User`s guide

Using Your Eggfinder TX and RX
Note: If you have the Eggfinder LCD receiver, see the Eggfinder LCD User’s Guide for
instructions on using it with the Eggfinder TX.
To use your Eggfinder effectively, you’ll need:
• An Eggfinder TX board (to send the GPS data from your rocket)
• An Eggfinder RX board (to receive the signal from the Eggfinder TX)
• A computer/tablet with a USB port to connect the Eggfinder RX board
• Some kind of software to record and/or interpret the data from the Eggfinder RX board
• Some way of figuring out where you are so you can get to your rocket’s location
The Eggfinder RX board uses a standard USB Type A plug, compatible with virtually every
laptop PC. Tablets with USB ports usually have a USB “Mini” or “Micro” jack, so if you want
to use a tablet with the cable you may have to get an adapter; they can be readily found at
electronics retailers.
You will also need an appropriate USB-Serial driver for your platform. The Eggfinder cable
uses a Prolific PL2303HX USB-Serial chip, the drivers can be found on the Eggtimer Rocketry
web site at:
http://www.eggtimerrocketry.com/page29.php
We recommend that you use the Prolific drivers for Windows from the Eggtimer Rocketry web
site rather than the current “unified” driver that’s on Prolific’s web site, we have found that
there are issues with Windows 8 with the newer drivers. The ones on our web site have been
tested with Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, and 8.1 so we know they work.
Prolific also offers serial-mode drivers for MacOS, Linux, and an SDK for Android; there may
be some pre-built Android drivers available. Those will be on Prolific’s web site, at
http://prolificusa.com/pl-2303hx-drivers/
Whatever software you use to connect to your Eggfinder RX receiver, you will need to find the
COM port that is used to communicate, and set the data format to:
9600 baud, 8 bits, 1 stop bit, no parity, no flow control (or, no handshaking)
Turning Your Eggfinder On and Off
We recommend that you turn on the Eggfinder RX receiver first. When you plug the RX into a
USB port on your laptop/tablet, the RED LED should come on, and you should see NO lights
on the Hope RF module. If the GREEN LED on the Hope RF module starts blinking when you
plug in the USB cable, that means that another Eggfinder is transmitting on your frequency.
BEFORE you turn on your Eggfinder TX transmitter, you need to determine who it is, and
coordinate with them so you don’t bump into each other. Fortunately, if your receiver is
picking up their transmitter, you can use your GPS program to find the transmitter, and most
likely its owner as well.