Power the Reach for Ditch Assist Lite

In Ditch Assist® Lite nothing on the machine powers the receiver: there's no control module and no cable to the cab. The Reach runs on its own battery. Plan the day around it and it won't let you down.

Two words used below: the rover is the Reach on your machine. The base is a second Reach on a tripod that sends RTK corrections to it, if you use one.

What you need

• A USB charger and cable for the receiver
• For long days: a USB power bank and a USB-C cable, and a way to strap the power bank to the mount
• For a base: the Ditch Assist base power cable and a 12 V battery, or a USB power bank

Time: an overnight charge. Nothing to set up in the app.

On the machine (rover)

1. Charge it every night

   Take the Reach off the machine and charge it like a phone. A full charge lasts about a working day as an RTK rover on the machine.

2. For longer days, add a power bank

   Strap a USB power bank to the mount. Run a USB-C cable from it into the bottom of the receiver. It powers the Reach and keeps its battery topped up. Swap or charge the power bank as needed.

At the base

A base uses more power than a rover because its radio sends corrections all day. Run it on outside power, an RS4 base especially:

• The Ditch Assist base power cable, clamped to a 12 V battery's terminals, or
• A USB power bank at the tripod.

Base setup: Set up an RTK base.

The tablet

Keep the tablet on the cab charger. It's the only cord in a Ditch Assist Lite setup.

If the receiver switches off

• Guidance pauses, then the app says the connection is lost: the Reach has stopped. The app keeps trying every 2 seconds. It reconnects by itself once the receiver is back on and the tablet has joined its Wi-Fi again. See If the Reach goes quiet.
• Back on, but no RTK yet: give it a minute to get RTK Fixed again before you grade.
• The base died: after it restarts, calibrate to your benchmark before you grade.

Battery health and charging details for the receiver itself are in Emlid's own documentation.