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How to connect
your PalmPilot to a Garmin eTrex?
Here I show you how to connect your PalmPilot
to a Garmin eTrex GPS receiver. I did this with
the PalmPilot IIIc and the older Professional.
I also found some additional info on the Internet on the newer models
like the Sony CLIE and the M5XX series
by Palm.
Note: Read the disclaimer!
pFranc
(Larry) designed his own eTrex connectors for both the
rectangle shaped Garmin connector and the
round Garmin connectors.
Tip: READ THE
ENTIRE ARTICLE FIRST! |
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Get your PalmPilot connected to your Garmin eTrex...
The cool thing about GPS
is to know where you are ... but what use does it make without a map showing
you where that might be? The great thing about an PalmPilot
that it, just like a Compaq
iPAQ, has a lot of memory, most of them have a colorscreen and are
relatively cheap compared to PocketPC/Psion variants. So combing this,
for example with the TomTom
Routeplanner Europe or USA, would make an excellent
navigation tool ... wouldn't it? Ehm,... but how should we connect them?
Well, let me show you how I connected my PalmPilot
IIIc to my Garmin eTrex Venture. Most PalmPilot
models can be bought pretty cheap at for example eBay.com
or Marktplaats.nl.
The GPS receiver, a Garmin eTrex, can
be bought for app. $100 (basic model) to $170 (the Venture model which
has just that little bit of extra, and comes with a serial cable too!
See also: GPSNow)
Getting Connected
The connection strongly depends on the PalmPilot type
you have. Please let me know if you know about how to connect other PlamOS
based devices.
PalmPilot models:
IIIc, III, IIIe, IIIxe, V, Vx, VII, VIIx, Professional, 5000 series
Note: in the page logo you
see the IIIc and the old Professional...
These PalmOS based PDA's have this type of connector
(shown the serial travel sync cable).

1 |
DTR |
2 |
+ 3.3V |
3 |
Receive Data (RXD) |
4 |
RTS (Request To Send) |
5 |
Transmit Data (TXD) |
6 |
CTS (Clear To Send) |
7 |
GP-ID_1 (direct to 3.3v = HotSync) |
8 |
GP-ID_2 (via 10KOhm to 3.3v = Modem) |
9 |
Not used |
10 |
Ground |
Now we can either create a nullmodem cable which we
will place between de Garmin-PC cable and the sync cable of the PalmPilot
(either from a sync cable or from the sync craddle). This will
work with ALL PalmPilots that have a sync connection that is RS232/Serial
based.
Now get 2 male DB-9 connectors and
connect the wires as such:
New Models: Ready for trouble?
HandSpring Visor
I'm not sure how the new models are connected. I still
have to find out. However I do know the HandSpring Visor
models are a pain, since they do not come with the proper RS232 (=serial)
electronics and use USB instead.
Sony CLIE
Most Sony CLIE devices use USB interface
too. The fun part here (as with the iPAQ PocketPC for
that matter) is that the CLIE devices appear to have
a fully functional serialport.
Note the pincount of the Sony connector:

The Sony CLIE sync-cable connector
Sony connector to 9-DB wiring:
NOTE: It appears that the
Sony CLIE requires you to connect it's own pin 12 with a 47K ohm
resistor to it's own pin 13 (GND). The resistor is what tells
the CLIE to use the serial port rather than the default USB port.
PalmPilot M5XX series
The Palm M5XX units also have a USB
port, and, like the Sony, they have a fully functional serial port as
well so, connecting them to a gps should not be a problem. The serial
hotsync cable can be used with a null modem adapter, for example, and
any of the solutions described in the serial cable section. If you wish
to create your own cable then follow the instructions below.
RxD (data in) |
10 |
3 |
TxD (data out) |
11 |
2 |
GND |
1 |
5 |
Note: The M5XX
models have the same ID approach as with the Sony CLIE,
for identification you might need to connect a 7.5 KOhm resistor
between the M5XX connector's pins 7 and 8.
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