SHOW CASE

To demonstrate how easy and cheap it is to build your own GPS IRDA Converter, this page will show you how a complete set was build step by step. This will include a list of costs made.

In this example a complete set is build which is going to use a Haicom HI-203E serial GPS mouse. This GPS mouse by default sends NMEA 0183 messages @4800 baud.
 
 
Haicom HI-203E

The converter will be build for a Hewlett Packard h1910 PDA and will include power supply for both the GPS Receiver and the PDA using a Haicom IPAQ38xx GPS to PDA cable which you can buy at several webshops. Connector of the Ipaq 38xx is compatible with the h19xx PDA's but the connector must be turned 180 degrees to fit.  

IPAQ38xx Haicom cable

STEP 1 Get the PARTS

PARTS LIST

Prices of parts are in Euro and where bought in the Netherlands at www.i-con.nl , Conrad Electronics and Display Electronics.

The parts

STEP 2 Build the schematic

It is quite easy to build the converter when using a PCB print. Care must be taken when soldering the SMD NE556.

PCB print including NE556

PCB including the parts

STEP 3 Modify the Haicom Cable.

Open the little case on the cable by removing the two liitle screws. Separate the two halfs of the casing carefully. As you can see, two cable with wires are soldered to a little PCB. 

De-solder the wires from the PCB. From the cable with the connector to the ipaq and the GPS receiver connector some wires can be cut at the end shown in the following picture. The yellow wire of the four wires going to the GPS receiver can be cut. The brown and the orange wire at the cable going to the ipaq connector can be cut off. The yellow wire going to the haicom connector can also be cut off.

De

The GPSIRDA converter print and the PCB that came out of the cable

Attach the cable with the ipaq connector and the haicom connector to the PCB. 

Ipaq and haicom side of cable attached to PCB

Power side and IRDA led cable attached to PCB

Close the casing and test the GPS IRDA converter.

When testing the unit on the PDA, you should check that in Pocket PC the Beam Setting is unchecked in Setting->Connections->Beam. Otherwise you will not be able to check the checkbox in the TomTom GPS utility.

In the TomTom GPS utility for the protocol use NMEA 0183v2 4800. For the port setting use Native IR: (for Xscale CPU's for Samsung select the S2410 IRDA2410 port) and check the checkbox to activate these settings. 

DO NOT use COM3 or any other COM setting as this will block your PDA and a hard reset is necessary to be able to use the PDA. In the worst case you will not be able to undo this setting and you will need to re-install the GPS software.

(c) 2003 More information gpsirda@tiscali.nl