SparkFun GPS Breakout - NEO-M9N, SMA (Qwiic)

The SparkFun NEO-M9N GPS Breakout delivers fast and robust ~1.5m accuracy by concurrently tracking four GNSS constellations (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and BeiDou) and features both Qwiic I2C and SMA connectors.


Description

When you need a fast, reliable, and accurate position, you need a receiver that can see more satellites. The SparkFun NEO-M9N GPS Breakout is a high-quality, high-accuracy GPS board that sets a new standard for navigation, and it's built to perform even in the most challenging conditions.

Four Constellations, All at Once

The heart of this breakout is the u-blox NEO-M9N module, a powerful 92-channel u-blox M9 engine GNSS receiver. Its key feature is the ability to receive signals from four GNSS constellations (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and BeiDou) concurrently. This maximizes the number of visible satellites, dramatically improving position accuracy (to ~1.5 meters) and decreasing lock time, even in difficult environments like urban canyons or dense foliage.

Robust Performance and Security

The NEO-M9N is engineered for reliability. An integrated SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave) filter combined with an LNA (Low Noise Amplifier) in the RF path ensures the module can reject strong RF interference and continue to operate normally.

For advanced applications, the module can detect jamming and spoofing events and report them to your host microcontroller, allowing your system to react accordingly.

Flexible Connectivity: SMA, Qwiic, and I2C

This breakout is designed for both ease of use and secure, robust installations.

  • SMA Connector: Features a panel-mountable SMA connector for a secure, industrial-standard connection to your antenna.
  • Qwiic Connect System: Utilising our handy Qwiic system, no soldering is required to connect it to the rest of your system. The receiver supports I2C (which u-blox calls Display Data Channel), allowing you to get all your location data without tying up your microcontroller's valuable UART ports.
  • Breadboard Friendly: We've still broken out 0.1"-spaced pins in case you prefer to use a traditional breadboard.

Fast Fixes and Battery Backup

An onboard rechargeable battery provides backup power to the module's RTC. This enables a hot start (acquiring a lock within ~2 seconds) versus a cold start (~24 seconds). This battery will maintain the RTC and latest satellite orbit data for weeks, meaning your project can get a fix almost instantly, every time you power it up.

Powerful Configuration Made Easy

U-blox modules are famous for their incredible configuration options, traditionally managed through the dense u-centre Windows software. We've harnessed this power and made it easy.

The SparkFun Arduino Library gives you full control over the module directly from your code. You can configure baud rates, update rates, geofencing, spoofing detection, external interrupts, SBAS/D-GPS, and much more—all over I2C. Leave NMEA parsing behind and use our library's lightweight binary interface to get the data you need.


Specifications

  • Integrated SMA connector for use with the antenna of your choice (not included)
  • 92-Channel GNSS Receiver
  • 1.5m Horizontal Accuracy
  • 25Hz Max Update Rate (four concurrent GNSS)
  • Time-To-First-Fix:
  • Cold: 24s
  • Hot: 2s
  • Max Altitude: 80,000m
  • Max G: ≤4
  • Max Velocity: 500m/s
  • Velocity Accuracy: 0.05m/s
  • Heading Accuracy: 0.3 degrees
  • Time Pulse Accuracy: 30ns
  • 3.3V VCC and I/O
  • Current Consumption: ~31mA Tracking GPS+GLONASS
  • Software Configurable
  • Geofencing
  • Odometer
  • Spoofing Detection
  • External Interrupt
  • Pin Control
  • Low Power Mode
  • Many others!
  • Supports NMEA, UBX, and RTCM protocols over UART or I2C interfaces
     

Resources

Related Products