Android Phone GPS for farming????

   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #1  

California

Super Star Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2004
Messages
14,615
Location
An hour north of San Francisco
Tractor
Yanmar YM240 Yanmar YM186D
It seems like there are aps for everything.

It would be nice to optimize my route for watering 125 new trees in random locations among the thousand+ in the orchard. Presently, looking down or across the rows doesn't work that well because mature trees block view of the occasional new ones.

GPS- based mapping and real time route directions would help optimize my route and most important, assure that I didn't miss watering a new tree.

Are there libraries of Android GPS applications for farming? Is anyone using this? Is the GPS precision sufficient to take me to the general area of a previously-defined tree? The orchard grid is 20 ft x 20 ft and the new trees are usually visible among the mature ones when I get within 50~100 ft so I don't need surveyor-level precision - just an advisory to 'look over there', and a map showing all new trees/trees visited.

Thanks in advance for any comments!
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #2  
Yes. Just pick a GPS app and store each location as a waypoint.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #3  
the waypoint probably will work- but I dont think its accurate enough . Mine shows 15 ft off at times.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #4  
We have an app on iOS that is used for this (Theodolite) but one limitation is that GPS in smart phones is only accurate to about 12-15 feet under optimal conditions. If you don't have a clear line of sight to the sky (such as under tree cover) the accuracy can drop quite a bit, and maybe only be 50-60 feet or worse.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #5  
Mine is 5 feet.
For his purposes it doesn't matter if its even 20 or 30 off.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #6  
5 feet accuracy isn't possible with the current GPS radios in smart phones (any app that reports 5 feet is likely computing the number or units wrong). The radios do 3 meter accuracy tops, just about 10 feet, but that only happens under the most optimal conditions.

Either way, if he only needs to be within 20-30 feet, it should be fine as long as there is a clear line of sight to the sky.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming????
  • Thread Starter
#7  
I have maybe 60% open sky while driving tree to tree. But if some satellites are near the horizon I would likely lose some while moving.

Here are a couple of pictures from last year. The first one shows how I need to drive close to a new tree before I see it - behind the little buck's antlers in this case. Kinda like an Easter Egg hunt.

The second picture shows why I want an efficient route. That little tractor struggles for traction pulling a full tank of water (2600 lbs, on 8" tires) uphill on disked ground. (I could pull with the larger tractor but this one maneuvers under the mature trees better).

Any suggestions on a specific GPS application for Android?

P1670461rDeer.jpg P1670707rWateringLastRow.jpg
 
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   / Android Phone GPS for farming???? #8  
5 feet accuracy isn't possible with the current GPS radios in smart phones (any app that reports 5 feet is likely computing the number or units wrong). The radios do 3 meter accuracy tops, just about 10 feet, but that only happens under the most optimal conditions.

Either way, if he only needs to be within 20-30 feet, it should be fine as long as there is a clear line of sight to the sky.

Right on! You would have to go to WAAS ($2500) or RTK ($25,000+) to get more accuracy.
 
   / Android Phone GPS for farming????
  • Thread Starter
#9  
Can you improve accuracy by starting from a known survey monument?
 
 
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