Configure a John Deere StarFire receiver

A John Deere StarFire smart antenna works as the Ditch Assist® rover. In use, the Ditch Assist GPS cable powers the receiver and carries its position straight to the control module (or DIG™ module). It doesn't need the tractor or the John Deere display.

But the receiver's output can only be set from a John Deere display. So set it up while it's still on the tractor, then move it to the implement.

Before you start

Time: about 10 minutes, at the tractor.

• The StarFire receiver on the tractor, connected to the John Deere display, and powered up
• The Ditch Assist GPS breakout cable for a StarFire receiver
• Your RTK corrections set up on the receiver the way John Deere describes (your own base or an RTK network)

The settings, in short

All of these are on the receiver's Serial Port tab on the John Deere display:

Step by step

1. Open the StarFire screen

   On the John Deere display, page through the main screens to the StarFire screen. Tap the symbol that looks like a StarFire receiver.

2. Tap the Serial Port tab

   The tabs run across the top of the StarFire screen: Info, Setup, Activations, Serial Port. Serial Port is the last one, on the right (marker 1 in the drawing). The tab opens with two boxes: Rates at the top and Messages below.

3. Set Baud Rate to 38400

   In the Rates box at the top, find Baud Rate (marker 2). Tap the up or down arrow on the right of its box until it reads 38400.

4. Tap 5 or 10 beside Output rate (Hz)

   Under Baud Rate, tap 5 or 10 (marker 3). The one you pick gets a green box. Never leave it on 1.

5. Tick GGA and VTG

   In the Messages box below, tap the empty square beside GGA. A tick appears. Do the same beside VTG (marker 4).

6. Untick GSA, RMC and ZDA

   If any of their squares shows a tick, tap it to clear it. All three must be empty.

7. Leave the menu

   The receiver now sends GGA and VTG out of its serial port.

8. Move the receiver to the implement

   Mount it on a mast on the part of the implement that moves up and down with the cutting edge. See Mount the GPS antenna.

9. Plug in the Ditch Assist GPS cable

   Connect the StarFire breakout cable to the receiver, and its other end to the GPS leg of the main harness. See Connect all cables. On DIG, the GPS cable plugs into the DIG main module harness instead.

10. Switch the control module on and watch Status 2

    The light called Status 2 should start blinking. That shows data is arriving. How fast it blinks doesn't tell you the rate: that's the Output rate you set on the Serial Port tab. The GPS badge in the next step shows the settings are right. See Read the Status 2 light. On DIG there's no Status 2: check GPS State in the DIG web interface instead.

11. Connect the tablet and check the GPS badge

    Connect as usual (Connect the tablet). The GPS badge in the white bar at the top of the map should show a fix and a satellite count.

StarFire RTK shows DGPS

Every position message (GGA) carries a number for the fix: 4 means RTK Fixed, 2 means differential (the free, much less accurate satellite correction called WAAS or SBAS). John Deere StarFire receivers on StarFire RTK write 2 there even while they have an RTK fix. Ditch Assist follows the standard, so the GPS badge reads DGPS in yellow. The receiver's accuracy isn't affected; only the label is.

That matters because, with the RTK Filter on, the app treats DGPS as not good enough: the survey skips the points and automatic grading holds. The RTK Filter switch is there for this case.

Turn the RTK Filter off (StarFire RTK only)

1. Make sure it really is RTK

   On the John Deere display, check that the receiver is on StarFire RTK from a base or an RTK network, with an RTK fix. Do this every time you start a day.

2. Tap Settings

   On the Ditch Assist app's Home screen, Settings is the fourth button down the column on the right, with a gear.

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3. Scroll down to the SURVEY box

   Slide a finger up the screen (see Scrolling) until you see a white box headed SURVEY. RTK Filter is near the bottom of it, with a switch on the right. Green means on.

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4. Tap the RTK Filter switch

   It turns white with a dark knob on the left: the filter is off. Surveys now record on any fix, and grading no longer holds on a non-RTK fix. RTK Sensitivity, under it, turns grey while the filter is off.

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5. Keep an eye on the fix yourself

   With the filter off, the app can't protect you from a real loss of RTK. Grading still holds when there's no fix at all or the position stops updating, but a drop from RTK to a lesser fix won't stop it. Anything surveyed, calibrated or graded on a non-RTK fix with the filter off is at your own risk.

Turn the filter back on (tap the switch again) when you go back to a receiver that reports RTK normally.

If it doesn't work

• Status 2 not blinking: nothing is arriving. The serial output is off, the receiver has no power, or the cable isn't plugged in all the way. Status 2 not blinking.
• Status 2 blinks, but the app has no GPS: baud rate not 38400, or GGA and VTG not ticked. Status 2 blinks, but no GPS.
• Blade slow to react or overshooting: check the Output rate on the Serial Port tab. It must be 5 or 10, never 1. The Status 2 light can't show you the rate.
• The badge reads DGPS on StarFire RTK: as above, or the full fix page: Shows DGPS instead of RTK.
• The badge reads GPS or FLOAT: RTK corrections aren't arriving, or the fix hasn't locked on yet. Stuck on Float.
• You can't find the Serial Port tab: the receiver must be connected to a John Deere display to be set up. Put it back on the tractor.