Statistical Comparison of Geodetic Baseline for Topographic-Geodetic Purposes Using a Low-Cost GNSS Receiver and Electromagnetic Distance Measurement

The concurrent research compares the results of a geodetic baseline through Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) measurements with low-cost GNSS receivers, geodetic receivers, and additional electronic distance measurements (EDM) with a total station, in order to determine whether low-cost GNSS receivers and antennas are suitable for topographic-geodetic work depending on the precision obtained. Fifteen different campaigns were carried out (October 4-8, 2022) with five different combinations of receivers and antennas for the establishment of the baseline: geodetic GNSS equipment-geodetic GNSS equipment, geodetic GNSS equipment-low-cost GNSS kit, low-cost GNSS kit-geodetic GNSS equipment, low-cost GNSS receiver with geodetic antenna-low-cost GNSS receiver with geodetic antenna, and low-cost GNSS kit-low-cost GNSS kit. It is important to note that the low-cost GNSS kit includes the C099-F9P application board for ZED-F9P of U-Blox with patch antenna U-Blox ANN-MB-00 multiband GNSS antenna and ground plane. Similarly, another EDM campaign was realized (October 10, 2022) in order to carry out a statistical hypothesis test related to the length calculated through static relative positioning. The results show that all combinations fit with a certainty of 95% of similarity to the length of the EDM (39.6116 m) showing differences up to 5.1 mm. In relation to the coordinates, the maximum variations were found to be less than 1.2 cm and the azimuth showed similitude between them, which demonstrates that the distances, coordinates, and orientations are consistent with the final solutions of the geodetic GNSS equipment.