1 Portable Data Collection System (PDCS) CEOS WGISS Meeting Chiang Mai, September 15-19, 2003 R. Suresh

2 Background Information US National Weather Service CSSA Project has 15,000 Weather Data Collection sites Volunteers collect weather data such as temperature, relative humidity, rain, snow…. This data is aggregated through local and regional offices and distributed through National Climate Data Center Data Collection by Observers is a manual process Geo-location and digital image data are two important elements of this system Portable Data Collection System is an effort to improve the quality and process of field data collection by using new technology

3 Portable Data Collection System (Patent pending) Portable device such as Palm, Pocket PC, or equivalent system Integrated with GPS device which automatically gives the geo-location (latitude and longitude) of the data collection point Integrated with digital camera Provides Weather Buddie software utilities PDCS will help in Data Collection, Verification, Validation and Seamless data integration

4 PDCS Features Ability to enter, edit, and update data Automatic registration of Location, Time, Date, and Lat/Long Provides Map interface that shows location information Users can find addresses, points of interest and other features on the map Provides navigation capability Provides database connectivity

5 PDCS Features Ability to capture digital image data in multiple resolutions; Provides features such as zoom, adding annotation, and slide show Ability to record low resolution video with audio for several minutes Ability to work with external devices (e.g., Bar code scanner) Re-configurable user interface Software interface works with Pocket PC 2003

6 Sample Observation Data RWIS data is available 24/7 and includes all of the major parameters of an ASOS surface observation including visibility. There are equivalent systems in over 30 states.

7 PDCS Types And Components PDCS – D PDA + GPS + Digital Camera PDCS will collect data or metadata including digital camera pictures. A user will go to office and upload the information to a PC and submit it through on-line. PDCS – W PDA+GPS+Wireless PDCS with wireless connection will enable users to collect and submit data or metadata directly from the field. PDCS – B PDA + GPS + Barcode scanner

8 PDCS Components Comparison of features of PDA Components PDAs – Palm and Pocket PC GPS Digital Camera Wireless

9 PDA comparison Chart Dell Axim X5 (Advanced) 400MHz XScale 64 mbI, CF, SD5.00" x 3.2" x 0.70"6.9 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $299 Compaq iPAQ MHz XScale 64 mbI, SD, B5.3" x 3.3" x 0.6"6.5 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $749 HP Jornada MHz StrongARM 64 mbI, CF5.2" x 3.01" x 0.68"6.1 oz16-bit Color Lithium $599 Toshiba e MHz XScale 64 mbI, CF, SD, WF4.9" x 3.1" x 0.6"6.1 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $579 HP Jornada MHz SH332 mbI, CF5.2" x 3.1" x 0.60"9.1 oz 12-bit Color Lithium $299 Compaq iPAQ MHz StrongARM 64 mbI5.11" x 3.28" x 0.62"6.3 oz12-bit Color Lithium $486 Palm Tungsten W33MHz DragonBall 8/16 mb I, SD, W4.8" x 3.1" x 0.65"6.5 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $549 Palm Zire 71144MHz TI OMAP 16 mbI, SD4.5" x 2.9" x 0.67"5.3 oz16-bit Color Color Lithium $299 Handspring Visor Platinum 33MHz DragonBall 8 mbI4.8" x 3.0" x 0.70"5.4 oz16 GrayAAA$299 Sony CLIE NR-7066MHz DragonBall 16 mbI, M5.5" x 2.9" x 0.69"7.0 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $499 Sony NZ90 200MHz XScale 16 mbI, CF, M, B5.63" x 3.00" x 0.9"10.3 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $799 Sharp Zaurus MHz MIPS64 mbI, CF, SD5.4" x 2.9" x 0.7"6.6 oz 16-bit Color Lithium $399 I: IrDA - CF: Compact Flash - SD: Secure Digital - M: Memory Stick - W: Wireless (GSM, GPRS, CDMA) - WF: WiFi (802.11b) - B: Bluetooth DeviceProcessor Memory Comm.SizeWeightColorsBattCost

10 Standard features of GPS receivers for Palm devices 12 parallel channels Fast acquisition and reacquisition Receiver Frequency: MHz (L1 band) Antenna Type: Helix Antenna Update rate: Initial, every second.Typically every 2 seconds once fix established Output Message: NMEA 0183 version 2.20, GPGGA, GPGSA, GPRMC and GPGSV Acquisition time: Hot Start: 8 seconds typical Warm Start: 38 seconds Cold Start: 45 seconds typical Accuracy: Horizontal: 5.0 meters typical, 10.0 meters [95% probable] GPS for PDAs comparison Standard features of CF-type GPS for Pocket PC devices 12 parallel channels Integrated patch Built-in antenna Fast acquisition and reacquisition NMEA-0183 data protocol Acquisition time: Cold start: 60sec Warm start: 45 sec Hot start: 8 sec Operation modes: 2D/3D automatic selection Reacquisition time : 0.1 sec Position update: 1Hz Accuracy: 15m 2D-RMS, (95%) Serial type GPS interfaces are also available for Pocket PC devices

11 Digital cameras for PDA comparison chart ResolutionImage standard Operating system to Hotsync photos Type 640x480 digital resolution 24 bit full color JPEGMicrosoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Secure Digital slot (SD) (Palm m125, m130, m500, m505, m515, i705, Tungsten) 640 x 480 color bitmapBMPMicrosoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Secure Digital slot (SD) (Palm m125, m130, m500, m505, m515, i705, Tungsten) 640x480, 320x240, 160x120 (VGA) JPEGMicrosoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Built in camera (Palm Zire71) 2 Mega pixelJPEGMicrosoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Built in camera (Sony PEG N-Z90 Clie) 2 X digital zoom Palm OS handhelds

12 Pocket PC PDA cameras ResolutionImage standar d Operating system to Activesync photos Type 350K pixels, maximum resolution 640x480 JPEG, BMP, GIF Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP FlyCAM CF Digital Camera Type I or II CompactFlash slot [All pocket pc handhelds] 350K pixels, 640x480, 320x240, 160x120 JPEG Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP VGA CompactCamera Type I CompactFlash slot {Dell Axim, iPAQ, Jornada} JPEG Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP HP Jornada Pocket PC camera Type I CompactFlash slot All cameras come with digital zoom capabilities 350K pixels, 640x480

13 Wireless receivers for Palm and Pocket PC devices Palm Tungsten W- Built in wireless antenna Pocket PC devices (iPAQ, Dell Axim, Jornada, Toshiba) Compact flash type Built in antenna Maximum Data Transmissions: Average speeds of 40 to 60 kbps with maximum speed of up to 144 kbps.

14 MONTHLY SERVICE CHARGE$29.99$39.99$59.99$74.99$99.99 Included Megabytes (MB)10 MB20 MB40 MB60 MB100 MB Additional Data per Kilobyte (KB)$0.0030$0.0020$0.0015$0.0013$ U.S./Canada Roaming per KB$ AT&T MONTHLY PRICING FOR PALM AND POCKET PC DEVICES Plans Mobile Mobile Annual Monthly Service Fee$19.99 $39.99 $34.99 Kilobytes included in monthly service fee 100 KB 1MB (1,000K) PALM.NET PRICING AND SERVICE PLANS Mobile Plus

15 Status of Wireless Coverage PALM.NET COVERAGE FOR PALM DEVICES

16 Wireless Coverage for Pocket PC systems AT&T coverage for POCKET PC/PALM devices

17 Mobile Data Capture System (MDCS) There are many instruments used the field data collection today Data loggers, Rain gauges, Thermometers Wireless technologies such as Blue tooth and IEEE can assist in data transfers from the instruments directly None of the field instruments are equipped with network capability MDCS will enable communication between data loggers and the Mobile Data Capture System directly Future Work

18 Autonomous Data Collection Systems Autonomous Data Collection Systems will enable automatic data collection, relay and transmission from the field - Water quality measurements are relayed through GOES satellite These are single entities that dont have the communication capability Integrating GPS, Wireless and mobile devises with network capabilities will enable such systems