CF-30 + EU870D GPS... How to use it?

Hi,
a few days ago I have successfully installed a EU870D card on my CF-30. It works fine, I can connect to WWAN, and I also saw that it has also a GPS... I tried it tonight and it is working, but it is a bit strange and I don't really know how to use it.
The GPS is not present on the PC devices, so it seems that Windows 7 doesn't really know that it is there... I can access to it through Mobilink application, where I can turn it on. Here is the most strange part: after a few moments, I get a fix on my position, with 0 satellites (yes, zero), and after a few seconds the GPS turns off to "inactive" status. I can turn it on again, and the cycle repeats itself. The position is accurate, so the GPS is definitively working, but the COM port field on the window remains blank.
Any idea on what I'm doing wrong?

Thanks!

 

Without even looking at what you have installed, I'm guessing that the position is being acquired from triangulating cell towers. They call it GPSa or something like that. I don't mess with Gobi or similar cards so I don't know how you use the real GPS data from them. I believe Panasonic disables the GPS on their Gobi installs and as I say, I don't know anything about your card or what it's supposed to do.
CAP

 

here..this may help..

DELL Laptop with embedded GPS - Laptop GPS World

 

Hi, thanks for the suggestions.

I saw that page on Laptop GPS world, but it doesn't really help. In my case, I don't even have a com port for the GPS.
It may be indeed the aGPS, but in that case I would be surprised because in no website I see it indicated.

Here is what I see when I activate the GPS through Mobilink:



I press "Avvia GPS" (that is, activate GPS in italian), the window remains waiting for some time, a bit longer the first times, and then I get the all the data (except for the com port) and in a couple of seconds it turns off, becoming inactive. The data are quite precise, even the speed (I'm in the car right now -no, not driving ), and if I launch Google Maps through the button in the application I can get my real position... at least, the real position in the few seconds when the GPS was active.

Maybe, it could be a driver issue, because the port is not present and the GPS for some reason is turning off... but it is really hard to find software support for these modules, and this program is the only one that I have found!

 

Yesterday night I've been doing some research and it seems that I don't have the GPS port installed in my system... no idea why. I tried to delete the driver and reinstall the device, but the port doesn't appear. I've also tried the Dell drivers, but I don't see any difference. I cannot understand the reason, because I saw screenshots from other people with the same device where the GPS port appears on the device manager and I don't have any unknow device on the list...

 

is the gps unlocked on the card?

 

I guess so, since the GPS acquires the coordinates, speed, etc.
How could I check?

 

After one day of trials I'm beginning to think that I may need to change the WWAN card to get a working GPS... There is no way to install the GPS com port on my PC, I don't know if it is because of the drivers, or because of the hardware... I even managed to modify the Dell installer to bypass all compatibility checks and have the original driver installed, but nothing changed.
So, if I decide to change (again) the card, what do you suggest? A Gobi 2000 should work? I mean, *any* (unlocked, of course) Gobi 2000 card should have the GPS? From what I've been reading, the CF-30 Mk2 should have no problem with Gobi 2000 cards...

 

Ummmmmmm, guys...

EU860D and EU870D's do NOT have GPS in them...

You NEED GOBI 2000 for that............

 

Rob,
There is a WWAN card that has a real gps on it that is not a GOBI. I forget the name/model. I had one in my cf29 for a short time. I had to run a program to unlock it and another to enable. I did not have WWAN service so it was not the agps from cell towers.

edit...
My card was a Sierra MC8781. I had to flash the cards firmware to enable the gps. It does need a GPS antenna connected to it. They are cheap though.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/panasonic/509062-cf-19-gps-umts-help.html

 

Sooo... what I'm seeing when I turn on the GPS from Mobilink and I get the coordinates? Just the aGPS?
Just to be sure: if I search for "GOBI 2000" I find cards from different manufacturers, such as Sierra, Qualcomm, etc. Any card of these will work in Europe with a SIM card? Do they all have the same characteristics?

 

I was thinking... it cannot be the aGPS: indoor, it is not working. aGPS works everywhere, while if I activate the GPS on my card without a clear view of the sky it doesn't work...

Anyway, any suggestion for a substitute with a working GPS, SIM support for Europe? I saw a model with also voice support using internal speakers/microphone but I cannot find the model number anymore...

 

Sierra Wireless and Qualcomm are the SAME company... GOBI is branded as Qualcomm and Sierra Wireless is "Carrier Specific" (MC7750 for example), although they ARE the same company.

You need a Panasonic specific GOBI card to have it work in the Toughbooks For example: Sierra GOBI2000 HSPA EV do GPS for Panasonic Toughbook CF 19 30 Unlocked | eBay

Thanks!

 

Hi Rob, thanks for the info!
Just a doubt: when you say "You need a Panasonic specific GOBI card to have it work in the Toughbooks", do you refer just to GOBI cards type or to *any* WWAN card? Right now, I'm not using a GOBI and it is not specific for Toughbook, but it is working fine (except the damn GPS). I saw faster, cheaper and more flexible cards than the GOBI, like the one with the voice support, and now I'm not sure anymore if they will work on the CF-30... They are all PCIe, why shouldn't work?