[BC] GPS

[towers at mre.com]

You are correct in your intitial interpritation. We drive the circumfrence
 around the site at a distance of 10 miles nailing the radial lines in
advance. Then locate the points based on not only the distance, but
location to/on the radial line quite precisely. We don't plan the route
precisely prior to the process. Only approximate locations of where the
point(s) will be based on those end points and then nail the points using
the on-site tools. The rest of the data is then loaded automatically as
you have outlined.

While it might be a bit more cumbersome, you completely eliminate any
question as to whether any point is on a radial at any distance to the
site.  Including extended radials for checking conductivity.

MM

> Mike you totally lost me on this one. It sounds like you are saying that
> you go out to the end of the radial to determine where it is. What I
> think you are really trying to say is that you can plot a "off road"
> route back to the center of the array from the end point. While that is
> true it's a bit cumbersome in most situations.
>
> If that's what you are saying I am able to do the same thing before I
> leave the shop by laying out the array and defining an "Off Road" route
> and loading it into the GPS, with the start point at the far end of the
> radial and the destination being the center of the array. Then you can
> call up the route for the radial you are running and have the route line
> on the screen as you are working your way out, or back in, on each radial.
>
> With the proper data fields displayed you can have your distance to
> final, (the array center) current location, current time, you can throw
> bearing up (it should be exactly 180 deg out from your radial), and
> anything else you like.
>
> Now I might add that I use a GPS-V portable, and I also use a Garmin
> 2610 in the vehicle attached to the laptop for navigation and mapping,
> via topo quads.
>
> Mike McCarthy wrote:
>> Absolutely not.  You first need to establish a target radial line on new
>> proofs by going out to the far end and define the correct bearing and
>> create the radial inside the GPS RX. Then seek to locate and define
>> points on that line.  Forget absolute coordinate location as they're
>> most likely off  by some distance.  And point to point doesn't yield
>> correct distance and bearing data either.
>>
>> Once you have the points defined, then any means of navaid, (such as TOM
>> TOM, to achieve locate and access the points will suffice.
>
> --
> Alan Alsobrook CSRE AMD CBNT
> St. Augustine Fl. 32086 904-829-8885
> aalso at Bellsouth.net
>
>