COPilot Pocket PC4 Jacket GPS/iPAQ5455 Intermittant failures

Harrow · Lifetime Member Joined: Jan 27, 2004 Posts: 2

Subject: COPilot Live| Pocket PC 4 GPS,

jacket not always working

ipaq model: 5455
ROM version: 2.00.21 ENG
OS: Mobile 2003
Travroute software version: US 4.0.4.104 CoPilot4 (GPS Jacket)
Jacket serial numer: E030140294 (CoPilot GPS Jacket model IGPSJ Model# D15A8 )

fault description: Intermitent aquisition of GPS siginal ,outdoors ,fullycharged

in GPS Data screen shows a green tick against GPS COM port opened and a green tick against GPS siginal detected but wont shows any sats detected

When use Tools-Options GPS tab (NB shows COM4 as always), then select Autoscan
Device scans for ports. and selects COM 4.
All incoming beams WiFi and bluetooth off
a Hard reset rarely fixes ,mostly only leaving overnight or sometimes a few nights fixes .

Has not reset overnight has been out of action 4 days continious

appears to go out on Fridays/Saturdays in 2 to 3 week intervals

Will recieve NMEA stream (identical message repeated over and over CHNL 12 )

Have used 2 other applications to try to get Fix
OziExplorer works when Copilot works Drops out when Copilot dropsout

Installed Emtac CRUX VIEW same NMEA message and symptoms.

Of Very interesting note for the last 4 days (did not check on previous outs)

CoPilot shows a UTC Date of 1/26/02
UTC Time of 11:59:48

CRUX VIEW shows a UTC Date of 2002/01/26
UTC Time of 23:59:48

It appears to me that the internal clock is corrupted /frozen ?

Has happened approx a dozen plus times since purchase

Extremly frustrated

Followed all fixes on ALK web site and Hp iPAQ fixes and upgrades except Return for replacement of Jacket

Thanks

Bruce Harrison

lbendlin · Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2004 6:19 pm Post subject:

I use the jacket with an iPAQ 3970. So my setup is slightly different, as is the timing between the iPAQ and the jacket (unfortunately the signal timing is very fragile and has already contributed to a lot of stray effects).

Two things - I know that "Autoscan" is poorly implemented and tends to reprogram the receiver. Try not to use it. You know the jacket is at COM4: so there's no need to scan.

And another one - shooting in the dark - try to put some antistatic foil between the iPAQ and the jacket and see if that changes anything. Maybe some interference.

If your GPS date continues to be in 2002 then yes, your unit may be broken Crying or Very sad

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Lutz

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richp · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jan 30, 2004 Posts: 1

I have exactly the same problem occasionally - I have a 3970 / Jacket onfiguration. I upgraded from Co-Pilot 3.5 where I never had the issue.

When it occurs I usually have to go to the reset GPS option off the satellites screen. I then see a data stream in the field at the bottom something like $1P50.44.... etc. and almost immediately I get a 3 or 4 satellite lock which then quickly gives me a position with a normal 6 or 7 lock. The time also immediately resets itself

It would seem that the receiver is locking onto satellites OK but the software cannot see tham. I cannot find any pattern to why it happens. I wondered if something like the almanac was getting corrupted.

I have reported to ALK support but no solution. As the problem went away for a while and was so intermittent I live with it as I have an easy way out, but interested to hear someone else has the same issue.

Hope this helps you get round the problem and interested to hear if anyone else sees this or knows why it occurs

matt1971 · Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2004 9:20 pm Post subject:

Hi,

I have 3970 with Original INS Jacket but software upgraded to CoPilot v4 - Last weekend I kept getting an a good strong signal only for that to disappear after a few seconds with an error No GPS Signal check connections.

This kept happening - I reset GPS, Closed App, Soft Reset etc nothing worked. In the end I deleted the GPS tracks (Of which there was one file of nearly 700k) and this made the problem go away.

Perhaps it was coincidence or maybe the size of the GPS Tracks file is significant.

Matt

drjsd · Occasional Visitor Joined: Feb 17, 2004 Posts: 3

I have just bought the Co-Pilot Live with the Travroute model no D15A8 jacket, to go with my iPAQ 3970 and am having similar problems.

lbendlin said that he changed his COM port to COM4 and his jacket worked fine - mine won't let me do that and keeps setting it to COM6 which does intermittantly work.

I need this for navigating to emergencies and obviously can't spend half an hour waiting for a signal to be acquired! As a consequence, I'm seriously considering sending it back to get a different one - so if anyone can suggest a fix, I'd be grateful and if not, what other suggestions do you have?

lbendlin · Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2004 10:26 pm Post subject:

If you plan to use this for emergencies get yourself a serial GPS receiver. Those are very reliable. (You can also get a BT receiver as a backup solution). The CF/Jacket receiver is too sensitive to positioning and PocketPC behaviour.
_________________
Lutz

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drjsd · Occasional Visitor Joined: Feb 17, 2004 Posts: 3

Any particular BT GPS receiver you would recommend? Part of the reason I didn't get a serial one in the first place was so that I could just pull it out of the car in a hurry so it won't get nicked - Wiltshire can be a thieving part of the world sometimes!

Incidentally to the person that mentioned using some foil between the jacket and iPAQ - it seems to have improved things slightly, but not to the degree where I would feel confident about it!

On the basis of what you said Lutz, I think I'll be having a word with the vendor and be getting a different GPS receiver. Whether it's relevent to your suggestions, but I live in the UK, and the Co-Pilot software seems reasonbly good when it works, so obviously I'd like to keep it if possible.

Cheers.

lbendlin · Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2004 11:18 pm Post subject:

I am using the CoPilot BlueTooth receiver, and I am very satisfied with it. Excellent sensitivity, decent battery time, fast TTFF. But please go ahead and check our comparison database - there are many BT receivers listed.
_________________
Lutz

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