New customised solutions for farmers, co-ops and agricultural technology providers
Welcome to the First Edition of our Newsletter!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Alberding GmbH is a privately owned German company that has been engaged with the RTK
technology since the early 1990's, and for 10 years it develops its own software solutions
for the delivery of RTK corrections. We are independent from GPS/GNSS receiver manufacturers.
Our Ntrip solutions are used worldwide.
With our SatFarm.net Newsletter we would like to keep you updated with our latest products
and services in the field of precision farming. If you have any questions or comments on our
products, please contact us by email or phone and use our many years of GPS/GNSS experience to your advantage.
Farmers and agricultural service providers increasingly use mobile Internet based RTK correction
services for centimetre-accurate positioning. RTK correction data broadcasting can be the
first step for these service providers to a long-term cooperation in the IT sector.
Due to the applied data delivery technology, service providers today already know when, where
and how long the agricultural machines of their customers have been operated.
If you are looking to become a service operator yourself and provide RTK corrections to
your customers, then Alberding GmbH offers an interesting solution for you. An RTK correction
data server that is easy to install and operate, cost-effective and powerful.
In the solution depicted here, measurement data of permanent GPS/GNSS base stations is transferred online
to an Internet server. In the heart of the solution is the Alberding Ntrip Caster (ANC) software, running on
the server. The Ntrip Caster manages the incoming GNSS data streams, converts the data into standard formats
(RTCM 3.x, CMR+,...) and makes this data available to download for different users.
Customers receive a password-protected access to the service through mobile Internet connection. Users
can either decide to download the RTK corrections of a manually selected base station or the nearest active station is
automatically selected for them, based on their actual position. This "nearest base option" is particularly interesting
for agricultural enterprises.
In addition to RTK data distribution, the Alberding Ntrip Caster can also monitor the availability of the data streams
and alert system operators in case of failure (e.g. Internet connection interruptions) via email or SMS.
For billing and statistical purposes the RTK service provider receives information about the connection and initialisation
time of the individual customers. In the "Map" module the position of the currently connected users is displayed.
A GNSS base station is installed on top of a silo or a workshop building at the farm site. The
antenna is mounted at a suitable obstruction-free location (on the roof) and is connected to the GNSS
receiver with a cable.
The receiver should be placed in a rack cabinet (for example in the workshop building) with Internet access and power supply.
The integrated receiver software sends the measurement data to the Internet server in real time.
On-site system installation takes about half a day. The GNSS antenna should be installed by a local electrician company that
is certified in the area of lightning protection. The effort is similar to the installation of a satellite TV dish. The cost
of a GNSS (GPS+GLONASS) base station is around €10K.
The Alberding Ntrip Caster (ANC) software runs on the Internet server, which is operated either by you or by Alberding GmbH.
This software provides the incoming data streams of the RTK base stations to one or more users. With the server IP address and the
credentials (username and password), the users receive access to the RTK corrections.
As an alternative to the Internet server solution, you may install the software on a local PC. This PC must be connected to the Internet,
so that the data can be received via mobile Internet connection.
Low entry cost - upgradable in the future:
The simplest software configuration (1 RTK base station, 10 users) is available already for €500 - net (without web interface,
PC and installation costs). Gradual extensions exist in the number of RTK base stations and users.
Once installed and configured, the solution will be reliable and robust.
more...
How can Alberding GmbH support you?
Delivery of GPS/GNSS hardware
Delivery and installation of the software
Assistance in setting up the system
Operation of dedicated servers on behalf of the clients