The Garmin eTrex Venture HC - Virginia Geospatial Extension
Contents
1. 4 Select the Go To option to create a direct line of travel to the Waypoint Figure 9 Speed Dist To Next rid 0 14 Bearing Note oe EN 05 JUL 07 14 36 Pointer Location Elevation Compass Ring Recent Find N 37 13 447 O060 25 374 0 Figure 8 Figure 9 Figure 10 Figure 11 The map page is the default navigation page Figure 10 At the top of the page there will be naviga tional directions These directions will indicate a cardinal direction that will take you to your destina tion Waypoint To use the Compass Page for navigation Figure 11 hit the Page Button and go to the Compass Page The arrow in the center of the compass serves as the bearing pointer which directs you to the destination waypoint The navigation page also informs you that you are 0 14 miles from the way point At your current speed 0 miles hour you will reach the next destination in approximately 4 seconds and 4 seconds To stop navigating press the Menu button and select Stop navigation The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program fi Application 3 Finding navigating to a Waypoint that was defined by someone else You may need to navigate to a Waypoint that was defined by someone else 1 e a landowner or other constituent a county official a fellow extension agent or fellow extension specialist This person may have used a different GPS receiver or even model and may therefore provide you with coordinate2. closed area View the saved track screen to decide whether or not the integrity of the track was maintained 12 To view all of your saved tracks go to MAIN MENU gt TRACKS Figure 18 An Introduction to GPS 10 Estimating Area Measurements The Route Method Option 2 For area calculation purposes a route is a sequential set of perimeter waypoints linked together to describe the boundary of a tract of land The route method of area calculation has some definite advantages You don t need to travel along the entire border of the tract as long as you can mark the major corners and turns of the boundary line For very large tracts and for areas with severe ter rain restrictions this may be the only practical GPS technique The route method also allows you to perform estimated acreage comparisons of several tracts after returning to the office Accuracy of the route method depends largely on your ability to locate and mark all the key twists and turns that enclose the tract It works best on rectangular areas with straight line boundaries Irregularly bordered oddly shaped tracts are more difficult to work with requiring a much larger number of waypoints to accurately describe the tract The maximum number of waypoints in a route is 250 with a maximum of 50 routes To set up a route for area calculation first mark and save the key perimeter waypoints that you will need Go to MAIN MENU gt ROUTE Click on NEW and then on the
3. information or you can also obtaining coordinate information off of a Geographic In formation System or other map Obviously your GPS receiver can not navigate you to a coordinate pair 1 e lat long UTM etc if the coordinates are not stored on your GPS receiver as a waypoint However you can create a way point by manually entering coordinate information i e lat long UTM etc into the GPS re ceiver To create a waypoint by manually by entering its coordinates follow these Steps 1 Press in and hold the Click stick to access the Mark Waypoint Page 37 13 438 2 Using the Click stick highlight the Location Field on the Mark Way 0 20 334 P oint Page Figure 12 From e SE fe 3 Enter the new coordinates using the numerical keyboard on the Delete Mop Go To screen Highlight and press OK when finished Figure 12 Important Tip In the United States the first latitudinal coordinate will always have a N as a prefix as we are north of the equator The second longitudinal coordinate will always have a W as a prefix as we are west of the prime meridian In addition the first digit after the W should be entered as a zero see illustration above It is very important to identify and select these prefixes when manually entering waypoints on your GPS 4 Once the Waypoint coordinates have been manually entered and saved you can then use the Go To or FIND function see previo
4. meas urements in feet You are now ready to use the GPS receiver to calculate the perimeter of an area Figure 27 An Introduction to GPS 12 Trip Odom Max Speed 2 After you have configured the unit to measure the perimeter in 021 34 4 statue push the Page button until you reach the MAIN MENU and Moving Time Moving Avg then select the Trip Comp icon The TRIP COMPUTER PAGE 03 07 41 should open Figure 28 Oe Pe cil otso OT Elevation 2069 Odometer 7 06 Figure 28 3 To estimate the perimeter of an area you will be working with the Trip Odometer function on the TRIP COMPUTER PAGE 4 Make sure that before you begin that the Trip Odometer is set to zero If the odometer is not set to zero then follow these steps Big Numbers l l Change Data Fields a Use the Menu Find button to bring up the Trip Computer Menu Restore Defaults options The MENU selection looks like Figure 29 GL for Main Menu Figure 29 b Press straight down on the Click stick to open the RESET page This will open the RESET page The RESET page is illustrated in Figure 30 Delete Sayed Tracks L Delete All Waypoints Delete All Routes Figure 30 The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 13 c Use the Click stick to highlight the RESET TRIP DATA option Press down on the Click stick to select it note the Odometer only displays units in miles d Then use the Click stick to scroll down to the Apply
5. the frequency at which tracks points are recorded 3 Otherwise you will lose accuracy when the receiver occasionally cuts Figure ks corners as you travel the boundary Go to MAIN MENU gt TRACKS gt highlight amp select Setup The Track Log Setup page Figure 13 will open you have choices here The default setting is Record Method Auto a combination of distance and time and Interval Nor mal If you choose to keep the Auto setting you can set the Interval to More Often or Most Often to increase the frequency of track points Instead of Auto you can choose to re cord by Distance or Time each with its own Interval choices mie i BS ae amp Satellite Trip comp Mark Follow these steps to estimate area measurements Q E 1 Generally you should clear the current active track log just before you be Ea We D gin laying tracks Go to MAIN MENU gt TRACKS gt CLEAR If you A ey BA wish to save the previous track log first select SAVE then clear the log ee Etch 2 Push the Page button until you reach the Main Menu Page Figure 13 Figure 14 The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 9 4 Use the Click stick to scroll down and highlight the Tracks option 5 Press the Menu button and select Area Calculation The Area Calcula Henu Eas tion page should open Figure 15 Delete All Saved L for Main Menu 6 The Area Calculation page will look very similar to the Map Page BUT will have a Start
6. PS Receiver Your GPS receiver has many capabilities and functionalities This section of the handbook is in tended to show you how to get started using the GPS and to introduce you to some of the major GPS capabilities that can directly support your day to day extension needs After you become comfort able with the basic GPS capabilities that are listed in this handbook you may want to refer to your owner s manual to learn even more about your GPS receiver Getting started Turn on your GPS receiver by pushing the power button The satellite page will automatically appear Figure 4 Location H 3 13 418 The outer circle d 080 25 335 represents the horizon The number of each overhead satellite 1s shown The inner circle is a location 45 degrees from the horizon The strength of each satellite signal 1s shown 03 06 07 081113 16 19 23 25 255 Figure 4 It normally takes a couple of minutes for the GPS receiver to home in on the satellites and to de termine a location Initially the status window may read Wait tracking satellites The GPS re ceiver will be ready to use when the satellite page disappears and the map page is showing The satellite page can be seen at any time by going to the Menu Page and selecting Satellite Page After the GPS receiver is ready to navigate a location x y coordinates and error 24 ft for the lo cation will appear in the upper section of the satellite page see Fig
7. The Garmin eTrex Venture HC An Introductory Handbook for Natural Resource Managers Prepared by The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program GPS An Introduction and the Basics This handbook is intended to provide you with a basic understanding of how your Garmin Venture HC GPS receiver can help to support your day to day business needs For detailed information about this receiver refer to the owner s manual that is included with you GPS receiver a digital version of your Owner s manual can also be downloaded from the Garmin website http www8 garmin com manuals eTrexLegendHCx_OwnersManual pdf The Venture HC GPS receivers are fairly rugged However these receivers are small computers and they should therefore be treated with care For ex ample never store the GPS receiver in direct sunlight or in hot areas car trunks When you are not using your GPS receiver for long periods of time over 2 months it is recommended that you remove the batteries The Venture HC GPS is fully water resistant and dust proof however it does not float You should clean the outside of your GPS receiver by simply running cool water over it or by wiping it off with a moist rag In addition it should be noted that the GPS has an internal antennae The antennae is located at the top of the GPS receiver above eTrex Do not ob struct the antennae when you are operating your GPS Most GPS receivers do not work inside undergrou
8. button and press down on the Click stick to reset the odometer e Your TRIP Odometer is now set to zero and is ready for use Press the PAGE BUTTON and navigate to the TRIP COMPUTER PAGE Figure 31 Trip an Max Speed 6 Now that your Trip Odometer is set to zero begin walking around 0 34 the field parking lot or any feature Notice that the odometer z Tn Moving 00 changes as you walk When you complete walking around the field 00 00 0 0 you will need to make note of the Trip Odometer reading Figure 31 An Introduction to GPS 14 The MAP Page So far you have seen how the different pages on the GPS receiver can support some of your day to day business application needs The MAP PAGE however is a page that has not been summarized yet The MAP PAGE enables you to visualize your WAYPOINTS and TRACKS as maps that are located on screen You have the ability to zoom in and out of these maps to obtain more or less de tail Your GPS receiver has some reference data major streets and interstates built into the GPS re ceiver You can also obtain 1 e purchase digital topographic maps that can be downloaded to your GPS unit for reference purposes from GARMIN However you need to be aware that the topog raphic maps available for your GPS receiver are 1 24 000 but they are only available in sections of the United States Remember that you only have 24 MB of memory on your GPS so if you buy mul tiple extra maps yo
9. ch Invent the Future VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program l Some Tricks of the Trade and things to remember You know enough to be dangerous Please note that this handout is intended to give you a work ing knowledge of GPS to the degree that you can collect data for use in forestry and natural re sources management and planning This handout does not give you the skills or authority of a licensed land surveyor Applications of GPS for recording property boundaries zoning bounda ries and other legal boundaries such as setbacks requires the involvement of a licensed land sur veyor Likewise legally binding calculations of property area must also be performed by li censed surveyors Measurements taken with this GPS do contain errors These measurements should be considered to be estimates Update your software The Garmin website http www garmin com provides free software up dates for the Venture HC and other models Garmin has created a downloadable program that automatically checks for software updates and will download them to your unit The software is called Web Updater To maximize its area measurement capabilities be sure that software up to date To check this go to MAIN MENU gt SETUP gt SYSTEM gt push the Menu button gt select amp click on SOFTWARE VERSION If needed download the latest software version using Web Updater then upload it to your unit using the supplied USB cabl
10. e Enabling WAAS Wide Area Augmentation System will usually improve accuracy of your unit s area calculations However if you have difficulty in maintaining contact with the WAAS satellite 35 in our area because of tree cover or other terrain obstacles you may be better off to disable WAAS To enable disable WAAS go to MAIN MENU gt SETUP gt SYSTEM gt WAAS EGNOS Wait for accuracy after you turn on your unit Before marking waypoints or laying tracks give your receiver time usually just a minute or two to settle down and make full contact with the available satellites When the accuracy reading on the satellite page becomes relatively steady usually at 10 15 ft 3 5 m or so then you are ready to put it to work If WAAS is enabled wait until satellite 35 1s providing differential correction small D s will show up on several satellite strength bars You should then get accuracy readings of about 10 ft 3 m The Venture HC allows measurements to be displayed in your choice of units Go to MAIN MENU gt SETUP gt UNITS gt DISTANCE SPEED to initially select from Nautical nm kt ft Nautical nm kt m Statute Metric and Yards If you wish to change from one measurement system to another the unit automatically and instantly handles the conversions You can connect your Garmin Legend to a personal digital assistant PDA or other hand held device using the download cable You may also require an adaptor dep
11. ending on the type of port that is supported by your PDA An Introduction to GPS 2 Understanding Your GPS Receiver There are six buttons on your eTrex Zoom out button ere Venture HC that you need to be famil Aani iar with Figure 1 These buttons in clude f Zoom in bation 2 Page Quit button The Power Button The Page Quit Button Menu Find The Zoom out Button The Zoom in Button The Menu Find Button The Click Stick button The GPS antenna i ke ace 1 The Power button is the button that turns your GPS re button A aus 1 Power button Click Stick button Figure 1 ceiver on and off This button will also turn on the back light so that you can use your receiver at night Note that using the backlight will consume your batteries faster 2 The Page Quit button is used to scroll through various pages 1 e screens on the GPS receiver or to back out or quit a menu or page There are four different pages that you can cycle through by pressing this button Figure 2 These different pages include the Satellite Page only appears at start up when acquiring satellite signals Map Page e Compass Page e Main Menu Page Location H 37 13 418 sede 080 25 335 Satellite Page Map Page Speed Dist To Met 00 0 14 ETA At Dest Time To Met 3 40 04104 Te in racks E vi oute Proximity Calendar Stopwatch Compass Page Main Menu Figure 2 By pushing the Page Qui
12. highlighted blank to insert the first waypoint Continue adding sequential waypoints until the route is complete Once you have returned to the office download your route using the free software GPS Utility To view the resulting area calculation view your routes and select the View menu and then Reports This will being up a report detailing each leg of your route total distance and the area enclosed by the route GPS Utility and a user manual are available for download at http www cnr vt edu gep tools html By using the Route Method to calculate area a series of Way points are identified Figure 19 at corners at turns and other definition points along the area to be measured Figure 19 The Waypoints are then associated with a Route and GPS Utility is later used to calculate the area measurement for that particular route based on the associated Waypoints Figure 20 Figure 20 The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 11 Application 5 The Trip Computer Page The Trip Computer Page can also be used to estimate perimeter or distance measurements The Trip Computer Page is not as applicable to extension agents as the previous described options for estimating area and perimeter see Application 4 However this functions associated with the Trip Computer Page is something that you should be familiar with To estimate perimeter or distance using the Trip Computer Page follow WIILAT these steps on F Sa
13. nd or underwater In order to get the best reception your GPS receiver will require an unob structed view of the sky However with new high sensitivity GPS chip the Venture HC can receive consistently strong signals under dense tree canopy Marketing material suggests that this GPS receiver will require new batteries 2 AA after approxi mately 17 hours of use You may want to keep spare batteries handy When purchasing your GPS it comes with a de tailed owner s manual and a quick start user s guide In addition your GPS receiver also comes with a USB cable This cable can be attached to your computer This will enable you to download or upload coordinates and can facilitate field data collection A digital version of this manual 1s available for download on the Virginia Geospatial Extension Pro gram website _http www cnr vt edu gep tools html Table of Contents Some Tricks of the Trade Understanding Your GPS Receiver Getting Started Using Your GPS Unit Application 1 Marking and Saving Waypoints Application 2 Finding Navigating to a Waypoint Application 3 Finding Navigating to a Waypoint defined by someone else Application 4 Area Measurements Option 1 The Track Log Method Option 2 The Route Method in office Application 5 The Trip Computer Page The Map Page and Acknowledgements False Virginia CSCO cooperative Extension rogram A partnership between VSGC and VCE p VirginiaTe
14. option at the bottom see Figure 16 7 You may need to reset the Area Calculation This is done by hitting Figure 15 the Menu button and selecting the RESET option 8 Press lt Start gt and begin walking around the perimeter of the field parking lot forest plot etc that you want to calculate an area calcula tion The screen displays your progress Zoom in or out as appropriate to view your tracks 9 Slightly before you return to your starting point click on STOP Your receiver will automatically complete the loop with a straight shot from your current position to your starting point The enclosed area value will be displayed in appropriate units To change units highlight and click on the unit abbreviation to bring up a selectable list of choices square feet square yards square meters hectares square miles etc Figure 17 Figure 16 Figure 10 To see the area calculation or if the calculated solution is of value to you press lt SAVE gt The Saved Track page will open Figure 18 However before you hit save you should record the data elsewhere Once a track log is saved the total number of track points is condensed to a maximum of 500 The Venture HC allows a maximum of 10 saved tracks 11 Don t despair if heavy tree cover causes you to occasionally lose con tact with the satellites as you track The GPS will connect the dots and link your recorded track points in an attempt to estimate the en
15. s down and hold the Click Stick until the Mark Waypoint Page WO80 25 334 Elevation appears See Figure 5 2082 Fram Current Location 3 This GPS automatically assigns 3 digit numbers to waypoints in this example it assigned 001 as the waypoint name You can customize the name of the waypoint To change the name of the Waypoint use the Click Stick to highlight the waypoint name field in Figure 5 the name field is 00 4 Type the new name for the waypoint using the Click Stick to select and enter the characters from the on screen keyboard and select OK Figure 6 elaz 5 You can also change the marker symbol associated with the waypoint Fiam current Location 5 by selecting the marker with the Click Stick and scrolling through Erem eee ran the different options Figure 7 oe 6 Use the Click Stick to scroll down to the OK button and select the OK button to save the Waypoint Figure 7 An Introduction to GPS 6 Application 2 Finding navigating to a Waypoint Your GPS can serve as an automatic pilot to navigate you back to a previously defined Waypoint To navigate back to a previously defined waypoint follow these steps 1 Press and hold the MENU FIND button on the left side of the GPS receiver Figure 1 2 On the FIND menu select Waypoints using the Click Stick Figure 8 3 Use the Click Stick to select the desired waypoint from the list Waypoints are typically listed alphabetically
16. t button the user can toggle through one of four GPS pages or screens Additional pages can be added by using the Page Sequence option within the Setup Menu The ap plications functionalities associated with these different pages are summarized in the next section GETTING STARTED USING YOUR GPS RECEIVER The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 3 3 The Zoom out button From the Map Page pressing this button will enable you to zoom out on the map From any other page press to scroll or move a highlighted slider up 4 The Zoom in button From the Map Page pressing this button will enable you to zoom in on the map From any other page press to scroll or move a highlighted slider down Jt 5 The Menu Find button Press and release to view the Options Menu for a page or press and hold to display the Find Menu from any page Figure 3 6 The Click Stick mouse The Click Stick Figure 3 is very simi The Click Stick works like a lar to a computer mouse The Click stick will enable you to navi Om TnOUsS gate to different menu options by pushing the click stick in a direction left or right up or down Furthermore you can use the Click Stick as a button by pressing it straight down or in to acti vate highlighted selections Pushing the Click Stick in is similar to clicking your mouse or hit ting the enter key on a computer keyboard An Introduction to GPS 4 Getting Started Using Your G
17. tellite Trip Comp l You may need to configure your GPS to ensure that perimeter QE E wwe r measurements are calculated in yards by default the units of meas Tracks Routes ure are in miles To change the measurement units navigate to the ES SS pes MAIN MENU page Figure 25 Highway Setup Proximity eea gt B Note Ifthe default statute option is used you will get Trip Calendar Calculator Stopwatch Odometer measurements in feet until the distance reaches Figure 25 528 0 1mi at which time the receiver automatically switches to hundredths of a mile without yards ever being used If the yards option is selected you will get Trip Odometer measurements in yards until the distance reaches 1000 yards at which time the receiver automatically switches to hundredths of a mile without feet ever being used For these reasons it is suggested that you use the techniques outlined in Application 4 for estimating area and perimeter measurements a While on the Main Menu Page use the Click stick to select SA SETUP On the SETUP MENU page select UNITS and the _ Elevation wenn speen Units Setup Page will appear Figure 26 dia ft min Feet b On the UNITS Setup Page Figure 27 use the Click stick to pu scroll down and highlight Distance Speed Press the Click hddd mm mmm stick and a menu will appear From the menu items select qre aq STATUE This will enable you to view the perimeter
18. u will have to take off what you are not using to put new maps on For additional information about the Extension Agent GPS Program please contact John McGee Virginia Geospatial Extension Specialist 319 Cheatham Hall 0324 Blacksburg VA 24061 http www cnr vt edu gep 540 231 2428 jmcg vt edu The Extension Agent GPS Program is supported by Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia Geospatial Extension Program j i i Virginia a Extension Ga Etter pel ee ee xtension rogram A partnership between VSGC and VCE in partnership with The Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources Additional Acknowledgements Mike Clifford Sr Extension Agent Emeritus c o Nottoway Extension Office Nottoway VA 23955 The Virginia Space Grant Consortium The New Hampshire Geospatial Extension Program The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 15
19. ure 4 Your GPS receiver has now been initialized and is ready for use to support your extension applica tion needs The GPS receiver can be used for example to identify and mark areas within tree stands for future reference research plots areas of infesta tion etc estimate area measurements of a field tree stand estimate fertilizer application needs estimate the perimeter of a field tree stand estimating fence line lengths The Virginia Geospatial Extension Program 3 Application 1 Marking and Saving Waypoints Waypoints enable you to mark and record your current location as a waypoint A waypoint is a virtual location marker Once a waypoint is established and saved you can easily navigate back to the waypoint using the GPS This can be helpful to locate research plots in a large stand identify and relocate potential pollution sources or to identify and mark specific areas with in an area that have been impacted by blight or disease that you may want to return to at a later date It is also possible to upload Waypoints to a desktop computer using DNR Garmin or GPS Utility or similar software program To mark and save your current location as a waypoint 1 Walk to the point where you want to obtain a waypoint a location on a stand experiencing drainage problems an area with in an orchard 1 3 ane ng 3 08 46PH that may require additional attention etc catla H 3713 438 2 Pres
20. us page to navigate to that waypoint An Introduction to GPS 8 Application 4 Estimating Area Measurements Estimating area measurements in the field is a necessary task for many application areas of extension including business planning forestry and natural resource management This GPS receiver has the capability to estimate area measurements even of curved and irregularly shaped polygons The fol lowing procedure will not only generate area measurements but will also provide perimeter meas urements as well There are two techniques for estimating area measurements These techniques include The Track Log Method The Route Method While the Track Log Method is used most often both of these techniques are easy to learn and are described in this section Estimating Area Measurements The Track Log Method Option 1 As you travel the perimeter of an area the eTrex Venture HC records track points and uses the resulting GPS track log to internally calculate the size of the enclosed tract This method works well when you can reasonably trans port the receiver directly along the boundary of the tract If swamps lakes cliffs gorges or grizzly bears get in your way you may need to use the route technique as an alternative The active track log can hold up to 10 000 points Track Log Setup MM On small and irregularly shaped tracts of land you might want to increase the track log interval
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