.
The EF gets the job done.

Essentially, it's simplier to input the lat/long into a handheld GPS and carry the EggFinder LCD along for position updates. Alternatively, use the Android app
GPS Rocket Locator and it will give one the two positions and a datum line to follow. If one has network access via a cell phone, will pull down a google aerial photo.
Kurt


ok that helps. thank you very much. I was able to download RouteBuddy. It allows me to view the current position of the TX(Lat./long.). It doesn't show the map but as long as I can get it's position then it's fine. the LCD RX may be the way to go and just cut the whole laptop out of the question. i downloaded a program called Wine/Winebottler that will take the windows program and change it to run on OS X. I still have to experiment with this though.
 
This past weekend at the OROC launch, my Eggfinder worked perfectly.

Our last flight was on Sunday to about 7,000 feet (a Binder Design Sentinel on an AT K695). The main deployed at apogee (post flight forensics not yet complete). We never lost lock with the Eggfinder to our Handheld receiver. The rocket landed 1.6 miles away and we had a signal up until it dropped out of site. No way we would have found this rocket without the Eggfinder. Color me happy.
 
My Eggfinder and LCD is working on the money...
The reason I went this route is to carry as little as possible out into the field when you go looking for a rocket..
I have the LCD built and my Note 3 Android phone Velcro'd to the LCD case..
I have a Bluetooth device in the LCD's case...
After the rocket lands and I'm "navigating" to the way point where the rocket is,
there is no new information coming to the phone via the Bluetooth device..
It's the same lat / lon...
The next time I "navigate" to the rockets way point I'm going to leave the Eggfinder LCD back at my table,,
And just take my phone...............

Should work............

Teddy
 
You may want to still bring the LCD receiver, sometimes you'll get an updated coordinate as you get closer to the rocket. Could be due to wind dragging on the ground, losing the signal a bit early, or some kind soul picking up your rocket and taking it back to the range (yes, I've had it happen!)
 
Is there an app for an iPhone that will work without data connectivity; is there an iOS equivalent for GPS Rocket Locator? There is virtually no cell signal strength at our launch site (Jean Dry lake Bed) and I recently jumped from the Android train to an iPhone 6.
 
You don't need data connectivity unless you want to draw a pretty map. All you need is a straight line from where you are to where your rocket is. MotionX is perfect for that.
 
I recently purchased a couple eggfinder GPS tracker kits from Area66 on here and figured I would share my setup. I mounted one in the nose of my Darkstar Mini, it fits perfectly in the 38mm nosecone with a 300mah lipo.
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my first few flights went well using a laptop, but it was a pain to have the laptop at the launch. I ordered an antenna, antenna connector, project box, and a switch from digi-key and the bluetooth adapter from amazon and put together a nifty wireless setup. I did have to cut out some plastic around the 9v battery door to get my lipo battery to fit. It will run on a 9v but the lipo has way more capacity. I haven't field tested the wireless setup but it works nicely in my backyard. I hope to get some good flights on this on black friday/saturday in Potter.
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I'm betting that you end up getting the LCD receiver. I know several people that are using the RX with Bluetooth and Rocket Locator, I've heard mixed things about it. It's always good to have a backup... and you CAN put a Bluetooth module in the LCD (although I recommend that you disconnect it temporarily when you're programming it).
 
My Eggfinder and LCD is working on the money...
The reason I went this route is to carry as little as possible out into the field when you go looking for a rocket..
I have the LCD built and my Note 3 Android phone Velcro'd to the LCD case..
I have a Bluetooth device in the LCD's case...
After the rocket lands and I'm "navigating" to the way point where the rocket is,
there is no new information coming to the phone via the Bluetooth device..
It's the same lat / lon...
The next time I "navigate" to the rockets way point I'm going to leave the Eggfinder LCD back at my table,,
And just take my phone...............

Should work............

Teddy



You may want to still bring the LCD receiver, sometimes you'll get an updated coordinate as you get closer to the rocket. Could be due to wind dragging on the ground, losing the signal a bit early, or some kind soul picking up your rocket and taking it back to the range (yes, I've had it happen!)



Cris you're gonna laugh your head off...
This past weekend I was in my truck with my buddy Jim and we were more playing with the Eggfinder then looking for the rocket.. ( we had a good idea where it was )...
While I was turning the Bluetooth on and off and creating a way point to go to Jim said,, there,, look,, you did what you just did wrong,,, the dot on the map was now back at the launch site....
Yep,,,
right after you typed this,,, I was out looking for my rocket and someone had brought it back to my table...
Had I not had the LCD receiver with me and only had my phone I would not have known this...
This could have turned quite frustrating....
I promise,,,,
I will bring the LCD every time..............

Teddy
 
I had that happen during one of my LCD prototype test flights, it was a BT55-base rocket on a G40 (apogee about 2800'). It landed about 3000' away, of course I couldn't see it, so I went out there with the LCD receiver and got a new fix. It was nowhere near where I thought it "should" be, and the radio signal went away, so I wandered around for awhile thinking there must be some kind of problem. After about 20 minutes, I walked over to where the updated fix said it should be, picked up the signal and a second new fix... somebody had it in their truck, along with their rocket that landed about 100' away from mine.
 
I'm laughing now, because I got the new fix..
If I didn't have the LCD I could have been wandering around for quite a while wondering what happened....

Teddy
 
But with the Bluetooth talking to the phone i will see if the position changes. How is the LCD better at that?
 
It's a backup in case you lose the feed from Rocket Locator. I've had it happen, and I've spoken to other who have as well. If you have the lat/long, worse case scenario is that you plug it into a different nav app and tell it to take you there. That's what I do with my iPhone, since Apple doesn't support arbitrary Bluetooth feeds or external GPS's. MotionX always works, and it doesn't care if you don't have any Internet access to draw a pretty map; desert lakebed and scrub all looks the same anyway.
 
It's a backup in case you lose the feed from Rocket Locator. I've had it happen, and I've spoken to other who have as well. If you have the lat/long, worse case scenario is that you plug it into a different nav app and tell it to take you there. That's what I do with my iPhone, since Apple doesn't support arbitrary Bluetooth feeds or external GPS's. MotionX always works, and it doesn't care if you don't have any Internet access to draw a pretty map; desert lakebed and scrub all looks the same anyway.


If the B/T goes haywire on you the slow changing of the lat/long on the EF LCD screen tips one off that someone has recovered the rocket and is walking/driving around with it. Kurt
 
I had two perfect flights using the Eggfinder this weekend. First flight was a Dominator 4 on a L2375 to 12.5k that landed 1.5 miles away. Second flight was a Wildman on a K2045 to 9K that landed half a mile away. Tracked both flights using the LCD Rx and Rocket locator. We regained signal on both rockets near apogee and tracked them the whole way down. I am really happy with the whole setup now and I did not even had to use my Marshall RDF tracker. The best part is that I used a 1/4 wave antenna on the Tx that is about the same size of the stock whip antenna. Now I am thinking I might be able to track a rocket at 25K with a patch antenna on the Rx, only one way to find out!

My setup



Can you spot the difference?


No way we would of found it without the Eggfinder!
 
Watching the Eggfinder in action, I now know that I need to put one in my L2 rocket.

You converted me Jus_Rockets! Holding the receiver and watching the altitude slowly change while the rocket was under parachute was so cool and useful!
 
Watching the Eggfinder in action, I now know that I need to put one in my L2 rocket.

You converted me Jus_Rockets! Holding the receiver and watching the altitude slowly change while the rocket was under parachute was so cool and useful!

Can't wait to see what you build for you Level 2 rocket. The LCD receiver is awesome and everyone was impressed with the system. I think your not the only who wants a Eggfinder now, Cris should be getting a couple more order from the TRAPHX club.
 
Do you have a link for the stubby antenna? That would help me fit my Eggfinder TX into the N/C of the Blackhawk. I just ordered the Hammond housing and belt clip from Mouser, so my next LCD RX will be mounted in there. Also bought the Moto G phone, really like how your system worked at the launch.
 
Do you have a link for the stubby antenna? That would help me fit my Eggfinder TX into the N/C of the Blackhawk. I just ordered the Hammond housing and belt clip from Mouser, so my next LCD RX will be mounted in there. Also bought the Moto G phone, really like how your system worked at the launch.

Yes, please post a link. I need a good stubby Antenna for Exactimator Mark, he is buying my TX and asked for stock stick antenna befause it is shorter.

Juan were all the flights eGGtimer TX or did you have the TRS going too? Assume you run different frequencies for your trackers also? Also how fast were the flights..that is one fast K motor!

Kenny
 
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Yes, please post a link. I need a good stubby Antenna for Exactimator Mark, he is buying my TX and asked for stock stick antenna befause it is shorter.

Juan were all the flights eGGtimer TX or did you have the TRS going too? Assume you run different frequencies for your trackers also? Also how fast were the flights..that is one fast K motor!

Kenny

This is out of the TRS assembly manual: Typical antennas that you might use are the Linx Technologies ANT-916-CW-QW or ANT-
916-CW-HWR-RPS I believe those are the model numbers of the antenna above. Kurt

Yeah, that's it. Center band is 916Mhz so it should be a good match
 
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Do you have a link for the stubby antenna? That would help me fit my Eggfinder TX into the N/C of the Blackhawk. I just ordered the Hammond housing and belt clip from Mouser, so my next LCD RX will be mounted in there. Also bought the Moto G phone, really like how your system worked at the launch.

Here you go I was really happy with how everything performed as well. Good thing you got the Moto G , it's a real good phone with the latest Android OS.

Linx Technologies ANT-916-CW-QW
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetai...16-CW-QW/?qs=sGAEpiMZZMsgSGrx0WqTbFMnk/frcpaA




Yes, please post a link. I need a good stubby Antenna for Exactimator Mark, he is buying my TX and asked for stock stick antenna befause it is shorter.

Juan were all the flights eGGtimer TX or did you have the TRS going too? Assume you run different frequencies for your trackers also? Also how fast were the flights..that is one fast K motor!

Kenny

I was only using the Eggfinder and I do have different frequencies. I still need to get the data off the altimeters but I can tell you that the K2045 pulled at least 50Gs!
 
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