Configuring Pathfinder Office's options for File Export

• In the Export Popup Window:
  • Browse the folder under Input Files and select the file you wish to export data from.
  • Set the output folder. Just use the default which is a subdirectoy under your project, called export
  • Hit the Change Setup Options command button to make sure those parameters are set correctly. There are six tabs on the Export Setup Window. Think about all of them, I usually set them like this:

  1. Format Tab:

  • Format: Configurable ASCII; there is a sub-form under this accessed by the Modify Button which lets you organize the order things are put into the exported file. There may already be one that is what you need - look. I like: output file extension = dat, a space-delimited field, and a template line (like the figure):

    {Longitude}{Latitude}{Easting} {Northing}{HAE} {MSL} {GPS Time}{Attributes}

  • Format Options: One set of files per feature type
  • Type of Data to Export: Positions Only; one point per GPS session
  • Starting Feature ID: 1 Start each session with this value

  2. System Tab:

  • Windows Files
    

  3. Attributes Tab

  • Export Menu Atributes as: Attribute Value
  • All Feature Types: Check PDOP & Correction Status - leave the rest blank

  4. Position Filter Tab

  • Check: Filter by GPS position Info
  • 3D (4 or more SVs visible)
  • Include Positions That Are: Check everything
  • Export features that have no positions

  5. Coordinate System Tab

  • For gravity work we want to make sure we all do this the same way. Then it will be much easier to merge your files. Thus select:
  • Use Export system and make sure that you set it like the figure and table below:

   

  System: US State Plane 1983	Altitude Measured From Mean Sea level
  Zone: Montana 2500	Geoid Model = GEOID96 CONUS
  Datum: NAD 1983 Conus	Coord & Altitude Units = meters

   

  • The USGS provides an explanation of the UTM system. Note that Missoula sits astride the dividing line between UTM zones 11 and 12. State Plane coordinates cover the whole state without any inconvenient boundaries and we can later reproject the State Plane coordinates to UTM coordinates in the appropriate zone.
  • Depending on your needs, either choice (UTM vs State Plane) may be OK but you want horizontal (E-W, N-S) coordinates to be in meters if you intend to average results or grid the data. If you are going to do latitude corrections you need to export longitude and latitude values. Using CORPSCON, any of these coordinates can be re-projected later or you could just export them again. Save your files including base station data) until your project is completed!
    

  6. Units Tab

  • Use Export Units
  • Decimal Places: 9, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
  • Lat/Long Format: DDD.dddddd
  • Save your setup with your name (New Setup Button) if you want to use it again
  • Hit OK to leave the Change Setup Options routine
  • Hit OK to leave the Export Setup Window and your file gets "exported" to the "export" subdirectory under your project name. The exported file ends up being named "POSNPT.DAT" for some peculiar reason that Trimble likes. Thus you will need to change the file name for each file you export.