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by thefabsta 1901 days ago
We had lots of issues with USB3 cameras interfering with (RTK-) GPS receivers for a drone project [0]. When mounted on the drone, the receiver would just not get a fix, even in seemingly perfect conditions, i.e. unobstructed view of the sky, far away from buildings, no clouds, etc. One day, I randomly unplugged the cameras and suddenly the receiver started working. I repeatedly plugged and unplugged the USB3 hub just to make sure I'm not crazy. The GPS receiver would go from no fix at all to centimeter-level accuracy every time I unplugged.

We then used a spectrum analyzer to better understand the extent of the interference, tried shielding as described in the whitepaper, as well as separating the components physically as much as 30cm -- all without success. The only solution that worked was to replace the USB3 cables with USB2 cables and acquiring images at a lower frame rate.

I don't even want to know how many people have been affected by these issues over the years. USB3 devices should come with a warning sticker on the box.

[0]: https://github.com/lis-epfl/vswarm