The status an RTK receiver reports when it has corrections but cannot yet resolve integer ambiguities. Positions in float wander by decimetres and heights by more, which wrecks ellipsoid-referenced depths. Crews watch the fix status constantly; dropping to float under bridges, near tall ships or far from the base is a reason to pause logging or plan to post-process.
We dropped to float behind the warehouse again, flag those lines for PPK.
Also heard as
- RTK float
- float solution
Do not mix it up with
- Fix: An RTK fixed solution has resolved its ambiguities and holds centimetre accuracy; a float solution has not.
Related terms
RTK
Real-time kinematic: GNSS positioning that uses carrier-phase corrections from a base station to reach centimetres live.
PPK
Post-processed kinematic: GNSS positions computed after the survey from logged rover and base data, at centimetre level.
GNSS
Global navigation satellite systems: satellite positioning such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou, used together.
Nav
Shorthand for the vessel's positioning data stream, or for the positioning system as a whole.