Novatel ALIGN Series User manual

July 27, 2011 Application Note Page 1 of 10
NovAtel Inc. !1120 – 68th Avenue N.E. Calgary, AB, Canada T2E 8S5
Tel: [phone] !Fax: [phone] !Internet: http://www.novatel.com !Email: [email protected]om
ALIGN®Family of Heading Solutions
ALIGN Heading™ and ALIGN Relative Positioning™
1 Overview
This application note provides an overview of NovAtel’s ALIGN family of heading solutions, including
the ALIGN Heading and ALIGN Relative Positioning models. Receiver hardware setup and software
configurations are also discussed.
Heading information can be logged from NovAtel’s OEMV®receivers at a maximum rate of 10 Hz, or at a
maximum of 20 Hz on OEM6™ receivers. The Master receiver position accuracy can be enhanced by
adding OmniSTAR corrections or SBAS tracking, or by adding an optional RTK static base station.
2 ALIGN Models
There are two available ALIGN models:
ALIGN Heading provides angular heading and pitch measurements. The following logs are available
at any free port:
Logs
Description
MASTERPOS
Position of the ALIGN Master
HEADING
Heading and pitch angles
HEADING2
Heading and pitch angles with ROVERID
GPHDT
NMEA heading angle
ALIGNDOP
DOP of heading computation
Table 1: ALIGN Heading Logs
ALIGN Relative Positioning provides angular heading and pitch measurements, precise relative
positioning measurement and relative baseline information with centimetre level accuracy. The
following logs are available at any free port:

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Logs
Description
MASTERPOS
Position of the ALIGN Master
ROVERPOS
Position of ALIGN Rover relative to the Master
ALIGNBSLNXYZ
ECEF vector between Rover and Master
ALIGNBSLNENU
Easting. Northing. Altitude vector between Rover and Master
HEADING
Heading and pitch angles
HEADING2
Heading and pitch angles with ROVERID
GPHDT
NMEA heading angle
ALIGNDOP
DOP of heading computation
Table 2: ALIGN Relative Positioning Logs
2.1 ALIGN Setup (For both models)
ALIGN functionality requires one receiver to operate as a Master receiver to send information to a Rover
receiver.
Any OEMV or OEM6 receiver model with a minimum of L1 & GLONASS tracking capability can act as
a Master receiver. Receiver features may be limited if basic Position Velocity Time (PVT) only models
are used (i.e., N1G). See Appendix A for more information.
A typical ALIGN setup includes:
•Two NovAtel OEMV receivers1or
•Two NovAtel OEM6 receivers 1 or
•A combination of OEMV and OEM61
•Two GPS+GLONASS capable antennas
•Data communication link between both receivers2. Communication examples include a radio,
modem or serial cable.
1Running ALIGN enabled receiver model and firmware version.
2For data rates of 10 Hz or higher, set the communication rate at 230400 bits per second between the two receivers.

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3 Use Cases
A variety of symbols are used in this application note to depict ALIGN output symbols. The Meaning of
each symbol is given below.
Table 3: Use Case Legend
3.1 Use Case 1: Fixed Antenna Distance between Master and Rover Receivers on
One Platform (ALIGN Heading)
This use case requires one Master and one Rover receiver. Figure 1 provides an example where the Master
and Rover receivers are located on the same vehicle, and the two antennas are located at a fixed distance
from one another. Relative heading and pitch are computed with respect to the Master receiver.
Figure 1: Heading from two receivers on one vehicle

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In this setup, connect COM2 of the Rover receiver to one of the available COM ports on the Master
receiver using a NULL modem cable. There are two possible ways to set up this use case. One uses
ALIGN’s plug and play functionality and another requires manual receiver configuration.
Plug and Play with Cable3:
1. Connect COM2 of the Rover receiver to an available COM port on the Master receiver using a
NULL modem cable
2. Initiate ALIGN from the Rover receiver by entering the following command:
ALIGNAUTOMATION ENABLE COM2 230400
3. To access heading data, ALIGN logs can be logged at either the ALIGN Master or Rover.
Manual Configuration with Cables:
You can also manually configure communication between the Master and Rover receivers.
1. Connect any COM port on the Master receiver (ie. COM2) to any COM port on the Rover receiver
(ie. COM2) using a NULL modem cable
2. Issue the following commands to the Master:
MOVINGBASESTATION ENABLE
INTERFACEMODE COM2 NOVATEL RTCA OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 RTCAOBS3 ONTIME 0.1
LOG COM2 RTCAREFEXT ONTIME 0.1
3. Issue the following commands to the Rover
INTERFACEMODE COM2 RTCA NOVATEL OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 HEADINGEXTB ONNEW
4. To access heading data, ALIGN logs can be logged at either the ALIGN master or rover.
3.2 Use Case 2: Master and Rover Receivers on Separate Moving Platforms (ALIGN
Relative Positioning)
This use case requires one Master and one Rover receiver. Figure 2 illustrates the Master receiver on the
vessel and the Rover receiver located on the fighter jet. Relative heading, pitch, baseline length and Rover
positions are computed with respect to the Master receiver.
3 To use plug and play, the Master and Rover receivers must be running firmware versions 3.900/OEM060100RN0000 or higher.

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Figure 2: Heading from two receivers on separate platforms
There are two possible ways to set up this use case. One uses ALIGN’s plug and play functionality and
another requires manual receiver configuration.
Plug and Play with Wireless Data Link3:
1. Configure the wireless data links for two-way communication, using the same baud rate (i.e.,
230400bps)
2. Connect one wireless data link to an available COM port on the Master receiver.
3. Configure the Master receiver COM port to communicate at the same baud rate as the wireless data
link using the COM command:
COM COM2 230400
4. Connect the other wireless data link to COM2 of the Rover receiver.
5. Initiate ALIGN from the Rover receiver by entering the following command:
ALIGNAUTOMATION ENABLE COM2 230400
6. To access heading and relative positioning data, ALIGN logs can be logged at either the ALIGN
Master or Rover.
Manual Configuration with Wireless Data Link:
1. Configure the wireless data links for two-way communication, using the same baud rate (i.e.,
230400bps)
2. Connect one wireless data link to an available COM port on the Master receiver (i.e., COM2).
3. Configure the Master receiver to output RTCA corrections at the same baud rate as the wireless
data link:
MOVINGBASESTATION ENABLE
INTERFACEMODE COM2 NOVATEL RTCA OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 RTCAOBS3 ONTIME 0.1
LOG COM2 RTCAREFEXT ONTIME 0.1
3 To use plug and play, the Master and Rover receivers must be running firmware versions 3.900/OEM060100RN0000 or higher.

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4. Connect the other wireless data link to an available COM port (i.e., COM2) on the Rover receiver.
5. Configure COM2 of the Rover receiver to receive corrections and output heading information at
the same baud rate as the wireless data link:
INTERFACEMODE COM2 RTCA NOVATEL OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 HEADINGEXTB ONNEW
6. To access heading and relative positioning data, ALIGN logs can be logged at either the ALIGN
master or rover.
3.3 Use Case 3: Daisy-Chain ALIGN setup (ALIGN Heading)
This use case illustrates multiple Master and Rover receivers in a daisy chain type setup. There is one
main Master receiver on one platform as a moving reference, with multiple Rovers on other platforms.
Each Rover can act as the Master receiver for the next Rover receiver by transmitting ALIGN RTCA
corrections to the next receiver.
Figure 3 illustrates the main Master receiver on a seismic research vessel. The Rover receivers are located
in a series of buoys, with each Rover receiver acting as a Master for the next receiver. Relative heading
and pitch are computed with respect to its linking Master receiver. The HEADING2 log is useful in this
kind of configuration.
Figure 3: Use Case 3 – Daisy-Chain ALIGN setup
Plug and Play with Wireless Data Link3:
1. Configure the wireless data links between each master and rover pair for two-way communication,
using the same baud rate (i.e., 230400bps)

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2. Connect one wireless data link to an available COM (i.e., COM2) port on the first Master receiver.
3. Configure the Master receiver COM port to communicate at the same baud rate as the wireless data
link using the COM command:
COM COM2 230400
4. Connect the other wireless data link to COM2 of the Rover receiver.
5. Configure COM1 of the Rover receiver to send corrections to the next Rover station. Connect a
wireless data link to COM1.
6. Set the Rover’s COM1 baud rate to be the same as the wireless data link:
COM COM1 230400
7. Configure COM2 of the next Rover receiver to receive corrections as described in Step 5
8. Repeat steps 4 through 8 until all receivers have been configured
9. Initiate ALIGN by entering the following command to each Rover receiver:
ALIGNAUTOMATION ENABLE COM2 230400 10 OFF
10.To access heading and relative positioning data, ALIGN logs must be logged at each ALIGN rover.
Manual Configuration with Wireless Data Link:
1. Configure the wireless data links between each master and rover pair for two-way communication,
using the same baud rate (i.e., 230400bps)
2. Connect one wireless data link to an available COM port (i.e., COM2) on the first Master receiver.
3. Configure the Master receiver COM port to output corrections at the same baud rate as the wireless
data link:
MOVINGBASESTATION ENABLE
INTERFACEMODE COM2 NOVATEL RTCA OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 RTCAOBS3 ONTIME 0.1
LOG COM2 RTCAREFEXT ONTIME 0.1
4. Connect the other wireless data link to COM2 of the Rover receiver.
5. Configure COM2 of the Rover receiver to receive corrections at the same baud rate as the wireless
data link:
INTERFACEMODE COM2 RTCA NOVATEL OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
6. Configure COM1 of the Rover receiver to send corrections to the next Rover station. Connect a
wireless data link to COM1.
7. Set the Rover’s COM1 to output corrections at the same baud rate as the wireless data link:
MOVINGBASESTATION ENABLE
INTERFACEMODE COM1 NOVATEL RTCA OFF
COM COM1 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM1 RTCAOBS3 ONTIME 0.1
LOG COM1 RTCAREFEXT ONTIME 0.1
8. Configure COM2 of the next Rover receiver to receive corrections as described in Steps 4 and 5.
9. Repeat steps 4 through 8 until all receivers have been configured
10. To access heading data, ALIGN logs must be logged at each ALIGN Rover.
3 To use plug and play, the Master and Rover receivers must be running firmware versions 3.900/OEM060100RN0000 or higher.

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3.4 Use Case 4: Single Master with Multiple Rovers ALIGN setup (ALIGN Relative
Positioning)
This use case demonstrates one ALIGN Master and multiple Rover receivers. There is one main Master
receiver set up on one platform as a moving reference, with multiple Rovers set up on other platforms.
Figure 4 illustrates the main Master receiver on a seismic research vessel. The Rover receivers are located
in a series of buoys. Relative heading, pitch, baseline length and Rover positions are computed with
respect to the Master receiver.
Figure 4: Single Master with Multiple Rovers ALIGN setup
Manual Configuration with Wireless Data Link:
1. Configure the wireless data links for two-way communication, using the same baud rate (i.e.,
230400bps)
2. Connect one wireless data link to an available COM port on the Master receiver (i.e., COM2).
3. Configure the Master receiver to output RTCA corrections at the same baud rate as the wireless data
link:
MOVINGBASESTATION ENABLE
INTERFACEMODE COM2 NOVATEL RTCA OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
LOG COM2 RTCAOBS3 ONTIME 0.1
LOG COM2 RTCAREFEXT ONTIME 0.1
4. Connect the other wireless data link to an available COM port on the Rover receiver.
5. Configure COM2 of the Rover receiver to receive corrections and output heading information at the
same baud rate as the wireless data link:
INTERFACEMODE COM2 RTCA NOVATEL OFF
COM COM2 230400 N 8 1 N OFF ON
6. Repeat Steps 4 and 5 until all Rover receivers are configured
7. To access heading and relative positioning data, ALIGN logs must be logged at each ALIGN rover.

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4 Appendix A Model Compatibility Chart 4 5
Master Receiver
Model
Rover Receiver
Model
Master ALIGN
Logs
Rover ALIGN
Logs
PVT Only Models (ie.
NIG, OEM6-G2S-00G-
0TN)
Heading Only Models (ie.
Z1GZ, Z12GZ)
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2, GPHDT,
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNDOP
PVT Only Models (ie.
N1G)
Heading with Raw Data
(ie. L1GZ, L12GZ)
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2, GPHDT
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNDOP,
RANGE
PVT Only Models (ie.
N1G)
Relative Positioning with
Raw Data (ie. L1GYZ,
L12GYZ)
MASTERPOS,
ROVERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2, GPHDT,
ALIGNBSLNXYZ,
ALIGNBSLNENU
MASTERPOS,
ROVERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNBSLNXYZ,
ALIGNBSLNENU,
ALIGNDOP,
RANGE
Raw data Models (ie.
L12LV, L12LGRV)
Heading Only Models (ie.
Z1GZ, Z12GZ)
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2 GPHDT,
RANGE
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNDOP
Raw data Models (ie.
L12LV, L12LGRV)
Heading with Raw Data
(ie. L1GZ, L12GZ)
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2, GPHDT,
RANGE
MASTERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNDOP,
RANGE
Raw data Models (ie.
L12LV, L12LGRV)
Relative Positioning with
Raw Data (ie. L1GYZ,
L12GYZ)
MASTERPOS,
ROVERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2, GPHDT,
ALIGNBSLNXYZ,
ALIGNBSLNENU,
RANGE
MASTERPOS,
ROVERPOS,
HEADING,
HEADING2,
GPHDT,
ALIGNBSLNXYZ,
ALIGNBSLNENU,
ALIGNDOP,
RANGE
4 Refer to the NovAtel product model list for complete list of ALIGN capable receivers and models.
5 Refer to Table 1 and Table 2 for ALIGN-related commands and logs description. Full explanation of the commands
and logs can be located in the OEMV/OEM6 Family Firmware Reference Manual.

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5 Final Points
If you require any further information regarding the topics covered within this application, contact:
NovAtel Customer Service
1120 – 68 Ave. N.E.
Calgary, Alberta, Canada, T2E 8S5
Phone: 1-800-NOVATEL (in Canada or the U.S.) or [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.novatel.com