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How to configure Septentrio mosaic-G5 P3, P3H and P6
Introduction
This page is only valid for boards based on the Septentrio mosaic-G5 modules, such as:
- simpleRTK 4 Pro (mosaic-G5 P3)
- simpleRTK 4 Heading (mosaic-G5 P3H)
- micro Mosaic-G5 (mosaic-G5 P3)
- simpleRTK 4 Hybrid (mosaic-G5 P6)
In this guide, we will show how to connect the module, configure key settings, manage data output, and ensure it is operating optimally for your application.
Get started
To use the mosaic-G5 based boards, you just need to go through the following steps to achieve an RTK fix and reach centimeter-level accuracy with your RTK board.
Step A: Connection and firmware check
Connect to Septentrio RxTools
- Connect the GNSS antenna to your receiver. Ensure the antenna has a clear view of the sky for testing functionality. Otherwise, you will not see satellite views or signals.
- Connect the receiver to your PC via the USB port labeled POWER+GPS.
- When you connect this product to a PC for the first time, the PC may not recognize it. You will only see a new hard disk in your computer. Open it and install the Septentrio driver.
After installation is complete, your PC will recognize the receiver. This process only needs to be done once.
Download the RxTools Software suite for Microsoft Windows and install it on your computer. This will install several applications on your computer, but for this guide we will use only the RxControl app.
Connect to the Receiver
- Open the RxControl app and create a new Serial Connection. Press Next.
- Specify the computer Serial Port you want to use to connect to your mosaic-G5 receiver and enter a Connection Name. Press Finish.
- The RxControl GUI will open, and the status bar at the bottom will display information about the connection with your receiver.
Check firmware version
- To check the firmware version, go to Help > Receiver Identification.
- The current firmware version is displayed.
Step B: Configure the receiver
To assist you in configuring your mosaic-G5 receiver, we have prepared several configuration files based on firmware version 1.1.0.
Before loading a config file, please follow the previous step to check your firmware version and if necessary, update the firmware.
Load a configuration file
- Find the configuration file that best fits your project requirements in the table below and click to download it to your PC.
| Configuration | File |
|---|---|
Rover 1HzDetails This will set your receiver as a rover at 1Hz update rate. Here you can find the list of commands included in the config file. Enable on COM1 and USB1 ports the most important NMEA messages at 1Hz refresh rate:
| Rover_1Hz_1.1 |
Rover 20Hz Details This will set your receiver as a rover at 20Hz update rate. Here you can find the list of commands included in the config file. Enable on COM1 and USB1 ports the GGA NMEA message at 20Hz refresh rate:
| Rover_20Hz_1.1 |
Rover 1Hz + send NMEA messages to Bluetooth, BLE or radio plugin Details This configuration allow you to connect the receiver to your mobile device via Bluetooth, BLE, or use radio and other communication plugins on Xbee socket. Here you can find the list of commands included in the config file. Enable on COM2 port the most important NMEA messages at 1Hz refresh rate:
| Rover_1Hz_plugin_1.1 |
Rover 1Hz + send GGA message to plugin Details This configuration file allow connection to NTRIP client with VRS mountpoints. Here you can find the list of commands included in the config file. Enable on COM2 port the GGA NMEA message at 1Hz refresh rate:
| Rover_1Hz_GGA_1.1 |
- To install a configuration file, go to the main menu File > Upload script…
- Select the configuration file and press Open.
- You will be asked to reset to default settings the receiver before updating the configuration. Select Yes and press OK. The settings from the configuration file are now applied to the receiver.
Save configuration
Once you have finished configuring your receiver, either by loading a config file or editing parameters manually, the changes need to be saved to the receiver boot memory to make them persistent. If you do not do this, your changes will be lost after the receiver is power-cycled.
- Go to the main menu File > Copy configuration…
- Set Source to Current and Target to Boot. Press OK.
Step C: Get RTK corrections
To achieve centimeter-level accuracy with GNSS receivers, RTK corrections are required. There are two ways to obtain them:
- NTRIP correction service (the easy option): This method requires only a rover receiver and access to a correction service, eliminating the need of a dedicated base station.
- Base–Rover setup: In this setup, you operate a local base station that generates RTK corrections and transmits them directly to the rover via a radio module.
NTRIP correction service
NTRIP (Networked Transport of RTCM via Internet Protocol) is a protocol for streaming GNSS data over the internet. It enables the transmission of real-time correction data from a reference station to a rover or user device.
To obtain credentials (server address, port, username, and password), search for available RTK correction services in your country.
- Go to main menu Communication > RxControl NTRIP Forwarder…
- This will bring up the NTRIP Forwarder dialog, press Edit.
- In the NTRIP Settings dialog, fill in caster settings: Host, Port, username, and password of the NTRIP account. This data should be provided by the NTRIP service when you register your account.
- If the NTRIP account credentials were entered correctly, the Stream drop-down list will become active and the RTK correction Mount Point can be selected. Press Start.
- The Status field of the NTRIP Settings dialog should show a successful connection.
- After a few seconds, the PVT Mode becomes RTK Float/Fixed and you have now centimeter-level accuracy in your receiver.
You can also connect to an NTRIP service using a mobile device, which is convenient for fieldwork. For more information, check our tutorial How to use centimeter GPS with any Android app (mock location).
There are several communication plugins that can be used to access an NTRIP correction service. For more information, check the User Guide of each product.
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Base-Rover Corrections
A Base-Rover setup requires two RTK receivers: one configured as a base that sends correction data via a radio module to the other receiver configured as a rover.
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- Configure one receiver as a static base station, you can follow the tutorial How to configure simpleRTK3B Pro as static base station.
- Configure the mosaic-G5 receiver board as a rover by loading the Rover 1Hz configuration file.
- Insert the radio links into both of your receivers, and the base station will send RTK corrections to the rover.
Advanced functionality
Firmware update
If the firmware of your mosaic-G5 is below version 1.1.0, an update is required:
- For simpleRTK 4 Pro, download the latest stable firmware for mosaic-G5 P3.
- For simpleRTK 4 Heading, download the latest stable firmware for mosaic-G5 P3H.
- For simpleRTK 4 Hybrid, download the latest stable firmware for mosaic-G5 P6.
- Go to main menu File > Upgrade Receiver using Current Connection…
- You will get a Close Connection warning, press OK.
- The Upgrade Receiver GUI will open, press Next.
- Uncompress the corresponding firmware zip file for your board (either mosaic-G5 P3 or P3H) from the links above, and press Browse…
- Select the firmware file (without a failsafe suffix), press Open.
- Check that the firmware file is set correctly, press Next.
- A summary of the settings will be displayed, press Upgrade.
- The Upgrading dialog will open showing a progress bar, make sure not to disconnect your receiver during this process. If everything works correctly you will get an Upgrade Succeeded message, press Finish.
Configure using RxTools
The Septentrio RxTools allows you to easily create GNSS receiver basic configurations, and the following steps will guide you through this process.
Configure as a Rover
This configures the RTK receiver as a Rover at 1Hz refresh rate, connected via USB or any other port included in the board. Alternatively, you could skip the steps below and instead download the Rover 1Hz file from the table of configuration files, loading it into the receiver.
- Go to main menu Navigation > Positioning Mode.
- Choose Rover in PVT Mode, check All in Rover mode and set Reference Position to Auto. Press OK.
- Remember to always copy your Current configuration to Boot memory after configuring your receiver. Otherwise, your latest changes will be lost after you power off the receiver, and you will have to repeat the configuration process when you reconnect to it. Check the Step B: Save configuration section.
Send NMEA messages to XBee Socket
This allows connectivity to the RTK receiver (previously configured as a Rover at 1Hz refresh rate) via a communication plugin inserted into the board’s XBee socket. Alternatively, you could skip the steps below and instead download the Send 1Hz full NMEA to Plugin file from the table of configuration files, loading it into the receiver.
- In the main menu, go to Communication > COM Port Settings…
- Set baud rate of COM2 to 115200 bps, press OK.
- In the main menu, select Communication > Output settings > NMEA Output…
- Choose port COM2 for Stream1 and USB1 for Stream2, check on both streams the NMEA messages GGA, GSA, GST, GSV, RMC and VTG, and set intervals to 1 second.
- In the main menu, go to Tools > Expert Console.
- Go to the NMEA tab in the Expert Console, you should see the output messages.
- Remember to always copy your Current configuration to Boot memory after configuring your receiver. Otherwise, your latest changes will be lost after you power off the receiver, and you will have to repeat the configuration process when you reconnect to it. Check the Step B: Save configuration section.
Create your own configuration file
The receiver configuration can be exported as a file, this allows backing up configurations and sharing them across multiple receivers.
- Go to File > Show Receiver Configurations…
- In the Current configuration section, press Save As…
- You will be prompted to save a configuration file in .txt format to disk. We recommend using a descriptive filename including the receiver model, either mosaic-G5 P3 or mosaic-G5 P3H, along with the date in the <Year>-<Month>-<Day> format.
Revert to factory default
If you find yourself experimenting with your mosaic-G5 receiver configuration, you can always set the configuration back to its default settings.
- Go to main menu File > Copy configuration…
- Set Source to RxDefault and Target to Current, press OK.
Heading configuration
The following section is applicable exclusively to the boards equipped with the mosaic-G5 P3H/P6 modules (not to boards with other mosaic-G5 P3 modules). These modules are by default set to work in a single antenna configuration, and the dual antenna setup (needed for heading calculations) has to be activated.
- To check if the board has heading capabilities, go to Help > Receiver Interface. The Permitted Capabilities tab shows if the module accepts an auxiliary antenna used for heading calculations.
- Go to Navigation > Advanced User Settings > Frontend and Interference Mitigation, and set the Frontend Mode to DualAnt.
- To keep the current configuration after the receiver is power cycled, go to main menu File > Copy configuration… set Source to Current and Target to Boot. Press OK.
- In order for the dual antenna setup to be activated, the receiver needs to be reset (alternatively, you could power cycle the receiver). Go to File > Reset Receiver… set Level to Hard and Erase memory Off. Press OK, after a few seconds the receiver will reset and reconnect.
- The heading output represents the clockwise angle from True North to the vector defined by the baseline extending from the master antenna (GPS1 label on the board) to the slave antenna (GPS2), and the pitch angle denotes the inclination of the vehicle or drone with respect to the horizontal plane.
- By default, the antennas should be mounted longitudinally along the vehicle center line, with the master antenna (GPS1) located at the rear position.
- Heading accuracy depends on antenna separation — the longer the baseline, the better the accuracy. A one-meter baseline is typically needed for sub‑degree precision, though this isn’t always practical on some small vehicles. A half-meter baseline can still give good results if properly set, while one-third of a meter might introduce noise in the output.
- For optimal performance, both GNSS antennas should be identical and oriented consistently with respect to each other — for instance, the antenna cables should exit from the same side on each unit. This ensures proper alignment of the RF phase centers, which is essential for heading accuracy (note that the actual RF phase center is frequently offset from the antenna’s physical center). Furthermore, the RF cable lengths for both antennas must be identical to achieve best results.
- In the main menu, go to View > Attitude View.
- At Metrics, you can check the heading information of your vehicle.
Record log file
The GNSS data generated from Septentrio RTK receivers can be recorded, and afterwards replayed to simulate field conditions for debugging and testing purposes.
You can use the Septentrio RxTools software to log data onto your PC.
- While connected to your mosaic-G5 receiver via USB, go to main menu Logging > RxControl Logging…
- In the Status tab, you will find general information about the logging process and space available in the PC hard drive.
- In the Global tab, choose the Log Directory to save the logging files and the Message Types To Log as NMEA Messages and SBF Messages, which can be afterwards replayed or converted into other common formats such as RINEX or KML using RxControl.
- At the File Naming tab, set File Naming Convention to Manual and type a File Name and File Extension for both the SBF and NMEA log files, and choose whether to Split Files After a specific file size or time limit is reached.
- The SBF tab is useful if you want to log RINEX files for PPK post-process analysis. Select the SBF file type you want to log, and the corresponding data will be activated accordingly.
- In the NMEA tab, press the Add Stream button to create a new stream and activate the NMEA messages you want to log, usually GGA, GSA, GST, GSV, RMC and VTG.
- Press the Start Logging button to start logging the files, and at the Status tab you will find them in the designated PC drive folder. You can use your preferred tool to analyse the saved NMEA log files, and for SBF log files we recommend using RxTools SBF Analyzer. Press Stop Logging once you have finished logging the receiver data.
Alternatively, you can log GNSS data directly to an SD card (without a computer) by inserting one of our Serial Datalogger to microSD plugins into the XBee socket of the RTK board. This is ideal for PPK, RTK and standalone applications.
Documentation
If you are an advanced user seeking detailed information, please refer to the following Septentrio documentation and tutorials:
- Mosaic-G5 P3 Reference Guide
- Mosaic-G5 P3H Reference Guide
- Mosaic-G5 P6 Reference Guide
- How to enable the latest anti-spoofing OSNMA service on your Septentrio receiver
- How to configure simpleRTK3B Pro (mosaic-X5) receiver and connect it to ArduPilot
- How to configure simpleRTK3B Heading (mosaic-H) and connect it to ArduPilot
- How to use PointPerfect with Septentrio receivers
- How to generate RINEX files with simpleRTK3B Pro
- How to load antenna calibration files to Septentrio receivers
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