Messages

1

Technical Support / Re: Yet again - ghost target 100 feet above

« on: August 06, 2018, 10:20:30 am »

Wilco.... hope to get them this evening and will send to you....

Hi Steve

had a brief look at your tracks, can you please confirm, are you selecting :-

Mode-CS, or
Mode-CS+Filter

Your tracks would indicate the Filter is not enabled.

Thx
Lee

Hi Lee,

previously it was enabled, now it was just set on Mode-CS. Have set it to Mode-CS+Filter. Thanks.

2

Technical Support / Re: Yet again - ghost target 100 feet above

« on: August 01, 2018, 08:35:20 am »

Hi all
Can I get track files in order to verify ?
Thx
Lee

Wilco.... hope to get them this evening and will send to you....

3

Technical Support / Re: Yet again - ghost target 100 feet above

« on: July 30, 2018, 09:15:13 pm »

Hi Lee,

my transponder is a GTX330ES, non ADS-B out and if you have a new release to test, please let me know, I'd love to trial it.

Thanks.

4

Technical Support / Yet again - ghost target 100 feet above

« on: July 29, 2018, 07:21:05 pm »

Up until about 3 months ago, my Pilotaware was running fine, however just recently (since updating to the latest version from May) it has started to show a ghost target 100 feet above me, no direction. Occasionally it will show as level. It doesn't show an ID, I'm pretty sure it's a ghost but what can have changed since the update?

My settings are correct, anyone got any hints what to test next? I've not moved anything around, It's all fitted as previously..... Cheers!

5

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: June 11, 2018, 05:23:58 pm »

Hi Lee, went flying this weekend, the latest update seems to have resolved the issue. Skydemon on the iPad kept the GPS signal good and strong, all well. The only problem is that I have plugged in the audio output into my audio switchboard and coming in to land, all I could hear was 'warning, traffic, 11 o clock, 200 feet lower. alter.....

But I'm not complaining, I just decided that in the pattern, I would switch the audio on to pilot isolation, I then don't heard the audio inputs, just my passengers whose heads continuously rotate as they search for the gliders with flarm running 

6

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: June 07, 2018, 09:13:54 pm »

Sorry, not been flying since upgrading but when I do get a chance, will update you. Cheers!

7

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: June 07, 2018, 06:25:41 pm »

Hi Lee, didn't you get my PM? Will send it again.....

8

General Discussion / Re: new user of rosseta

« on: June 04, 2018, 11:08:06 pm »

Just adding my comments to this topic. I was in the same position as others here, I initially had a Zaon MRX running, experimented with PAW, built my first unit using the original bridge, continued experimenting more but eventually put it away, similar as others have done, basically because there were cables everywhere and it looked a mess. Then last year I bought a Flarm Eagle and connected it up to my PAW and since then it is incredible the number of gliders I have been able to spot. At that point I really looked at antenna positioning, found a nice box to contain it all, tidied it up, since then never looked back..

The picture below is a screenshot of a glider circling 200 feet above me. Without Flarm added to PAW, the chances are, I might not have known, especially as I tend to fly outside the reach of stations where OGN could be transmitted to me.

*

The cost of Flarm Eagle was around €700 and the range is more than adequate - I tested the reception range of my PowerFlarm and was being seen 40km away. Even if Gliders transmit at a lower power level and I only get to see them from 5km, they will still see me a looooong way off....

Also, with Flarm Eagle, I have been able to remove the GPS from the PAW, using just the GPS from the Flarm Eagle so fewer cables and it works better than (e.g.) the Flarm Mouse GPS seemed to perform  (however my plane is admittedly a plastic airplane so I don't know how it's suitability in your typical P28A / C172 Spam Can would be  )

Since adding the Flarm Eagle, I don't fly anywhere without PAW on, it works and I see so much traffic whereas in the past, I thought I was truly on my own, in this big open sky so if you're doubting it, I would certainly recommend you spend the time and money to get the system running. I also spent the time sorting my aerials, tidying the cables up - the installation now looks clean.

The competition I used to run during a flight - you know the one: - who spots traffic first, one of my passengers or I - has now become a competition: - who spots traffic before PAW / Flarm does? Flarm / PAW is winning by around 2000:0 - at least, I can't recall not seeing an aircraft without it being on my screen.....

The lower picture was a screenshot taken on a day with cloud ceilings at 1200 feet, I was scud running and had just departed from EDLB and was heading toward EDDG - the turn north after departure was to set me on direct track towards my destination. You can see the two dutch aircraft flying close to each other at my height. Once they became visible on my system, I diverted east and flew in behind them. Just imagine neither of us knew the other were there.....



At the end of the day, the lookout still needs to be as vigilant as ever but to be honest, seeing 90% of the traffic out there electronically is better than only seeing (e.g.) 50% and missing the rest....


*server where the picture is hosted is offline between 2am and 8am to save energy

9

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: May 29, 2018, 02:10:19 pm »

Hi Lee, it was using an old version from earlier this year so have updated it to May 20th 2018, will see if that helps. At the same time, do you want the tracks from the flights where the problem became apparent? I have 4 flights, each of around 1 - 2 hours duration over the past 2 weeks however the track file is a few MB large. I have uploaded them to my own server, if you want, I will PM you the link.....

10

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: May 27, 2018, 01:47:13 pm »

Hi Lee,

when I get back to the plane, I will advise re software. To answer some of the questions:

I have two Samsung Notes (one the version 3, one the Note Edge) and I always have one or the other connected for traffic, the other is in flight mode to save battery. Both of these phones run Sky Map as moving map. My friend has an iPad running Sky Demon. Because of the issues yesterday, I switched my Note 3 over to view the Pilotaware homepage and saw all green, minimum 8, max 10 satellites seen.

Due to having real Flarm on board, I could access the signal strength website for transmissions and note that the average GPS accuracy is 2m so I don't think the issue is due to the GPS antenna, this is , as Ian noted, an external antenna similar to the Dongle I used to use, significantly smaller, SMA connector.

Once I get back to the airfield, I will download the track and check the software status. Thanks.

11

Technical Support / Re: PAW occasionally loses GPS signal

« on: May 27, 2018, 08:54:23 am »

My friend and I went flying yesterday and on my android phone (Note 3), using either SkyMap or just accessing the internal website, all was good however my buddy had a similar issue as mentioned above with SD running and losing the GPS signal, showing a message 'lost GPS signal, 9 found'.

On my Note, navigation was still there, as were traffic indications. I then actualised the PAW website and saw that all the boxes were green, that the GPS Fix was 3D, showing between 8 and 10 satellites. I was picking up traffic all over the place but SD was losing the signal regularly. SD would then pick up the signal for maybe 25 seconds, then lose it for a minute or so. Totally unreliable.

With regards the unit's software stand, it was recently updated but as it is currently in the plane as I speak, I can't check. It just surprised me that using the traffic radar or Sky Map, I was not having any issues yet my friend was getting extremely frustrated with the iPad and Sky Demon. Was one of the updates specifically to resolve this issue with SD?

FYI: my system has Flarm Eagle attached and I am using the Flarm Eagle GPS as the source of GPS position, not any dongle (I have one but disconnected it when I added Flarm Eagle....)

12

General Discussion / Re: USB FTDI LEDs

« on: January 22, 2018, 05:37:42 pm »

If so, I can now see everything on a display without needing to output it to Wifi. What intrigues me most is that the Flarm View II can also be used for navigation, can display way points, airspace, differentiate between airstrips with grass and with tarmac runways etc.

As can most navigation systems and generally on a larger, more readable screen.

Yes but the Flarm View II isn't a navigation system, it's just a screen - and (in aviation terms) cheap. Usually a screen would just display traffic. This would display traffic and position and airspace etc...

Concerning PCAS, I also have been using the MRX since 2012, it ran alongside PAW but as the Flarm Eagle needs to use the 12v socket, it might be consigned to the cupboard....

Pretty much the same with me, except that I could never get mine to run on the aircraft 12 volt supply. I tried that when I first installed it and it completely wiped out my comms with white noise. I remember telephoning Zaon in the States about the problem after several attempts to fix it and their 'best suggestion' was to run the Zaon off my aircraft's 'second power supply' to keep it separate from the one supplying the other comms gear. In my case that turned out to be the two 'AA' batteries 

No problems from my side, the MRX worked perfectly, no interference whatsoever.....

13

General Discussion / Re: USB FTDI LEDs

« on: January 21, 2018, 12:57:37 pm »

Thanks, Peter, for your input.

The size of the Flarm Eagle is about the size of a pack of paper handkerchiefs.....

Thanks for that Steve, definitely helps picture the size, but I can't get the picture of Ian M with his paper handerchiefs out of my head now    (sorry Ian)

I am trying to 'justify' buying yet another device at present, but am torn between the potential ease and reliability of LXNav's PowerMouse with its USB and 2 x Data Ports and the the Eagle's Dedicated Power supply (I used to have PFC but never liked the idea of supplying the power via a data lead). I already run ADSB, via a TT21 with dedicated GPS (installed pre-PAW), PilotAware with FlarmMouse (I actually have 2 x FlarmMouses...(Mice?) as that was the only way I could carry out my initial testing when we were trying to integrate it with PilotAware) and a Zaon MRX (used since 2009, but not so often these days - except for comparison, so will be interested to hear how you get on.

Best Regards

Peter

I don't understand the reference to the Flarm Eagle power - yes, it can supply 12v to an external display but the 12v isn't going elsewhere in my setup so I don't see what benefit that would be.

Coming back to Ian's point about the PAW being able to transmit to the Flarm - I'm  reading references to about (e.g.) the FLARM View II from LX Nav (not to be confused with the makers of Flarm Eagle, LXNavigation being able to display ADS-B traffic from (eg) a PCAS system. Imagine the following:

If I input the data from the Flarm into PAW, would PAW combine it and output it to a display - without the need for Wifi? If so, I can now see everything on a display without needing to output it to Wifi. What intrigues me most is that the Flarm View II can also be used for navigation, can display way points, airspace, differentiate between airstrips with grass and with tarmac runways etc.

My thoughts are to reengineer the FTDI cable such that it terminates in 2 x RJ12 cables - i.e. cut an RJ12 cable in half, reconnect the 12v pins and ground pins together to ensure continuity - that way the Flarm View is powered directly by the Flarm Eagle. 

One end of the RJ12 would be deemed input to PAW - I would then connect pin 3 and 4 of that RJ12 socket to the Data In / ground of the FTDI, this end of the RJ12 I would connect to the Flarm Eagle. The other end would be output - I would then connect pin 3 and 5 of the other end of the RJ12 cable to the Data out of the FTDI and connect this to the Flarm View 2.

If the PAW outputs all traffic on the TX line, then I have a complete system displaying Flarm / PAW / ADSB on a display without the need for any wifi, so I could remove that dongle. The only question I am left with is the airspace - apparently it accepts CUB files for this, but I haven't a clue where I would get them from and keep them updated.....

Concerning PCAS, I also have been using the MRX since 2012, it ran alongside PAW but as the Flarm Eagle needs to use the 12v socket, it might be consigned to the cupboard....

14

General Discussion / Re: USB FTDI LEDs

« on: January 21, 2018, 09:03:45 am »

Thanks, Peter, for your input.

I disconnected the GPS aerial from the PAW and fired it up yesterday afternoon and everything worked. Green light was merrily flashing away but unfortunately due to weather, no Flarm traffic to be received. On the home page of the PAW web server  I could see that it was using Flarm as the basis for GPS source so all good....

The size of the Flarm Eagle is about the size of a pack of paper handkerchiefs.....

15

General Discussion / Re: USB FTDI LEDs

« on: January 20, 2018, 08:47:38 pm »

Have they actually said they will detect A/C/S with a Flarm Eagle? Which will need an additional antenna to receive anything on 1090 anyway?

Yes, that is the Plan. Currently, with the official PowerFlarm you can buy either the PowerFlarm Pure (only Flarm) or PowerFlarm ADS-B. The latter shows Mode C / S (no A), Flarm and ADS-B. The unit used in the Flarm Eagle is Power Flarm Pure.

The makers of Flarm Eagle have said they will be offering an upgrade for the Flarm Eagle which will convert it from PowerFlarm Pure to PowerFlarm ADS-B. Now, they have some space to fit a third Antenna but that is usually used for antenna diversity in the Flarm Eagle Pro so maybe it's either diversity for Flarm OR ADS-B. I am waiting to see what the upgrade will cost......