Getting Started

Getting Started

Before you begin, you need to think about how you will use the SparkX u-blox ZED-F9P NEO-D9S Combo Breakout.

The Combo Breakout is a very versatile board, combining the u-blox ZED-F9P multi-band high precision GNSS module with the NEO-D9S L-band GNSS correction data receiver.

Hookup for u-center with two USB cables. (Click to enlarge)

If you intend to use u-blox's u-center (GNSS evaluation software for Windows) to configure both the ZED-F9P and the NEO-D9S and log data from the ZED-F9P, all you need to get started is a pair of USB cables and a suitable antenna. u-blox have written an excellent application note which shows how to configure both modules using u-center.

GNSS Multi-Band L1/L2 Surveying Antenna (TNC) - TOP106 GPS-17751

Interface Cable - SMA Female to SMA Male (10m, RG58) CAB-21281

The Combo Breakout has a single female SMA socket for the antenna connection. An on-board splitter (power divider) allows the ZED-F9P and NEO-D9S to share a single antenna. You need an antenna which supports both L1 and L2 GNSS, and which also provides broad coverage of the L-Band for the correction signal. Our TOP-106 antenna is a good choice. It has a TNC connection, so you may also want to purchase a SMA to TNC interface cable and/or a SMA female to male extension cable, depending on your needs:

Interface Cable - SMA Male to TNC Male (300mm) CAB-17833

Interface Cable - SMA Female to SMA Male (25cm) WRL-12861

Getting Started with Arduino

Hookup for Arduino using Qwiic. (Click to enlarge)

It is also possible to power the board and communicate with it using I²C by connecting to either of the board's Qwiic connectors. SparkFun's Qwiic Connect System uses 4-pin JST connectors, allowing you to quickly interface your development board to the Combo Board.

Our u-blox GNSS Arduino Library - v3 contains a comprehensive set of tried and tested examples that will work on any Qwiic-enabled development board. There are dedicated examples for the ZED-F9P and NEO-D9S.

You can also use 3.3V Serial (UART) to communicate with both the ZED-F9P and NEO-D9S. Our Arduino Library supports both Serial and I²C. (It supports SPI too, but SPI is not supported on the Combo Breakout).

When choosing a development board, you might want to choose one which has built-in WiFi. The correction data received by the NEO-D9S is encrypted, you need to pass keys to the ZED-F9P so it can decrypt the data. A WiFi connection will allow you to download the PointPerfect SPARTN encryption keys directly from u-blox's Thingstream IoT service using MQTT.

You might also find a microSD card socket useful for data logging. If you want to log data while you are out in the field, being able to connect a Li-Po battery will be useful too.

These two ESP32 development boards support: Qwiic, Serial, WiFi, microSD and Li-Po.

SparkFun Thing Plus - ESP32 WROOM (USB-C) WRL-20168	SparkFun IoT RedBoard - ESP32 Development Board WRL-19177
SparkFun Qwiic Cable Kit KIT-15081	USB 3.1 Cable A to C - 3 Foot CAB-14743

Li-Po Battery

For mobile applications, users will want to pick up a single-cell LiPo battery from our catalog. Below, are a few available options:

Lithium Ion Battery - 2Ah PRT-13855

Lithium Ion Battery - 400mAh PRT-13851

Lithium Ion Battery - 1Ah PRT-13813

Jumper Modification

To modify the jumpers, users will need soldering equipment and/or a knife.

Solder Lead Free - 100-gram Spool TOL-09325

Weller WLC100 Soldering Station TOL-14228

Chip Quik No-Clean Flux Pen - 10mL TOL-14579

Hobby Knife TOL-09200

Note

New to jumpter pads? Check out our Jumper Pads and PCB Traces Tutorial for a quick introduction!

How to Work with Jumper Pads and PCB Traces

Suggested Reading

As a more professionally oriented product, we will skip over the more fundamental tutorials (i.e. Ohm's Law and What is Electricity?). However, below are a few tutorials that may help users familiarize themselves with various aspects of the board.

Installing the Arduino IDE	Installing Board Definitions in the Arduino IDE	Installing an Arduino Library
How to Install CH340 Drivers	How to Solder: Through-Hole Soldering	How to Work with Jumper Pads and PCB Traces
Serial Communication	Analog vs. Digital	Pulse Width Modulation
Logic Levels	I2C	Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI)

One of the new, advanced features of our Processor Boards is that they take advantage of the Qwiic connect system. We recommend familiarizing yourself with the Logic Levels and I²C tutorials. Click on the banner above to learn more about Qwiic products.